Arginine methylation next to the PY‐NLS modulates Transportin binding and nuclear import of FUS

Fused in sarcoma (FUS) is a nuclear protein that carries a proline‐tyrosine nuclear localization signal (PY‐NLS) and is imported into the nucleus via Transportin (TRN). Defects in nuclear import of FUS have been implicated in neurodegeneration, since mutations in the PY‐NLS of FUS cause amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Moreover, FUS is deposited in the cytosol in a subset of frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) patients. Here, we show that arginine methylation modulates nuclear import of FUS via a novel TRN‐binding epitope. Chemical or genetic inhibition of arginine methylation restores TRN‐mediated nuclear import of ALS‐associated FUS mutants. The unmethylated arginine–glycine–glycine domain preceding the PY‐NLS interacts with TRN and arginine methylation in this domain reduces TRN binding. Inclusions in ALS‐FUS patients contain methylated FUS, while inclusions in FTLD‐FUS patients are not methylated. Together with recent findings that FUS co‐aggregates with two related proteins of the FET family and TRN in FTLD‐FUS but not in ALS‐FUS, our study provides evidence that these two diseases may be initiated by distinct pathomechanisms and implicates alterations in arginine methylation in pathogenesis.     

Structure of the RNA Binding Domain of a DEAD-Box Helicase Bound to Its Ribosomal RNA Target Reveals a Novel Mode of Recognition by an RNA Recognition Motif

DEAD-box RNA helicases of the bacterial DbpA subfamily are localized to their biological substrate when a carboxy-terminal RNA recognition motif domain binds tightly and specifically to a segment of 23S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) that includes hairpin 92 of the peptidyl transferase center. A complex between a fragment of 23S rRNA and the RNA binding domain (RBD) of the Bacillus subtilis DbpA protein YxiN was crystallized and its structure was determined to 2.9 Å resolution, revealing an RNA recognition mode that differs from those observed with other RNA recognition motifs. The RBD is bound between two RNA strands at a three-way junction. Multiple phosphates of the RNA backbone interact with an electropositive band generated by lysines of the RBD. Nucleotides of the single-stranded loop of hairpin 92 interact with the RBD, including the guanosine base of G2553, which forms three hydrogen bonds with the peptide backbone. A G2553U mutation reduces the RNA binding affinity by 2 orders of magnitude, confirming that G2553 is a sequence specificity determinant in RNA binding. Binding of the RBD to 23S rRNA in the late stages of ribosome subunit maturation would position the ATP-binding duplex destabilization fragment of the protein for interaction with rRNA in the peptidyl transferase cleft of the subunit, allowing it to “melt out” unstable secondary structures and allow proper folding.     

SQSTM1 mutations – Bridging Paget disease of bone and ALS/FTLD

Paget disease of bone (PDB) is a skeletal disorder common in Western Europe but extremely rare in the Indian subcontinent and Far East. The condition has a strong genetic element with mutations affecting the SQSTM1 gene, encoding the p62 protein, frequently identified. Recently SQSTM1 mutations have also been reported in a small number of patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD), neurodegenerative disorders in which significant coexistence with PDB has not been previously recognized. Although several SQSTM1 mutations are common to both ALS/FTLD and PDB, many are ALS/FTLD-specific. The p62 protein regulates various cellular processes including NF-κB signaling and autophagy pathways. Here we consider how knowledge of the impact of PDB-associated SQSTM1 mutations (several of which are now known to be relevant for ALS/FTLD) on these pathways, as well as the locations of the mutations within the p62 primary sequence, may provide new insights into ALS/FTLD disease mechanisms.     

The Indispensable N-Terminal Half of eIF3j/HCR1 Cooperates with its Structurally Conserved Binding Partner eIF3b/PRT1-RRM and with eIF1A in Stringent AUG Selection

Despite recent progress in our understanding of the numerous functions of individual subunits of eukaryotic translation initiation factor (eIF) 3, little is known on the molecular level. Using NMR spectroscopy, we determined the first solution structure of an interaction between eIF3 subunits. We revealed that a conserved tryptophan residue in the human eIF3j N-terminal acidic motif (NTA) is held in the helix α1 and loop 5 hydrophobic pocket of the human eIF3b RNA recognition motif (RRM). Mutating the corresponding “pocket” residues in its yeast orthologue reduces cellular growth rate, eliminates eIF3j/HCR1 association with eIF3b/PRT1 in vitro and in vivo, affects 40S occupancy of eIF3, and produces a leaky scanning defect indicative of a deregulation of the AUG selection process. Unexpectedly, we found that the N-terminal half of eIF3j/HCR1 containing the NTA is indispensable and sufficient for wild-type growth of yeast cells. Furthermore, we demonstrate that deletion of either j/HCR1 or its N-terminal half only, or mutation of the key tryptophan residues results in the severe leaky scanning phenotype partially suppressible by overexpressed eIF1A, which is thought to stabilize properly formed preinitiation complexes at the correct start codon. These findings indicate that eIF3j/HCR1 remains associated with the scanning preinitiation complexes and does not dissociate from the small ribosomal subunit upon mRNA recruitment, as previously believed. Finally, we provide further support for earlier mapping of the ribosomal binding site for human eIF3j by identifying specific interactions of eIF3j/HCR1 with small ribosomal proteins RPS2 and RPS23 located in the vicinity of the mRNA entry channel. Taken together, we propose that eIF3j/HCR1 closely cooperates with the eIF3b/PRT1 RRM and eIF1A on the ribosome to ensure proper formation of the scanning-arrested conformation required for stringent AUG recognition.