An evolutionary perspective on Arf family GTPases

International audienceThe Arf family GTPases are regulators of eukaryotic cellular organization, with functions in processes such as vesicle budding, membrane tethering, microtubule dynamics, actin cytoskeleton regulation and lipid dynamics. We describe the evolution of this protein family and its well-studied regulators. The last eukaryotic common ancestor had fifteen members, and the current complement of Arf GTPases has been sculpted by gene loss and gene duplications since that point. Some Arf family GTPases (such as those which recruit vesicle coats in the secretory pathway) are present in virtually all eukaryotes, whereas others (such as those functioning in cilia and flagella) have a more limited distribution. A challenge for the future is understanding the full spectrum of Arf family functions throughout eukaryotes

Insights into the activation of Kinesin1 from the molecular characterisation of JIP3/4 binding to Kif5b

International audienceAbstract Whereas our understanding of kinesin auto-inhibition mechanisms is improving faster, important insights into kinesin activation mechanisms such as those controlled by cargo-motor adaptors are still missing. JIP3 and JIP4 are versatile motor-cargo adaptors for kinesin1 and dynein-dynactin motors enabling bi-directional transport on microtubules. JIP3 activates kinesin1 heavy chains, independently of kinesin1 light chains. In this report, we characterize the molecular details of the binding of the kinesin1 heavy chain, Kif5b to the motor-cargo adaptors, JIP3 and JIP4, using biophysical approaches. The definition of the exact binding site of Kif5b, as well as the specificity of interaction between JIP3 and JIP4 provide new insights into kinesin1 activation

Structural snapshots of the kinesin-2 OSM-3 along its nucleotide cycle: implications for the ATP hydrolysis mechanism

Motile kinesins are motor proteins that translocate along microtubules as they hydrolyze ATP. They share a conserved motor domain which harbors both ATPase and microtubule-binding activities. An ATP hydrolysis mechanism involving two water molecules has been proposed based on the structure of the kinesin-5 Eg5 bound to an ATP analog. Whether this mechanism is general in the kinesin superfamily remains uncertain. Here, we present structural snapshots of the motor domain of OSM-3 along its nucleotide cycle. OSM-3 belongs to the homodimeric kinesin-2 subfamily and is the Caenorhabditis elegans homologue of human KIF17. OSM-3 bound to ADP or devoid of a nucleotide shows features of ADP-kinesins with a docked neck-linker. When bound to an ATP analog, OSM-3 adopts a conformation similar to those of several ATP-like kinesins, either isolated or bound to tubulin. Moreover, the OSM-3 nucleotide binding site is virtually identical to that of ATP-like Eg5, demonstrating a shared ATPase mechanism. Therefore, our data extend to kinesin-2 the two-water ATP hydrolysis mechanism and further suggest that it is universal within the kinesin superfamily

The structural GDP/GTP cycle of human Arf6

The small GTP-binding protein Arf6 coordinates membrane traffic at the plasma membrane with aspects of cytoskeleton organization. This function does not overlap with that of other members of the ADP-ribosylation factor (Arf) family, although their switch regions, which are their major sites of interaction with regulators and effectors, have virtually identical sequences. Here we report the crystal structure of full-length, non-myristoylated human Arf6 bound to GTPγS. Unlike their GDP-bound forms, the active forms of Arf6 and Arf1 are very similar. Thus, the switch regions are discriminatory elements between Arf isoforms in their inactive but not in their active forms, a property that may generalize to other families of small G proteins. This suggests that GTP-bound Arfs may establish specific interactions outside the switch regions and/or be recognized in their cellular context rather than as isolated proteins. The structure also allows further insight into the lack of spontaneous GTPase activity of Arf proteins

Processive Steps in the Reverse Direction Require Uncoupling of the Lead Head Lever Arm of Myosin VI

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Structural plasticity of the N-terminal capping helix of the TPR domain of kinesin light chain.

Kinesin1 plays a major role in neuronal transport by recruiting many different cargos through its kinesin light chain (KLC). Various structurally unrelated cargos interact with the conserved tetratricopeptide repeat (TPR) domain of KLC. The N-terminal capping helix of the TPR domain exhibits an atypical sequence and structural features that may contribute to the versatility of the TPR domain to bind different cargos. We determined crystal structures of the TPR domain of both KLC1 and KLC2 encompassing the N-terminal capping helix and show that this helix exhibits two distinct and defined orientations relative to the rest of the TPR domain. Such a difference in orientation gives rise, at the N-terminal part of the groove, to the formation of one hydrophobic pocket, as well as to electrostatic variations at the groove surface. We present a comprehensive structural analysis of available KLC1/2-TPR domain structures that highlights that ligand binding into the groove can be specific of one or the other N-terminal capping helix orientations. Further, structural analysis reveals that the N-terminal capping helix is always involved in crystal packing contacts, especially in a TPR1:TPR1' contact which highlights its propensity to be a protein-protein interaction site. Together, these results underline that the structural plasticity of the N-terminal capping helix might represent a structural determinant for TPR domain structural versatility in cargo binding