Determination of nuclear receptor corepressor interactions with the thyroid hormone receptor

The thyroid hormone receptor (TR) recruits the nuclear corepressors, nuclear receptor corepressor (NCoR) and silencing mediator of retinoid and thyroid hormone receptors (SMRT), to target DNA elements in the absence of ligand. While the TR preferentially recruits NCoR, the mechanism remains unclear. The corepressors interact with the TR via interacting domains (IDs) present in their C terminus which contain a conserved motif termed a CoRNR box. Despite their similarity, the corepressor IDs allow for nuclear receptor specificity. Here we demonstrate that NCoR stabilizes the TR homodimer when bound to DNA by preventing its dissociation from thyroid hormone response elements. This suggests that NCoR acts to hold the repression complex in place on target elements. The TR homodimer recruits NCoR through two of its three IDs, one of which is not present in SMRT. This unique ID, N3, contains a CoRNR box but lacks the extended helical motif present in each of the other IDs. Instead, N3 contains an isoleucine just proximal to this motif. This isoleucine is also conserved in N2 but not in the corresponding S2 domain in SMRT. On thyroid hormone response elements and in mammalian cells this residue is critical in both N3 and N2 for high-affinity TR binding. In addition, this residue also controls specificity for the interactions of TR with NCoR. Together these data suggest that the specific recruitment of NCoR by the TR through a unique motif allows for stabilization of the repression complex on target elements.     

The nuclear corepressors recognize distinct nuclear receptor complexes

The thyroid hormone receptor (TR) and retinoic acid receptor (RAR) isoforms have the capacity to silence gene expression in the absence of their ligands on target response elements. This active repression is mediated by the ability of the corepressors, nuclear receptor corepressor (NCoR) and silencing mediator of retinoid and thyroid hormone receptors (SMRT), to recruit a complex containing histone deacetylase activity. Interestingly, NCoR and SMRT share significant differences in the their two nuclear receptor-interacting domains (IDs), suggesting that they may recruit receptors with different affinities. In addition, the role of the receptor complex bound to a response element has not been fully evaluated in its ability to recruit separate corepressors. We demonstrate in this report that the proximal ID in NCoR and SMRT, which share only 23% homology, allows preferential recognition of nuclear receptors, such that TR prefers to recruit NCoR, and RAR prefers to recruit SMRT, to DNA response elements. However, mutations in the TR found in the syndromes of resistance to thyroid hormone can change the corepressor recruited by changing the complex (homodimer or heterodimer) formed on the TRE. These results demonstrate that the corepressor complex recruited can be both nuclear receptor- and receptor complex-specific.     

Determinants of CoRNR-dependent repression complex assembly on nuclear hormone receptors

Ligand-dependent exchange of coactivators and corepressors is the fundamental regulator of nuclear hormone receptor (NHR) function. The interaction surfaces of coactivators and corepressors are similar but distinct enough to allow the ligand to function as a switch. Multiple NHRs share features that allow corepressor binding, and each of two distinct corepressors (N-CoR and SMRT) contains two similar CoRNR motifs that interact with NHRs. Here we report that the specificity of corepressor-NHR interaction is determined by the individual NHR interacting with specific CoRNR boxes within a preferred corepressor. First, receptors have distinct preferences for CoRNR1 versus CoRNR2. For example, the retinoic acid receptor binds CoRNR1, while RXR interacts almost exclusively with CoRNR2. Second, the NHR preference for N-CoR or SMRT is due to differences in CoRNR1 but not CoRNR2. Moreover, within a single corepressor, affinity for different NHRs is determined by distinct regions flanking CoRNR1. The highly specific determinants of NHR-corepressor interaction and preference suggest that repression is regulated by the permissibility of selected receptor-CoRNR-corepressor combinations. Interestingly, different NHR surfaces contribute to binding of CoRNR1 and CoRNR2, suggesting a model to explain corepressor binding to NHR heterodimers.     

Interaction of the corepressor Alien with DAX-1 is abrogated by mutations of DAX-1 involved in adrenal hypoplasia congenita

DAX-1 is an unusual member of the nuclear hormone receptor (NHR) superfamily. Lack of DAX-1-mediated silencing leads to adrenal hypoplasia congenita and hypogonadotropic hypogonadism. Gene silencing through NHRs such as the thyroid hormone receptor (TR) is mediated by corepressors. We have previously characterized a novel corepressor, termed Alien, which interacts with TR and the ecdysone receptor but not with the retinoic acid receptors RAR or RXR. Here, we show that DAX-1 interacts with the corepressor Alien but not with the corepressor SMRT. This interaction is mediated by the DAX-1-silencing domain. Naturally occurring mutants of the DAX-1 gene fail to interact with Alien and have lost silencing function. Because the silencing domain of DAX-1 is unusual for NHRs, we mapped the interaction of Alien with DAX-1 and with TR. We show that Alien exhibits different binding characteristics to DAX-1 and TR. Furthermore, Northern experiments demonstrate that Alien is expressed in the adrenal gland and testis in tissues where DAX-1 is specifically expressed. Interestingly, a novel adrenal gland-specific mRNA of Alien was discovered. Thus, the impairment of Alien binding seems to play an important role in the pathogenesis mediated by DAX-1 mutants.     

Thyroxine promotes association of mitogen-activated protein kinase and nuclear thyroid hormone receptor (TR) and causes serine phosphorylation of TR

Activated nongenomically by l-thyroxine (T(4)), mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) complexed in 10-20 min with endogenous nuclear thyroid hormone receptor (TRbeta1 or TR) in nuclear fractions of 293T cells, resulting in serine phosphorylation of TR. Treatment of cells with the MAPK kinase inhibitor, PD 98059, prevented both T(4)-induced nuclear MAPK-TR co-immunoprecipitation and serine phosphorylation of TR. T(4) treatment caused dissociation of TR and SMRT (silencing mediator of retinoid and thyroid hormone receptor), an effect also inhibited by PD 98059 and presumptively a result of association of nuclear MAPK with TR. Transfection into CV-1 cells of TR gene constructs in which one or both zinc fingers in the TR DNA-binding domain were replaced with those from the glucocorticoid receptor localized the site of TR phosphorylation by T(4)-activated MAPK to a serine in the second zinc finger of the TR DNA-binding domain. In an in vitro cell- and hormone-free system, purified activated MAPK phosphorylated recombinant human TRbeta1 (). Thus, T(4) activates MAPK and causes MAPK-mediated serine phosphorylation of TRbeta1 and dissociation of TR and the co-repressor SMRT.     

Differential recruitment of nuclear coregulators directs the isoform-dependent action of mutant thyroid hormone receptors

Studies using mice deficient in thyroid hormone receptors (TR) indicate that the two TR isoforms, TRα1 and TRβ1, in addition to mediating overlapping biological activities of the thyroid hormone, T3, also mediate distinct functions. Mice harboring an identical dominant negative mutation (denoted PV) at the C terminus of TRα1 (Thra1(PV) mice) or β1 (Thrb(PV) mice) also exhibit distinct phenotypes. These knockin mutant mice provide an opportunity to understand the molecular basis of isoform-dependent functions in vivo. Here we tested the hypothesis that the distinct functions of TR mutant isoforms are directed by a subset of nuclear regulatory proteins. Tandem-affinity chromatography of HeLa nuclear extracts showed that distinct 33 nuclear proteins including nuclear receptor corepressor (NCoR1) and six other proteins preferentially associated with TRα1PV or TRβ1PV, respectively. These results indicate that recruitment of nuclear regulatory proteins by TR mutants is subtype dependent. The involvement of NCoR1 in mediating the distinct liver phenotype of Thra1(PV) and Thrb(PV) mice was further explored. NCoR1 preferentially interacted with TRα1PV rather than with TRβ1PV. NCoR1 was recruited more avidly to the thyroid hormone response element-bound TRα1PV than to TRβ1PV in the promoter of the CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein α gene to repress its expression in the liver of Thra1(PV) mice, but not in Thrb(PV) mice. This preferential recruitment of NCoR1 by mutant isoforms could contribute, at least in part, to the distinct liver lipid phenotype of these mutant mice. The present study highlights a novel mechanism by which TR isoforms direct their selective functions via preferential recruitment of a subset of nuclear coregulatory proteins.     

Corepressor binding to progesterone and glucocorticoid receptors involves the activation function-1 domain and is inhibited by molybdate

Corepressors are known to interact via their receptor interaction domains (RIDs) with the ligand binding domain in the carboxyl terminal half of steroid/nuclear receptors. We now report that a portion of the activation function-1 domain of glucocorticoid receptors (GRs) and progesterone receptors (PRs), which is the major transactivation sequence, is necessary but not sufficient for corepressor [nuclear receptor corepressor (NCoR) and silencing mediator of retinoid and thyroid hormone receptor (SMRT)] RID binding to GRs and PRs in both mammalian two-hybrid and coimmunoprecipitation assays. Importantly, these two receptor sequences are functionally interchangeable in the context of GR for transactivation, corepressor binding, and corepressor modulatory activity assays. This suggests that corepressors may act in part by physically blocking portions of receptor activation function-1 domains. However, differences exist in corepressor binding to GRs and PRs. The C-terminal domain of PRs has a higher affinity for corepressor than that of GRs. The ability of some segments of the coactivator TIF2 to competitively inhibit corepressor binding to receptors is different for GRs and PRs. With each receptor, the cell-free binding of corepressors to ligand-free receptor is prevented by sodium molybdate, which is a well-known inhibitor of receptor activation to the DNA-binding state. This suggests that receptor activation precedes binding to corepressors. Collectively, these results indicate that corepressor binding to GRs and PRs involve both N- and C-terminal sequences of activated receptors but differ in ways that may contribute to the unique biological responses of each receptor in intact cells.     

An LXXLL motif in nuclear receptor corepressor mediates ligand-induced repression of the thyroid stimulating hormone-beta gene

Nuclear receptor corepressor (N-CoR) regulates gene expression through interaction with DNA-bound nuclear receptors, recruiting multicomponent repressor complexes to the sites of target genes. We recently reported the presence of an LXXLL motif in N-CoR, and showed that this motif interacts in vitro and in vivo with retinoic acid receptor alpha (RARalpha) and thyroid hormone receptor beta (TRbeta). Transient transfection experiments now suggest that TRbeta and N-CoR act synergistically and may both be required for ligand-induced repression from the negative TR response element in the thyroid stimulating hormone-beta (TSHbeta) gene promoter. Mutation of the LXXLL motif in N-CoR abolished ligand-induced repression at this response element. Furthermore, in vitro binding of N-CoR to a complex between TRbeta and the negative TR response element was strictly ligand-dependent. We conclude that N-CoR and TRbeta cooperate in the regulation of the TSHbeta gene and that the ligand-dependent repression is mediated by the LXXLL motif in N-CoR.