Millisecond dynamics of an unlabeled amino acid transporter

Excitatory amino acid transporters (EAATs) are important in many physiological processes and crucial for the removal of excitatory amino acids from the synaptic cleft. Here, we develop and apply high-speed atomic force microscopy line-scanning (HS-AFM-LS) combined with automated state assignment and transition analysis for the determination of transport dynamics of unlabeled membrane-reconstituted GltPh, a prokaryotic EAAT homologue, with millisecond temporal resolution. We find that GltPh transporters can operate much faster than previously reported, with state dwell-times in the 50 ms range, and report the kinetics of an intermediate transport state with height between the outward- and inward-facing states. Transport domains stochastically probe transmembrane motion, and reversible unsuccessful excursions to the intermediate state occur. The presented approach and analysis methodology are generally applicable to study transporter kinetics at system-relevant temporal resolution

Conformational heterogeneity of the aspartate transporter Glt(Ph)

<p>Glt(Ph) is a Pyrococcus horikoshii homotrimeric Na+-coupled aspartate transporter that belongs to the glutamate transporter family. Each protomer consists of a trimerization domain involved in subunit interaction and a transporting domain with the substrate-binding site. Here, we have studied the conformational changes underlying transport by Gltph using [PR spectroscopy. The trimerization domains form a rigid scaffold, whereas the transporting domains sample multiple conformations, consistent with large-scale movements during the transport cycle. Binding of substrates changed the occupancies of the different conformational states, but the domains remained heterogeneous. The membrane environment favored conformations different from those observed in detergent micelles, but the transporting domain remained structurally heterogeneous in both environments. We conclude that the transporting domains sample multiple conformational states with substantial occupancy regardless of the presence of substrate and coupling ions, consistent with equilibrium constants close to unity between the observed transporter conformations.</p>

Crystal structure of a substrate-free aspartate transporter

<p>Archaeal glutamate transporter homologs catalyze the coupled uptake of aspartate and three sodium ions. After the delivery of the substrate and sodium ions to the cytoplasm, the empty binding site must reorient to the outward-facing conformation to reset the transporter. Here, we report a crystal structure of the substrate-free transporter Glt(Tk) from Thermococcus kodakarensis, which provides insight into the mechanism of this essential step in the translocation cycle.</p>

Transport domain unlocking sets the uptake rate of an aspartate transporter

Glutamate transporters terminate neurotransmission by clearing synaptically released glutamate from the extracellular space, allowing repeated rounds of signaling and preventing glutamate-mediated excitotoxicity. Crystallographic studies on an archaeal homologue, Glt(Ph), showed that distinct transport domains translocate substrates into the cytoplasm by moving across the membrane within a central trimerization scaffold. Here, we report direct observations of these 'elevator-like' transport domain motions in the context of reconstituted proteoliposomes and physiological ion gradients using single-molecule fluorescence resonance energy transfer (smFRET) imaging. We show that Glt(Ph) bearing two “humanizing” mutations exhibits markedly increased transport domain dynamics, which parallels an increased rate of substrate transport, thereby establishing a direct temporal relationship between transport domain motions and substrate uptake. Crystallographic and computational investigations reveal that these mutations favor structurally “unlocked” states with increased solvent occupancy at the interface between the transport domain and the trimeric scaffold

Unsynchronised subunit motion in single trimeric sodium-coupled aspartate transporters

<p>Excitatory amino acid transporters (EAATs) are secondary transport proteins that mediate the uptake of glutamate and other amino acids(1). EAATs fulfil an important role in neuronal signal transmission by clearing the excitatory neurotransmitters from the synaptic cleft after depolarization of the postsynaptic neuron. An intensively studied model system for understanding the transport mechanism of EAATs is the archaeal aspartate transporter Glt(Ph)(2-6). Each subunit in the homotrimeric Glt(Ph) supports the coupled translocation of one aspartate molecule and three Na+ ions(2) as well as an uncoupled flux of Cl- ions(7). Recent crystal structures of Glt(Ph)(3,5,6,8) revealed three possible conformations for the subunits, but it is unclear whether the motions of individual subunits are coordinated to support transport. Here, we report the direct observation of conformational dynamics in individual Glt(Ph) trimers embedded in the membrane by applying single-molecule fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET). By analysing the transporters in a lipid bilayer instead of commonly used detergent micelles, we achieve conditions that approximate the physiologically relevant ones. From the kinetics of FRET level transitions we conclude that the three Glt(Ph) subunits undergo conformational changes stochastically and independently of each other.</p>

Probing molecular choreography through single-molecule biochemistry

Single-molecule approaches are having a dramatic impact on views of how proteins work. The ability to observe molecular properties at the single-molecule level allows characterization of subpopulations and acquisition of detailed kinetic information that would otherwise be hidden in the averaging over an ensemble of molecules. In this Perspective, we discuss how such approaches have successfully been applied to in vitro-reconstituted systems of increasing complexity