Interaction of the plant glycine-rich RNA-binding protein MA16 with a novel nucleolar DEAD box RNA helicase protein from Zea mays

The maize RNA-binding MA16 protein is a developmentally and environmentally regulated nucleolar protein that interacts with RNAs through complex association with several proteins. By using yeast two-hybrid screening, we identified a DEAD box RNA helicase protein from Zea mays that interacted with MA16, which we named Z. maysDEAD box RNA helicase 1 (ZmDRH1). The sequence of ZmDRH1 includes the eight RNA helicase motifs and two glycine-rich regions with arginine-glycine-rich (RGG) boxes at the amino (N)- and carboxy (C)-termini of the protein. Both MA16 and ZmDRH1 were located in the nucleus and nucleolus, and analysis of the sequence determinants for their cellular localization revealed that the region containing the RGG motifs in both proteins was necessary for nuclear/nucleolar localization The two domains of MA16, the RNA recognition motif (RRM) and the RGG, were tested for molecular interaction with ZmDRH1. MA16 specifically interacted with ZmDRH1 through the RRM domain. A number of plant proteins and vertebrate p68/p72 RNA helicases showed evolutionary proximity to ZmDRH1. In addition, like p68, ZmDRH1 was able to interact with fibrillarin. Our data suggest that MA16, fibrillarin, and ZmDRH1 may be part of a ribonucleoprotein complex involved in ribosomal RNA (rRNA) metabolism.