Mutational analysis of calmodulin in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

Calmodulin is well characterized as an intracellular Ca2+ receptor in nonproliferating tissues such as muscle and brain. Several observations indicate that calmodulin is also required for cellular growth and division. Deletion of the calmodulin gene is a lethal mutation in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Schizosaccharomyces pombe and Aspergillus nidulans. Expression of calmodulin antisense RNA in mouse C127 cells causes a transient arrest at G1 and metaphase. Although these results indicate calmodulin plays a critical function during proliferation, they do not reveal the function. S. cerevisiae offers an excellent system for identifying calmodulin functions. Because calmodulin mutants can be readily constructed by gene replacement the consequences of mutations in calmodulin can be directly examined in vivo without interference from wild-type calmodulin. The available wealth of information concerning all aspects of the yeast life cycle provides a large framework for interpretation of new results. The recent dissection of cell cycle regulation is just the latest example of the important insights provided by analyzing basic cellular processes in yeast. Whether studies of calmodulin in yeast will reveal a universal function is unknown. One encouraging result is that yeast cells relying on vertebrate calmodulin as their only source of calmodulin survive and grow well, even if the amount of vertebrate calmodulin is equivalent to the normal steady state levels of yeast calmodulin. This review discusses the varied techniques we are using to identify the functions of calmodulin in yeast. As part of the analysis, we are defining the essential elements of calmodulin structure.     

Kv7 channels can function without constitutive calmodulin tethering

M-channels are voltage-gated potassium channels composed of Kv7.2-7.5 subunits that serve as important regulators of neuronal excitability. Calmodulin binding is required for Kv7 channel function and mutations in Kv7.2 that disrupt calmodulin binding cause Benign Familial Neonatal Convulsions (BFNC), a dominantly inherited human epilepsy. On the basis that Kv7.2 mutants deficient in calmodulin binding are not functional, calmodulin has been defined as an auxiliary subunit of Kv7 channels. However, we have identified a presumably phosphomimetic mutation S511D that permits calmodulin-independent function. Thus, our data reveal that constitutive tethering of calmodulin is not required for Kv7 channel function.     

Calmodulin concentrates at regions of cell growth in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Calmodulin was localized in Saccharomyces cerevisiae by indirect immunofluorescence using affinity-purified polyclonal antibodies. Calmodulin displays an asymmetric distribution that changes during the cell cycle. In unbudded cells, calmodulin concentrates at the presumptive site of bud formation approximately 10 min before bud emergence. In small budded cells, calmodulin accumulates throughout the bud. As the bud grows, calmodulin concentrates at the tip, then disperses, and finally concentrates in the neck region before cytokinesis. An identical staining pattern is observed when wild-type calmodulin is replaced with mutant forms of calmodulin impaired in binding Ca2+. Thus, the localization of calmodulin does not depend on its ability to bind Ca2+ with a high affinity. Double labeling of yeast cells with affinity-purified anti-calmodulin antibody and rhodamine-conjugated phalloidin indicates that calmodulin and actin concentrate in overlapping regions during the cell cycle. Furthermore, disrupting calmodulin function using a temperature-sensitive calmodulin mutant delocalizes actin, and act1-4 mutants contain a random calmodulin distribution. Thus, calmodulin and actin distributions are interdependent. Finally, calmodulin localizes to the shmoo tip in cells treated with alpha-factor. This distribution, at sites of cell growth, implicates calmodulin in polarized cell growth in yeast.     

Distinct functions of calmodulin are required for the uptake step of receptor-mediated endocytosis in yeast: the type I myosin Myo5p is one of the calmodulin targets.

The uptake step of receptor-mediated endocytosis in yeast is dependent on the calcium binding protein calmodulin (Cmd1p). In order to understand the role that Cmd1p plays, a search was carried out for possible targets among the genes required for the internalization process. Co-immunoprecipitation, two-hybrid and overlay assays demonstrated that Cmd1p interacts with Myo5p, a type I unconventional myosin. Analysis of the endocytic phenotype and the Cmd1p-Myo5p interaction in thermosensitive cmd1 mutants indicated that the Cmd1p-Myo5p interaction is required for endocytosis in vivo. However, the Cmd1p-Myo5p interaction requirement was partially overcome by deleting the calmodulin binding sites (IQ motifs) from Myo5p, suggesting that these motifs inhibit Myo5p function. Additionally, genetic and biochemical evidence obtained with a collection of cmd1 mutant alleles strongly suggests that Cmd1p plays an additional role in the internalization step of receptor-mediated endocytosis in yeast.     

Can calmodulin function without binding calcium?

Calmodulin is a small Ca(2+)-binding protein proposed to act as the intracellular Ca2+ receptor that translates Ca2+ signals into cellular responses. We have constructed mutant yeast calmodulins in which the Ca(2+)-binding loops have been altered by site-directed mutagenesis. Each of the mutant proteins has a dramatically reduced affinity for Ca2+; one does not bind detectable levels of 45Ca2+ either during gel filtration or when bound to a solid support. Furthermore, none of the mutant proteins change conformation even in the presence of high Ca2+ concentrations. Surprisingly, yeast strains relying on any of the mutant calmodulins not only survive but grow well. In contrast, yeast strains deleted for the calmodulin gene are not viable. Thus, calmodulin is required for growth, but it can perform its essential function without the apparent ability to bind Ca2+.     

Structural analysis of wild-type and mutant yeast calmodulins by limited proteolysis and electrospray ionization mass spectrometry.

Calmodulin from Saccharomyces cerevisiae was expressed in Escherichia coli and purified. The purified protein was structurally characterized using limited proteolysis followed by ESI mass spectrometry to identify the fragments. In the presence of Ca2+, yeast calmodulin is sequentially cleaved at arginine 126, then lysine 115, and finally at lysine 77. The rapid cleavage at Arg-126 suggests that the fourth Ca(2+)-binding loop does not bind Ca2+. In the presence of EGTA, yeast calmodulin is more susceptible to proteolysis and is preferentially cleaved at Lys-106. In addition, mutant proteins carrying I100N, E104V or both mutations, which together confer temperature sensitivity to yeast, were characterized. The mutant proteins are more susceptible than wild-type calmodulin to proteolysis, suggesting that each mutation disrupts the structure of calmodulin. Furthermore, whereas wild-type calmodulin is cut at Lys-106 only in the presence of EGTA, this cleavage site is accessible in the mutants in the presence of Ca2+ as well. In these ways, the structural consequence of each mutation mimics the loss of a calcium ion in the third loop. In addition, although wild-type calmodulin binds to four proteins in a yeast crude extract in the presence of Ca2+, the mutants bind only to a subset of these. Thus, the inability to adopt the stable Ca(2+)-bound conformation in the third Ca(2+)-binding loop alters the ability of calmodulin to interact with yeast proteins in a Ca(2+)-dependent manner.     

Yeast calmodulin localizes to sites of cell growth

Summary Intracellular localization of calmodulin was examined in the budding yeast,Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Distribution of calmodulin changes in a characteristic way during the cell cycle. Calmodulin localizes to a patch at the presumptive bud site of unbudded cells. It concentrates at the bud tip in small-budded cells, and later it diffuses throughout the entire bud. At cytokinesis, calmodulin is largely at the neck between the mother and daughter cells. Double staining experiments have shown that the location of some polarized actin dots is coincident with that of calmodulin dots. Polarized localization of actin dots is observed in cells depleted of calmodulin, suggesting that calmodulin is not required for localization of the actin dots. Thecdc24 mutant that has a defect in bud assembly at the restrictive temperature fails to exhibit polarized localization of calmodulin, indicating that theCDC24 gene product is responsible for controlling the polarity of calmodulin.     

Purification and biochemical properties of calmodulin from Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Calmodulin from the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae was purified to complete homogeneity by hydrophobic interaction chromatography and HPLC gel filtration. The biochemical properties of the purified protein as calmodulin were examined under various criteria and its similarity and dissimilarity to other calmodulins have been described. Like other calmodulins, yeast calmodulin activated bovine phosphodiesterase and pea NAD kinase in a Ca2+-dependent manner, but its concentration for half-maximal activation was 8-10 times that of bovine calmodulin. The amino acid composition of yeast calmodulin was different from those of calmodulins from other lower eukaryotes in that it contained no tyrosine, but more leucine and had a high ratio of serine to threonine. Yeast calmodulin did not contain tryptophanyl or tyrosyl residues, so its ultraviolet spectrum reflected the absorbance of phenylalanyl residues, and had a molar absorption coefficient at 259 nm of 1900 M-1 cm-1. Ca2+ ions changed the secondary structure of yeast calmodulin, causing a 3% decrease in the alpha-helical content, unlike its effect on other calmodulins. Antibody against yeast calmodulin did not cross-react with bovine calmodulin, and antibody against bovine calmodulin did not cross-react with yeast calmodulin, presumably due to differences in the amino acid sequences of the antigenic sites. It is concluded that the molecular structure of yeast calmodulin differs from those of calmodulins from other sources, but that its Ca2+-dependent regulatory functions are highly conserved and essentially similar to those of calmodulins of higher eukaryotes.     

Yeast calmodulin: structural and functional differences compared with vertebrate calmodulin

Calmodulin of the baker's yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) showed a similar affinity for Ca2+ to that of vertebrate calmodulin. The maximum binding number of Ca2+ to yeast calmodulin was, however, 3 mol/mol, which is lower than that of vertebrate calmodulin (4 mol/mol). The same maximum activity of porcine brain phosphodiesterase was attained when 100 times higher concentration of yeast calmodulin than that of vertebrate calmodulin was added. On the other hand, the maximum activation of chicken gizzard myosin light chain kinase was attained with 1,000 times higher concentration of yeast calmodulin than that of vertebrate calmodulin, and the maximum activity with yeast calmodulin was less than 1/5 of that with vertebrate calmodulin. Several amino acid substitutions observed in the yeast calmodulin, particularly at the alpha-helical rod connecting the two globular domains, may affect the interaction mode of various target enzymes with this calmodulin.     

Yeast calmodulin: structural and functional elements essential for the cell cycle.

The budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae is a suitable organism for studying calmodulin function in cell proliferation. Genetic studies in yeast demonstrate that vertebrate calmodulin can functionally replace yeast calmodulin. In addition, expression of half of the yeast calmodulin molecule is found to be sufficient for cell growth. Characterization of conditional-lethal mutants of yeast calmodulin as well as the intracellular distribution of calmodulin have suggested that at least two cell cycle steps require calmodulin function. One is nuclear division and the other is the maintenance of cell polarity. A current focus is to understand which kinds of target proteins are involved in mediating the essential functions of yeast calmodulin in these processes. Thus far, three yeast enzymes whose activity is regulated by calmodulin have been identified.     

Functional interactions between the p35 subunit of the Arp2/3 complex and calmodulin in yeast

The end9-1 (arc35-1) mutant was identified as an endocytosis mutant and is a mutant allele of ARC35 that encodes a subunit of the Arp2/3 complex. As for other mutants in the Arp2/3 complex, arc35-1 is defective for endocytosis and organization of the actin cytoskeleton. Both defects can be suppressed by overexpression of calmodulin. Analysis of a collection of temperature-sensitive cmd1 mutants for their ability to suppress either the endocytic defect and/or the actin defect indicates that the two defects are tightly coupled. We demonstrate that Arc35p and Cmd1p interact and that Arc35p is required for cortical localization of calmodulin. This is the first report linking Arp2/3 complex function with calmodulin through which it exercises at least one of its endocytic functions.     

Determinants for calmodulin binding on voltage-dependent Ca2+ channels

Calmodulin, bound to the alpha(1) subunit of the cardiac L-type calcium channel, is required for calcium-dependent inactivation of this channel. Several laboratories have suggested that the site of interaction of calmodulin with the channel is an IQ-like motif in the carboxyl-terminal region of the alpha(1) subunit. Mutations in this IQ motif are linked to L-type Ca(2+) current (I(Ca)) facilitation and inactivation. IQ peptides from L, P/Q, N, and R channels all bind Ca(2+)calmodulin but not Ca(2+)-free calmodulin. Another peptide representing a carboxyl-terminal sequence found only in L-type channels (designated the CB domain) binds Ca(2+)calmodulin and enhances Ca(2+)-dependent I(Ca) facilitation in cardiac myocytes, suggesting the CB domain is functionally important. Calmodulin blocks the binding of an antibody specific for the CB sequence to the skeletal muscle L-type Ca(2+) channel, suggesting that this is a calmodulin binding site on the intact protein. The binding of the IQ and CB peptides to calmodulin appears to be competitive, signifying that the two sequences represent either independent or alternative binding sites for calmodulin rather than both sequences contributing to a single binding site.     

Endocytosis in yeast: several of the yeast secretory mutants are defective in endocytosis

Yeast cells have been shown to internalize lucifer yellow CH by endocytosis. Internalization of the fluorescent dye is time-, temperature-, and energy-dependent, it is not saturable, and the dye is accumulated in the vacuole. Some of the yeast secretory mutants that accumulate endoplasmic reticulum or Golgi bodies are defective for endocytosis at restrictive temperature, while others are not. All of the mutants that accumulate secretory vesicles are defective for endocytosis. These results suggest that efficient transport of proteins from the endoplasmic reticulum to the Golgi apparatus and from the Golgi to secretory vesicles is not necessary for endocytosis. In contrast, endocytosis may be obligatorily coupled with the latest steps of secretion.     

Investigation of the mechanism of calcium binding to calmodulin. Use of an isofunctional mutant with a tryptophan introduced by site-directed mutagenesis

A mutant calmodulin, in which phenylalanine 99 of calcium binding site III was changed to a tryptophan by using cassette-based, site-directed mutagenesis, has been used to analyze the mechanism of calcium binding. The combined study of direct calcium binding, modification of tryptophan fluorescence properties upon calcium binding, and terbium titration allows some discrimination among proposed mechanisms of cation binding to calmodulin. Calmodulin appears to have six cation binding sites, four of which are selective for calcium, that seem to be coupled. Under a given set of conditions, these calcium-selective sites are not identical. In addition to providing insight into the mechanisms of calcium modulation of calmodulin, these studies demonstrate the feasibility of using isofunctional, tryptophan-containing mutants of proteins to gain insight into protein-ligand interaction.     

Structural basis for the interaction of the myosin light chain Mlc1p with the myosin V Myo2p IQ motifs

Calmodulin, regulatory, and essential myosin light chain are evolutionary conserved proteins that, by binding to IQ motifs of target proteins, regulate essential intracellular processes among which are efficiency of secretory vesicles release at synapsis, intracellular signaling, and regulation of cell division. The yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae calmodulin Cmd1 and the essential myosin light chain Mlc1p share the ability to interact with the class V myosin Myo2p and Myo4 and the class II myosin Myo1p. These myosins are required for vesicle, organelle, and mRNA transport, spindle orientation, and cytokinesis. We have used the budding yeast model system to study how calmodulin and essential myosin light chain selectively regulate class V myosin function. NMR structural analysis of uncomplexed Mlc1p and interaction studies with the first three IQ motifs of Myo2p show that the structural similarities between Mlc1p and the other members of the EF-hand superfamily of calmodulin-like proteins are mainly restricted to the C-lobe of these proteins. The N-lobe of Mlc1p presents a significantly compact and stable structure that is maintained both in the free and complexed states. The Mlc1p N-lobe interacts with the IQ motif in a manner that is regulated both by the IQ motifs sequence as well as by light chain structural features. These characteristic allows a distinctive interaction of Mlc1p with the first IQ motif of Myo2p when compared with calmodulin. This finding gives us a novel view of how calmodulin and essential light chain, through a differential binding to IQ1 of class V myosin motor, regulate this activity during vegetative growth and cytokinesis.     

The bell-shaped Ca2+ dependence of the inositol 1,4, 5-trisphosphate-induced Ca2+ release is modulated by Ca2+/calmodulin.

Calmodulin inhibits inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP3) binding to the IP3 receptor in both a Ca2+-dependent and a Ca2+-independent way. Because there are no functional data on the modulation of the IP3-induced Ca2+ release by calmodulin at various Ca2+ concentrations, we have studied how cytosolic Ca2+ and Sr2+ interfere with the effects of calmodulin on the IP3-induced Ca2+ release in permeabilized A7r5 cells. We now report that calmodulin inhibited Ca2+ release through the IP3 receptor with an IC50 of 4.6 microM if the cytosolic Ca2+ concentration was 0.3 microM or higher. This inhibition was particularly pronounced at low IP3 concentrations. In contrast, calmodulin did not affect IP3-induced Ca2+ release if the cytosolic Ca2+ concentration was below 0.3 microM. Calmodulin also inhibited Ca2+ release through the IP3 receptor in the presence of at least 10 microM Sr2+. We conclude that cytosolic Ca2+ or Sr2+ are absolutely required for the calmodulin-induced inhibition of the IP3-induced Ca2+ release and that this dependence represents the formation of the Ca2+/calmodulin or Sr2+/calmodulin complex.     

A strange calmodulin of yeast

Calmodulin of Saccharomyces cerevisiae has different Ca2+ binding properties from other calmodulins. We previously reported that the maximum number of Ca2+ binding was 3 mol/mol and the fourth binding site was defective, which was different from 4 mol/mol for others. Their macroscopic dissociation constants suggested the cooperative three Ca2+ bindings rather than a pair of cooperative two Ca2+ bindings of ordinary calmodulin. Here we present evidence for yeast calmodulin showing the intramolecular close interaction between the N-terminal half domain and the C-terminal half domain, while the two domains of ordinary calmodulin are independent of each other. We will discuss the relationship of the shape and the shape change caused by the Ca2+ binding to the enzyme activation in yeast. The functional feature of calmodulin in yeast will also be considered, which might be different from the one of vertebrate calmodulin.     

Inhibition of a Low Km GTPase Activity in Rat Striatum by Calmodulin

In rat striatum, the activation of adenylate cyclase by the endogenous Ca2+-binding protein, calmodulin, is additive with that of GTP but is not additive with that of the nonhydrolyzable GTP analog, guanosine-5'-(beta, gamma-imido)triphosphate (GppNHp). One possible mechanism for this difference could be an effect of calmodulin on GTPase activity which has been demonstrated to "turn-off" adenylate cyclase activity. We examined the effects of Ca2+ and calmodulin on GTPase activity in EGTA-washed rat striatal particulate fractions depleted of Ca2+ and calmodulin. Calmodulin inhibited GTP hydrolysis at concentrations of 10(-9)-10(-6) M but had no effect on the hydrolysis of 10(-5) and 10(-6) M GTP, suggesting that calmodulin inhibited a low Km GTPase activity. The inhibition of GTPase activity by calmodulin was Ca2+-dependent and was maximal at 0.12 microM free Ca2+. Maximal inhibition by calmodulin was 40% in the presence of 10(-7) M GTP. The IC50 for calmodulin was 100 nM. In five tissues tested, calmodulin inhibited GTP hydrolysis only in those tissues where it could also activate adenylate cyclase. Calmodulin could affect the activation of adenylate cyclase by GTP in the presence of 3,4-dihydroxyphenylethylamine (DA, dopamine). Calmodulin decreased by nearly 10-fold the concentration of GTP required to provide maximal stimulation of adenylate cyclase activity by DA in the striatal membranes. The characteristics of the effect of calmodulin on GTPase activity with respect to Ca2+ and calmodulin dependence and tissue specificity parallel those of the activation of adenylate cyclase by calmodulin, suggesting that the two activities are closely related.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Isolation of the yeast calmodulin gene: calmodulin is an essential protein

Calmodulin was purified from Saccharomyces cerevisiae based on its characteristic properties. Like other calmodulins, the yeast protein is small, heat-stable, acidic, retained by hydrophobic matrices in a Ca2+-dependent manner, exhibits a pronounced Ca2+-induced shift in electrophoretic mobility, and binds 45Ca2+. Using synthetic oligonucleotide probes designed from the sequences of two tryptic peptides derived from the purified protein, the gene encoding yeast calmodulin was isolated. The gene (designated CMD1) is a unique, single-copy locus, contains no introns, and resides on chromosome II. The amino acid sequence of yeast calmodulin shares 60% identity with other calmodulins. Disruption or deletion of the yeast calmodulin gene results in a recessive-lethal mutation; thus, calmodulin is essential for the growth of yeast cells.