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Molecular and Cellular Biology, January 2005, p. 671-684, Vol. 25, No. 2
0270-7306/05/$08.00+0 doi:10.1128/MCB.25.2.671-684.2005
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.
Brian K. Yeh,1,
Anna V. Eliseenkova,1
Fuming Zhang,2
Shaun K. Olsen,1
Makoto Igarashi,3
Stuart A. Aaronson,3
Robert J. Linhardt,2 and
Moosa Mohammadi1*
Department of Pharmacology, New York University School of Medicine,1 Department of Oncological Sciences, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York,3 Department of Chemistry, Biology, and Chemical and Biological Engineering, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York2
Received 31 May 2004/ Returned for modification 28 June 2004/ Accepted 4 October 2004
Two competing models for fibroblast growth factor (FGF) receptor (FGFR) dimerization have recently emerged based on ternary FGF-FGFR-heparin crystal structures. In the symmetric two-end model, heparin promotes dimerization of two FGF-FGFR complexes by stabilizing bivalent interactions of the ligand and receptor through primary and secondary sites and by stabilizing direct receptor-receptor contacts. In the asymmetric model, there are no protein-protein contacts between the two FGF-FGFR complexes, which are bridged solely by heparin. To identify the correct mode of FGFR dimerization, we abolished interactions at the secondary ligand-receptor interaction site, which are observed only in the symmetric two-end model, using site-directed mutagenesis. Cellular studies and real-time binding assays, as well as matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight analysis, demonstrate that loss of secondary ligand-receptor interactions results in diminished FGFR activation due to decreased dimerization without affecting FGF-FGFR binding. Additionally, structural and biochemical analysis of an activating FGFR2 mutation resulting in Pfeiffer syndrome confirms the physiological significance of receptor-receptor contacts in the symmetric two-end model and provides a novel mechanism for FGFR gain of function in human skeletal disorders. Taken together, the data validate the symmetric two-end model of FGFR dimerization and argue against the asymmetric model of FGFR dimerization.
O.A.I. and B.K.Y. contributed equally to this paper.
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