Phosphorylation Alters the Interaction of the Arabidopsis Phosphotransfer Protein AHP1 with Its Sensor Kinase ETR1

The ethylene receptor ethylene response 1 (ETR1) and the Arabidopsis histidine-containing phosphotransfer protein 1 (AHP1) form a tight complex in vitro. According to our current model ETR1 and AHP1 together with a response regulator form a phosphorelay system controlling the gene expression response to the plant hormone ethylene, similar to the two-component signaling in bacteria. The model implies that ETR1 functions as a sensor kinase and is autophosphorylated in the absence of ethylene. The phosphoryl group is then transferred onto a histidine at the canonical phosphorylation site in AHP1. For phosphoryl group transfer both binding partners need to form a tight complex. After ethylene binding the receptor is switched to the non-phosphorylated state. This switch is accompanied by a conformational change that decreases the affinity to the phosphorylated AHP1. To test this model we used fluorescence polarization and examined how the phosphorylation status of the proteins affects formation of the suggested ETR1−AHP1 signaling complex. We have employed various mutants of ETR1 and AHP1 mimicking permanent phosphorylation or preventing phosphorylation, respectively. Our results show that phosphorylation plays an important role in complex formation as affinity is dramatically reduced when the signaling partners are either both in their non-phosphorylated form or both in their phosphorylated form. On the other hand, affinity is greatly enhanced when either protein is in the phosphorylated state and the corresponding partner in its non-phosphorylated form. Our results indicate that interaction of ETR1 and AHP1 requires that ETR1 is a dimer, as in its functional state as receptor in planta

New paradigm in ethylene signaling: EIN2, the central regulator of the signaling pathway, interacts directly with the upstream receptors

The membrane protein ETHYLENE INSENSITIVE2 (EIN2), which is supposed to act between the soluble serine/threonine kinase CTR1 and the EIN3/EIL family of transcription factors, is a central and most critical element of the ethylene signaling pathway in Arabidopsis. In a recent study, we have identified that EIN2 interacts tightly with all members of the Arabidopsis ethylene receptor family— proteins that mark the starting point of the signaling pathway. Our studies show consistently that the kinase domain of the receptors is essential for the formation of the EIN2-receptor complex. Furthermore, mutational analysis demonstrates that phosphorylation is a key mechanism in controlling the interaction of EIN2 and the ethylene receptors. Interaction studies in the presence of the ethylene agonist cyanide revealed a causal link between hormone binding and complex formation. In the presence of the plant hormone agonist the auto-kinase activity of the receptors is inhibited and the non-phosphorylated kinase domain of the receptors binds tightly to the carboxyl-terminal domain of EIN2. In the absence of cyanide inhibition of the auto-kinase activity is relieved and complex formation with the phosphorylated kinase domain of the receptors is reduced. Our data suggest a novel model on the integration of EIN2 in the ethylene signaling pathway