Dephosphorylation of tau protein by calcineurin triturated into neural living cells

Alzheimer disease and related dementia are characterized by the presence of hyperphosphorylated tau aggregated into filaments. The role of tau phosphorylation in the fibrillogenesis has not yet been unraveled. Therefore, it is important to know which phosphatases can dephosphorylate tau protein in vivo. The effect of recombinant purified calcineurin (CN(PP2B)) and several calcineurin mutants on tau phosphorylation was studied in two neuronal like cell lines PC12 and SH-SY5Y. The modulation of tau phosphorylation at Ser199/Ser202, Ser396/Ser404, Ser262/Ser356, and Thr181 sites was examined in these cell lines using the phosphorylation state-dependent antitau antibodies Tau 1, PHF1, 12E8, and AT270. The results have shown that CN directly dephosphorylates all of those sites of tau protein. Recombinant calcineurin introduced into cells that have previously been treated with okadaic acid and cyclosporin A, which are inhibitors of phosphatases (PP1/PP2A and PP2B), has a direct effect on the phosphorylation status on all phosphorylation sites studied. We conclude that calcineurin is (besides PP2A) a important modulator of tau phosphorylation in vivo.     

Visualizing the microtubule-associated protein tau in the nucleus

Although tau is mainly known as an axonal microtubule-associated protein,many studies indicate that it is not restricted to this subcellular compartment.Assessing tau’s subcellular distribution,however,is not trivial as is evident from transgenic mouse studies.When human tau is over-expressed,it can be immunohistochemically localized to axons and the somatodendritic domain,modeling what is found in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease.Yet,in wild-type mice,despite its abundance,tau is difficult to visualize even in the axon.It is even more challenging to detect this protein in the nucleus,where tau has been proposed to protect DNA from damage.To establish a framework for future studies into tau’s nuclear functions,we compared several methods to visualize endogenous nuclear tau in cell lines and mouse brain.While depending on the fixation and permeabilization protocol,we were able to detect nuclear tau in SH-SY5Y human neuroblastoma cells,we failed to do so in N2a murine neuroblastoma cells.As a second method we used subcellular fractionation of mouse tissue and found that in the nucleus tau is mainly present in a hypophosphorylated form.When either full-length or truncated human tau was expressed,both accumulated in the cytoplasm,but were also found in the nuclear fraction.Because subcellular fractionation methods have their limitations,we finally isolated nuclei to probe for nuclear tau and found that the nuclei were free of cytoplasmic contamination.Together our analysis identifies several protocols for detecting tau in the nucleus where it is found in a less phosphorylated form.     

Characterization of the in vitro phosphorylation of human tau by tau protein kinase II (cdk5/p20) using mass spectrometry

Hyperphosphorylated tau is an integral part of the neurofibrillary tangles that form within neuronal cell bodies, and tau protein kinase II is reported to play a role in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease. Recently, we reported that tau protein kinase II (cdk5/p20)-phosphorylated human tau inhibits microtubule assembly, and tau protein kinase II (cdk5/p20) phosphorylation of microtubule-associated tau results in dissociation of phosphorylated tau from the microtubules and tubulin depolymerization. In the studies reported here, a combination of mass spectrometric techniques was used to study the phosphorylation of human recombinant tau by recombinant tau protein kinase II (cdk5/p20) in vitro. The extent of phosphorylation was determined by measuring the molecular mass of phosphorylated tau using mass spectrometry. Reaction of human recombinant tau with tau protein kinase II (cdk5/p20) resulted in the formation of two major species containing either five or six phosphate groups. The specific amino acid residues phosphorylated were determined by analyzing tryptic peptides by tandem mass spectrometry via either MALDI/TOF post-source decay or by electrospray tandem mass spectrometry. Based on these experiments, we conclude that tau protein kinase II (cdk5/p20) can phosphorylate human tau at Thr(181), Thr(205), Thr(212), Thr(217), Ser(396) and Ser(404).     

微小RNA在tau蛋白过度磷酸化中的作用

阿尔茨海默病(Alzheimer’s Disease, AD)是一种慢性神经系统退行性疾病,AD的主要病理表现为脑组织中的老年斑和神经纤维缠结,老年斑的主要成分是异常积聚的β-淀粉样蛋白,过度磷酸化的tau蛋白是神经纤维缠结的主要成分。研究发现AD患者脑内微小RNA表达异常,且证据表明微小RNA参与β-淀粉样蛋白过量生成和tau蛋白过度磷酸化等Alzheimer样病理机制,在AD的发病中起着重要作用。本文就微小RNA在tau蛋白过度磷酸化中的作用及机制进行概述。     

Comparison of the phosphorylation of microtubule-associated protein tau by non-proline dependent protein kinases

Microtubule-associated protein tau from Alzheimer brain has been shown to be phosphorylated at several ser/thr-pro and ser/thr-X sites (Hasegawa, M. et al., J. Biol. Chem, 267, 17047–17054, 1992). Several proline-dependent protein kinases (PDPKs) (MAP kinase, cdc2 kinase, glycogen synthase kinase-3, tubulin-activated protein kinase, and 40 kDa neurofilament kinase) are implicated in the phosphorylation of the ser-thr-pro sites. The identity of the kinase(s) that phosphorylate that ser/thr-X sites are unknown. To identify the latter kinase(s) we have compared the phosphorylation of bovine tau by several brain protein kinases. Stoichiometric phosphorylation of tau was achieved by casein kinase-1, calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II, Gr kinase, protein kinase C and cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase, but not with casein kinase-2 or phosphorylase kinase. Casein kinase-1 and calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II were the best tau kinases, with greater than 4 mol and 3 mol³²P incorporated, respectively, into each mol of tau. With the sequential addition of these two kinases,³²P incorporation approached 6 mol. Peptide mapping revealed that the different kinases largely phosphorylate different sites on tau. After phosphorylation by casein kinase-1, calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II, Gr kinase, cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase and casein kinase-2, the mobility of tau isoforms as detected by SDS-PAGE was decreased. Protein kinase C phosphorylation did not produce such a mobility shift. Our results suggest that one or more of the kinases studied here may participate in the hyperphosphorylation of tau in Alzheimer disease. Such phosphorylation may serve to modulate the activaties of other tau kinases such as the PDPKs.Abbreviations PHF paired helical filaments - A-kinase cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase - CaM kinase II calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II - C-kinase calcium-phospholipid-dependent protein kinase - CK-1 casein kinase-1 - CK-2 casein kinase-2 - Gr kinase calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase from rat cerebellum - GSK-3 glycogen synthase kinase-3 - MAP kinase mitogen-activated protein kinase - SDS-PAGE sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis     

Asp664 cleavage of amyloid precursor protein induces tau phosphorylation by decreasing protein phosphatase 2A activity

Caspase cleavage of amyloid precursor protein (APP) has been reported to be important in amyloid beta protein (Aβ)‐mediated neurotoxicity. However, the underlying mechanisms are not clearly understood. In this study, we explored the effect of caspase cleavage of APP on tau phosphorylation in relation to Aβ. We found that Asp664 cleavage of APP increased tau phosphorylation at Thr212 and Ser262 in N2A cells and primary cultured hippocampal neurons. Compared with wild‐type APP, protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A) activity was significantly increased when Asp664 cleavage was blocked by the D664A point mutation. Furthermore, we found that over‐expression of C31 reduced PP2A activity. C31 binds directly to the PP2A catalytic subunit, through the asparagine, proline, threonine, tyrosine (NPTY) motif, which is essential for C31‐induced tau hyperphosphorylation. However, it appears that the other fragment produced by Asp664 cleavage, Jcasp, modulates neither PP2A activity nor tau hyperphosphorylation. Asp664 cleavage and accompanying tau hyperphosphorylation were remarkably diminished by blockage of Aβ production using a γ‐secretase inhibitor. Taken together, our results suggest that Asp664 cleavage of APP leads to tau hyperphosphorylation at specific epitopes by modulating PP2A activity as a downstream of Aβ. Direct binding of C31 to PP2A through the C31‐NPTY domain was identified as a mechanism underlying this effect.     

Histone deacetylase 6 interacts with the microtubule-associated protein tau

Histone deacetylase 6 (HDAC6), a unique cytoplasmic deacetylase, likely plays a role in neurodegeneration by coordinating cell responses to abnormal protein aggregation. Here, we provide in vitro and in vivo evidence that HDAC6 interacts with tau, a microtubule-associated protein that forms neurofibrillary tangles in Alzheimer's disease. This interaction is mediated by the microtubule-binding domain on tau and the Ser/Glu tetradecapeptide domain on HDAC6. Treatment with tubacin, a selective inhibitor of tubulin deacetylation activity of HDAC6, did not disrupt HDAC6–tau interaction. Nonetheless tubacin treatment attenuated site-specific tau phosphorylation, as did shRNA-mediated knockdown of HDAC6. Proteasome inhibition potentiated HDAC6–tau interactions and facilitated the concentration and co-localization of HDAC6 and tau in a perinuclear aggresome-like compartment, independent of HDAC6 tubulin deacetylase activity. Furthermore, we observed that in Alzheimer's disease brains the protein level of HDAC6 was significantly increased. These findings establish HDAC6 as a tau-interacting protein and as a potential modulator of tau phosphorylation and accumulation.     

Phosphorylation of microtubule-associated protein tau by AMPK-related kinases

Microtubule-associated protein tau is abnormally hyperphosphorylated in the intracellular filamentous inclusions seen in neurodegenerative disorders with dementia, such as Alzheimer's disease and other tauopathies. Microtubule-associated protein/microtubule-affinity regulating kinases (MARKs) have previously been identified as kinases which phosphorylate KxGS motifs in the tandem repeats of tau. They are members of the 5'-AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK)-related kinases in the Ca(2+)/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase group. In this study, we examined the ability of AMPK-related kinases, brain-specific kinases 1 and 2, maternal embryonic leucine-zipper kinase, MARK1, and salt-inducible kinase (SIK), to phosphorylate tau. We found that they phosphorylated S262 and S356 in KxGS motifs in the repeats of tau, thus resulting in immunoreactivity with antibody 12E8. MARK1 and SIK most effectively phosphorylated tau, and their down-regulation resulted in a reduction of 12E8-labelling. BX 795, an inhibitor of MARK1 and SIK, reduced 12E8-immunolabelling of tau in rat cortical neurons. These findings reveal a significant contribution of AMPK-related kinases to the phosphorylation of tau at S262/S356.     

Regulation of Phosphorylation of tau by Protein Kinases in Rat Brain

Microtubule associated protein tau is abnormally hyperphosphorylated in Alzheimer disease (AD) brain. To investigate the role of protein kinases involved in this lesion, metabolically active slices made from brains of adult rats were treated with or without various specific kinase activators in oxygenated artificial cerebrospinal fluid. The basal kinase activities of protein kinase-A (PKA), CaM Kinase II and GSK-3 were stimulated more than two-fold by isoproterenol, bradykinin and wortmannin, respectively. We found that cdk5 activity was co-stimulated with PKA by isoproterenol. Sequential activation of PKA (+cdk5), CaM Kinase II and GSK-3 produced hyperphosphorylation of tau at Ser-198/Ser-199/Ser-202, Ser-214, Thr-231/Ser-235, Ser-262, Ser-396/Ser-404 and Ser-422 sites. Like AD P-tau, the P-tau from brain slices bound to normal tau and its binding to tubulin was inhibited. These studies suggest that PKA, cdk5, CaM Kinase II and GSK-3 are involved in the regulation of phosphorylation of tau and that AD-type phosphorylation of tau is probably a product of the synergistic action of two or more of these kinases.     

微管相关蛋白tau在动物死亡后被快速去磷酸化

tau蛋白是神经细胞中主要的微管相关蛋白, 它的异常过度磷酸化被认为是阿尔茨海默病 (AD) 致病过程中的关键因素. 由于法律、社会、家庭等诸多因素使得获取的人脑组织标本常常在死亡后2~3 h以上,因此了解死亡不同时间后tau蛋白磷酸化的改变,对研究tau蛋白的功能及在AD致病过程中作用显得十分重要. 用位点特异的、磷酸化依赖的抗tau蛋白抗体检测正常大鼠脑中tau蛋白磷酸化程度及死亡后其磷酸化的变化情况,再用非同位素的点印迹技术测定鼠脑中tau蛋白激酶、磷酸酶在不同温度下的活性. 结果发现,正常鼠脑中tau蛋白除了Ser262,Ser409,Ser422外,在Thr181,Ser199,Ser202,Thr205,Thr212,Ser214,Thr217,Ser396和Ser404存在不同程度的磷酸化,并且在死亡后3 h,出现tau的多位点的去磷酸化及tau蛋白迁移加快,6 h后更为明显,但tau蛋白水平即使在大鼠死亡后6 h,仍未见有明显的改变. 用点印迹测定蛋白激酶和磷酸酶活性结果显示,tau蛋白激酶、磷酸酶活性均有温度依赖性降低,在25℃时激酶活性降低远大于磷酸酶活性的降低,tau蛋白在死亡后的快速去磷酸化与相对高的磷酸酶作用有关.     

Interaction between microtubule-associated protein tau and spectrin

Tau factor, one of the microtubule-associated proteins (MAPs), is shown here to bind to spectrin. Evidence for an interaction between these two proteins is provided by spectrin affinity chromatography of brain MAPs, gel overlay of electrophoresed MAPs with ¹²⁵I-labelled spectrin, incorporation of tau factor in human erythrocyte ghosts, and demonstration that tau inhibits the F-actin cross-linking activity of tetrameric spectrin.The wide distribution of both tau and spectrin-like proteins in eukaryotic cells in in favor of the possible biological significance of this interaction. The results suggest that tau could be one of the proteins involved in the concerted regulation of microtubule and actin networks in the membrane vicinity.     

Phosphorylation of microtubule-associated protein tau by isoforms of c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK)

Microtubule-associated protein tau in a hyperphosphorylated state is the major component of the filamentous lesions that define a number of neurodegenerative diseases commonly referred to as tauopathies. Hyperphosphorylation of tau at most sites appears to precede filament assembly. Many of the hyperphosphorylated sites are serine/threonine-proline sequences. Here we show that c-Jun N-terminal kinases JNK1, JNK2 and JNK3 phosphorylate tau at many serine/threonine-prolines, as assessed by the generation of the epitopes of phosphorylation-dependent anti-tau antibodies. Of the three protein kinases, JNK2 phosphorylated the most sites in tau, followed by JNK3 and JNK1. Phosphorylation by JNK isoforms resulted in a greatly reduced ability of tau to promote microtubule assembly. These findings extend the number of candidate protein kinases for the hyperphosphorylation of tau in Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative disorders.     

Anisomycin过度激活丝裂原活化蛋白激酶使tau发生过度磷酸化

阿尔茨海默病(Alzheimer's disease,AD)的病理特征之一是神经元内存在神经原纤维缠结(neurofibrillary tangles,NFTs),后者是由过度磷酸化的微管相关蛋白tau形成的双股螺旋细丝(paired helical filaments,PHFs)构成.为了探讨丝裂原活化蛋白激酶(mitogen-activated protein kinase,MAPK)在微管相关蛋白tau磷酸化中的作用及机制,本实验用0.1 μg/mL、0.2 μg/mL和0.4μg/mL三种不同浓度的MAPK激动剂anisomycin处理小鼠成神经瘤细胞株(mouse neuroblastoma cells,N2a),检测MAPK活性的变化及其与tau蛋白多个AD相关位点过度磷酸化的关系,并检测糖原合酶激酶-3(glycogen synthase kinase-3,GSK-3)和蛋白激酶A(protein kinase A,PKA)的活性变化.结果显示,anisomycin以剂量依赖的方式激活MAPK活性,但免疫印迹结果显示tau蛋白的Ser-198/199/202位点和Ser-396/404位点的过度磷酸化只在anisomycin浓度为0.4 μg/mL时出现,三种浓度的anisomycin均未引起tau蛋白Ser-214位点磷酸化的改变;同时,GSK-3活性在anisomycin为0.1 μg/mL时没有明显变化,当anisomycin浓度升高到0.2 μg/mL和0.4 μg/mL时出现明显增高,而PKA的活性没有明显的改变.使用GSK-3的特异性抑制剂氯化锂(LiCl)则完全阻断MAPK被过度激活导致的tau蛋白磷酸化水平的增高,而同时MAPK活性不受影响.以上结果提示:过度激活MAPK可以导致tau蛋白Ser-198/199/202和Ser-396/404位点过度磷酸化,其机制可能涉及MAPK激活GSK-3的间接作用.     

The effect of cdk-5 overexpression on tau phosphorylation and spatial memory of rat

In Alzheimer’s disease (AD), hyperphosphorylation of tau may be the underlying mechanism for the cytoskeletal abnormalities and neuronal death. It was reported that cyclin-dependent kinase5 (cdk-5) could phosphorylate tau at most AD-related epitopesin vitro. In this study, we investigated the effect of cdk-5 overexpression on tau phosphorylation and spatial memory in rat. We demonstrated that 24 h after transfection into rat hippocampus, cdk-5 was overexpressed and induced a reduced staining with antibody tau-1 and an enhanced staining with antibodies 12e8 and PHF-1, suggesting hyperphosphorylation of tau at Ser199/202, Ser262/356 and Ser396/404 sites. Additionally, the cdk-5 transfected rats showed long latency to find the hidden platform in Morris water maze compared to the control rat. 48 h after transfection, the level of cdk-5 was decreased significantly, and the latency of rats to find the hidden platform was prolonged. It implies thatin vivo overexpression of cdk-5 leads to impairment of spatial memory in rat and tau hyperphosphorylation may be the underlying mechanism.     

Yeast surface display of full-length human microtubule-associated protein tau

Microtubule-associated protein tau is an intrinsically disordered, highly soluble protein found primarily in neurons. Under normal conditions, tau regulates the stability of axonal microtubules and intracellular vesicle transport. However, in patients of neurodegeneration such as Alzheimer's disease (AD), tau forms neurofibrillary deposits, which correlates well with the disease progression. Identifying molecular signatures in tau, such as posttranslational modification, truncation, and conformational change has great potential to detect earliest signs of neurodegeneration and develop therapeutic strategies. Here, we show that full-length human tau, including the longest isoform found in the adult brain, can be robustly displayed on the surface of yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Yeast-displayed tau binds to anti-tau antibodies that cover epitopes ranging from the N-terminus to the 4R repeat region. Unlike tau expressed in the yeast cytosol, surface-displayed tau was not phosphorylated at sites found in AD patients (probed by antibodies AT8, AT270, AT180, and PHF-1). However, yeast-displayed tau showed clear binding to paired helical filament (PHF) tau conformation-specific antibodies Alz-50, MC-1, and Tau-2. Although the tau possessed a conformation found in PHFs, oligomerization or aggregation into larger filaments was undetected. Taken together, yeast-displayed tau enables robust measurement of protein interactions and is of particular interest for characterizing conformational change.     

A scintillation proximity assay for studying inhibitors of human tau protein kinase II/cdk5 using a 96-well format

Dysregulation of the brain-specific tau protein kinase II (TPK II)/cdk5 is reported to play an important role in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease. We report here a quantitative scintillation proximity assay (SPA), which is suitable for determining TPK II/cdk5 activity and its inhibition. It depends upon the phosphorylation of a synthetic histone-based peptide substrate (PKTPKKAKKL), which has been biotinylated at its C-terminus. When this biotinylated peptide is incubated with [γ-³³P] ATP and TPK II/cdk5 under defined assay conditions, product formation is linear with respect to time and enzyme concentration. The production of [³³P] phosphorylated peptide is inhibited in the presence of a known TPK II/cdk5 inhibitor but is unaffected in the presence of 1% DMSO. A signal-to-noise ratio of 16:1 was obtained in a 60-min assay with an intra-assay variability of <10% in the 96-well microtiter format. The TPK II/cdk5 SPA is very robust, sensitive and simple to perform.     

Dephosphorylation of tau by protein phosphatase 5: impairment in Alzheimer's disease

Protein phosphatase (PP) 5 is highly expressed in the mammalian brain, but few physiological substrates have yet been identified. Here, we investigated the kinetics of dephosphoryation of phospho-tau by PP5 and found that PP5 had a K(m) of 8-13 microm toward tau, which is similar to that of PP2A, the major known tau phosphatase. This K(m) value is within the range of intraneuronal tau concentration in human brain, suggesting that tau could be a physiological substrate of both PP5 and PP2A. PP5 dephosphorylated tau at all 12 Alzheimer's disease (AD)-associated abnormal phosphorylation sites studied, with different efficiency toward each site. Thr(205), Thr(212), and Ser(409) of tau were the most favorable sites; Ser(199), Ser(202), Ser(214), Ser(396), and Ser(404) were less favorable sites; and Ser(262) was the poorest site for PP5. Overexpression of PP5 in PC12 cells resulted in dephosphorylation of tau at multiple phosphorylation sites. The activity but not the protein level of PP5 was found to be decreased by approximately 20% in AD neocortex. These results suggest that tau is probably a physiological substrate of PP5 and that the abnormal hyperphosphorylation of tau in AD might result in part from the decreased PP5 activity in the diseased brains.     

Protein phosphatase 5 protects neurons against amyloid-β toxicity

Amyloid-β (Aβ) is thought to promote neuronal cell loss in Alzheimer's disease, in part through the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and subsequent activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathways. Protein phosphatase 5 (PP5) is a ubiquitously expressed serine/threonine phosphatase which has been implicated in several cell stress response pathways and shown to inactivate MAPK pathways through key dephosphorylation events. Therefore, we examined whether PP5 protects dissociated embryonic rat cortical neurons in vitro from cell death evoked by Aβ. As predicted, neurons in which PP5 expression was decreased by small-interfering RNA treatment were more susceptible to Aβ toxicity. In contrast, over-expression of PP5, but not the inactive mutant, PP5(H304Q), prevented MAPK phosphorylation and neurotoxicity induced by Aβ. PP5 also prevented cell death caused by direct treatment with H₂O₂, but did not prevent Aβ-induced production of ROS. Thus, the neuroprotective effect of PP5 requires its phosphatase activity and lies downstream of Aβ-induced generation of ROS. In summary, our data indicate that PP5 plays a pivotal neuroprotective role against cell death induced by Aβ and oxidative stress. Consequently, PP5 might be an effective therapeutic target in Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative disorders in which oxidative stress is implicated.     

Proteasomal degradation of tau protein

Filamentous inclusions composed of the microtubule-associated protein tau are a defining characteristic of a large number of neurodegenerative diseases. Here we show that tau degradation in stably transfected and non-transfected SH-SY5Y cells is blocked by the irreversible proteasome inhibitor lactacystin. Further, we find that in vitro, natively unfolded tau can be directly processed by the 20S proteasome without a requirement for ubiquitylation, and that a highly reproducible pattern of degradation intermediates is readily detectable during this process. Analysis of these intermediates shows that 20S proteasomal processing of tau is bi-directional, proceeding from both N- and C-termini, and that populations of relatively stable intermediates arise probably because of less efficient digestion of the C-terminal repeat region. Our results are consistent with an in vivo role for the proteasome in tau degradation and support the existence of ubiquitin-independent pathways for the proteasomal degradation of unfolded proteins.     

Selective activators of protein phosphatase 5 target the auto-inhibitory mechanism

Protein phosphatase 5 (PP5) is an evolutionary conserved serine/threonine phosphatase. Its dephosphorylation activity modulates a diverse set of cellular factors including protein kinases and the microtubule-associated tau protein involved in neurodegenerative disorders. It is auto-regulated by its heat-shock protein (Hsp90)-interacting tetratricopeptide repeat (TPR) domain and its C-terminal α-helix. In the present study, we report the identification of five specific PP5 activators [PP5 small-molecule activators (P5SAs)] that enhance the phosphatase activity up to 8-fold. The compounds are allosteric modulators accelerating efficiently the turnover rate of PP5, but do barely affect substrate binding or the interaction between PP5 and the chaperone Hsp90. Enzymatic studies imply that the compounds bind to the phosphatase domain of PP5. For the most promising compound crystallographic comparisons of the apo PP5 and the PP5–P5SA-2 complex indicate a relaxation of the auto-inhibited state of PP5. Residual electron density and mutation analyses in PP5 suggest activator binding to a pocket in the phosphatase/TPR domain interface, which may exert regulatory functions. These compounds thus may expose regulatory mechanisms in the PP5 enzyme and serve to develop optimized activators based on these scaffolds.