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Molecular and Cellular Biology, June 2002, p. 3769-3782, Vol. 22, No. 11
0270-7306/02/$04.00+0 DOI: 10.1128/MCB.22.11.3769-3782.2002
Copyright © 2002, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.
Department of Biochemistry and McGill Cancer Centre, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada H3G 1Y6,1 The Biotechnology Research Institute, National Research Council of Canada, Montréal, Québec, Canada H4P 2R22
Received 20 December 2001/ Returned for modification 7 February 2002/ Accepted 25 February 2002
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Paip1 (PABP-interacting protein 1) is a 479-aa protein which has homology (25% identity and 39% similarity) with the central domain of human eIF4G (aa 420 to 890) (5). This segment of eIF4G contains one of the two known eIF4A binding sites (17). Consequently, Paip1 interacts with eIF4A (5). Paip1 was shown to stimulate translation of a reporter mRNA in cultured mammalian cells (5). Paip1 is also involved in mRNA turnover as part of a protein complex that stabilizes the c-fos proto-oncogene mRNA by binding to the major protein-coding-region determinant of instability (mCRD) (15). More recently, another PABP-interacting protein, Paip2, was identified (22). Paip2 is a highly acidic 127-aa protein (pI = 3.9) which represses translation in vitro and in transfected cells (22). Paip2 inhibits binding of PABP to the poly(A) tail and competes with Paip1 for binding to PABP (22).
The mechanism by which these PABP-interacting proteins compete for binding to PABP and regulate translation is not fully understood. To study the role of Paip1 in translation regulation, we undertook a detailed biochemical characterization of the interacting domains in Paip1 and PABP by using far-Western and glutathione S-transferase (GST) pull-down assays. In addition, the kinetic and thermodynamic constants for both the Paip1 and PABP interacting domains were determined by a surface plasmon resonance (SPR)-based biosensor (Biacore). Paip1 and PABP interact with a 1:1 stoichiometry, even though the interaction involves two distinct binding regions in each protein. This is in contrast to a 2:1 stoichiometry for the Paip2-PABP interaction (20).
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To generate pGST-HMK-PABP-His vector, PABP cDNA was PCR amplified using pET3b-PABP-His (20) as a template. The forward primer contained a BamHI site, a sequence encoding a peptide which contains a heart muscle kinase (HMK) phosphorylation site, and a SalI site (5'-GG/GGA/TCC/AGA/AGA/GCA/TCT/GTG/GTC/GAC/ATG/AAC/CCC/AGT/GCC/CCC/AGC-3'). The reverse primer included an XhoI site, a stop codon, a histidine tag (His6), and an XbaI site (5'GG/CTC/GAG/TTA/GTG/ATG/GTG/ATG/GTG/ATG/TCT/AGA/AAC/AGT/TGG/AAC/ACC/GGT/GGC-3'). The ATG and stop codons are underlined, and codons are separated by slashes. The resulting PCR product was digested with BamHI and XhoI and ligated in frame into pGEX6p1 (Amersham Pharmacia Biotech [APB]) digested with BamHI and XhoI. This vector codes for a fusion protein containing GST and HMK tags at the N terminus and a His6 tag at the C terminus. To construct pGST-HMK-PABP(C-term)-His, the partial PABP sequence (aa 374 to 633) was PCR amplified using pET3b-PABP-His as a template. The PCR product was digested with SalI and XbaI and ligated into pGST-HMK-PABP-His digested with SalI and XbaI. Similarly, to construct plasmids encoding GST-HMK-Paip1-His and fragments 116-479, 440-479, 1-415, 1-115, and 144-415, the respective Paip1 coding regions (numbers correspond to amino acids) were PCR amplified using pcDNA3-Paip1 (5) as a template. The resulting fragments were digested with SalI and XbaI and ligated to pGST-HMK-PABP-His digested with SalI and XbaI. pGST-HMK-Paip1 fragments 1-143, 116-143, and 410-439 were prepared similarly to the other Paip1 fragments, but an XhoI restriction site was used instead of an XbaI site, eliminating the His6 tag at the C terminus. To construct pET-His-HMK-PABP(RRM1-2), the partial PABP sequence (aa 1 to 179) was PCR amplified using pET3b-PABP-His as a template and then digested with XhoI and BamHI and ligated into pET-His-HMK (3) digested with XhoI and BamHI. pcDNA3-GST-Paip1 was obtained by subcloning the BamHI/XhoI Paip1 insert of pcDNA3-Flag-Paip1 into pcDNA3-GST (a kind gift of H. Imataka) digested with BamHI and XhoI.
Protein expression and purification.
For expression and purification of proteins, Escherichia coli BL21(
DE3) was transformed with bacterial expression vectors. After incubation at 30°C and induction with 0.2 mM IPTG (isopropyl-ß-D-thiogalactopyranoside) for 3 h, bacteria were harvested by centrifugation. For the purification of GST-HMK-PABP(C-term)-His and GST-HMK-Paip1-His and fragments 116-479, 440-479, 1-415, 1-115, and 144-415, the bacterial pellets were resuspended in 1x phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) (137 mM NaCl, 2.7 mM KCl, 4.3 mM Na2HPO4 · 7H2O, 1.4 mM KH2PO4, pH 7.4)-10% glycerol-0.2% Triton X-100-Protease Inhibitor Cocktail Complete (Roche). The suspension was sonicated and centrifuged for 20 min at 23,000 x g in a DuPont Sorvall RC-5B centrifuge (SS34 rotor). The clarified supernatant was incubated with Talon metal affinity resin (Clontech) for 20 min at room temperature. The resin was washed three times with 1x PBS-0.2% Triton X-100-5 mM imidazole. Proteins were eluted with 1x PBS-10% glycerol-0.2% Triton X-100-250 mM imidazole. The fractions containing proteins were identified by Bio-Rad assay, pooled, diluted 10 times in cleavage buffer (50 mM Tris-HCl [pH 7.0], 150 mM NaCl, 1 mM EDTA, 1 mM dithiothreitol, 0.01% Triton X-100), and then incubated with glutathione-Sepharose resin (APB) for 15 min. Beads were washed three times with 10 volumes of cleavage buffer. Proteins were either eluted with 50 mM Tris-HCl (pH 8.5)-10 mM glutathione or processed for cleavage of the GST tag. The GST tag was cleaved on the resin by the addition of 40 µl (80 U) of PreScission protease (APB) per ml of resin (bed volume) and incubated at 4°C for 4 h to overnight, and the protein of interest was recovered from the supernatant. The expression and purification of GST-Paip1 fragments 185-415, 415-479, 326-479, 410-439, 1-143, and 116-143; GST-PABP fragments RRM1-4, RRM1-2, RRM3-4, RRM2-3, RRM1, RRM2, RRM3, RRM4, C1, and C2; and GST-Paip2 were performed on glutathione-Sepharose resin according to the instructions of the manufacturer (APB). GST-Paip2 was subjected to PreScission protease cleavage as described above. The purification of GST-HMK-PABP-His and PABP-His was performed as previously described (20). After elution from Talon metal affinity resin, the GST-HMK-PABP-His was diluted 10 times in cleavage buffer and purified on glutathione-Sepharose resin (APB) and/or subjected to PreScission protease cleavage as described above. His-HMK-PABP (RRM1-2) was purified on Talon metal affinity resin as described above. All recombinant proteins were dialyzed against 1x PBS buffer.
Antibodies and Western blotting. Antibodies and their working dilutions were as follows: rabbit polyclonal anti-GST (a gift from Mathieu Miron and Josée Dostie), 1:1,000; rabbit polyclonal anti-PABP (1), 1:500; mouse monoclonal anti-Flag (Sigma), 1:1,000; mouse monoclonal anti-HA (Berkeley Antibody Company), 1:1,000; horseradish peroxidase-conjugated donkey anti-rabbit immunoglobulin G (APB), 1:5,000; and horseradish peroxidase-conjugated sheep anti-mouse immunoglobulin G (APB), 1:5,000. Proteins were resolved by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) (25) and transferred onto nitrocellulose membranes (Schleicher & Schuell) in 25 mM Tris-HCl (pH 7.5)-190 mM glycine-20% methanol. Membranes were blocked for 2 h at room temperature or overnight at 4°C with 5% skim milk in 1x PBS containing 0.05% Tween 20 (PBST). The membranes were incubated for 2 h at room temperature with primary antibodies diluted in PBST supplemented with 1% bovine serum albumin, followed by three 15-min washes in PBST. Membranes were subsequently incubated with peroxidase-coupled secondary antibodies diluted in PBST supplemented with 5% skim milk for 30 min at room temperature, followed by three 15 min washes in PBST. Detection of peroxidase-coupled secondary antibodies was performed with enhanced chemiluminescence (NEN) and exposure to an X-ray film (Kodak).
Far-Western analysis. The procedure for far-Western analysis was previously described in detail (21). 32P-labeled HMK-PABP-His or 32P-labeled HMK-Paip1-His was used as a probe at 250,000 cpm/ml of hybridization solution.
GST pull-down assays. Purified GST fusion proteins (2 to 10 µg) [GST, GST-HMK-Paip1-His, GST-Paip1(116-143), GST-HMK-Paip1(440-479)-His, GST-HMK-PABP-His, and GST-HMK-PABP(C-term)-His] were incubated for 15 min at 4°C with glutathione-Sepharose (10 µl) with 300 µl of pull-down buffer (PDB) (20 mM HEPES-KOH [pH 7.5], 100 mM KCl, 1 mM dithiothreitol, 0.5 mM EDTA, 10% glycerol, and 0.5% NP-40). The supernatant was removed, and non-GST recombinant proteins (2 to 10 µg) [HMK-PABP-His, His-HMK-PABP(RRM1-2), HMK-PABP(C-term)-His, HMK-Paip1(117-479)-His, and HMK-Paip1-His] were added together with 300 µl of PDB. The mixture was incubated for 2 h at 4°C. The resin was washed three times with 500 µl of PDB. Proteins were eluted with 40 µl of 1x Laemmli sample buffer (25). The samples were boiled for 5 min, resolved by SDS-PAGE, and stained with Coomassie blue R-250.
HeLa cells (grown to 80% confluence in a 10-cm-diameter dish) were infected with vaccinia virus vTF7-3 (9) for 1 h and then cotransfected with a combination of pcDNA3-GST, pcDNA3-GST-Paip1, pcDNA3-Flag-Paip1, pcDNA3-GST-Paip2, and pACTAG-2-Paip2 (10 µg of DNA total) by using Lipofectin (40 µl) (Gibco-BRL) according to the manufacturer's instructions. Cells were harvested at 16 h posttransfection and lysed in buffer A (20 mM Tris-HCl [pH 7.5], 100 mM KCl, 1 mM dithiothreitol, 0.5 mM EDTA, 10% glycerol, 0.5% NP-40). Cellular debris was removed by centrifugation at 16,000 x g for 15 min at 4°C. The protein concentration in the supernatant was determined by Bio-Rad assay. HeLa cell extracts (300 µg) were incubated with glutathione-Sepharose (25 µl) (APB) and incubated for 3 h at 4°C. The resin was washed four times with 1 ml of buffer A. Proteins were eluted with 1x Laemmli sample buffer. Samples were boiled for 5 min, resolved by SDS-PAGE, and processed for Western blotting.
Immunoprecipitation. HeLa cell extracts (300 µg) were incubated with mouse monoclonal anti-Flag antibody (1 µl) (Sigma) for 3 h at 4°C. Protein A-Sepharose (25 µl) (APB) was added to the mixture and incubated for 1 h at 4°C. The resin was washed four times with 1 ml of buffer A. Proteins were eluted with 1x Laemmli sample buffer. Samples were boiled for 5 min, resolved by SDS-PAGE, and processed for Western blotting.
Immobilization of recombinant proteins on Biacore sensor chips. Solutions of PABP-His (22.5 µg/ml), HMK-Paip1-His (12.5 µg/ml), and HMK-PABP(C-term)-His (20 µg/ml) in 10 mM formate buffer (pH 4.0) were used to immobilize the proteins on Pioneer B1 sensor chip surfaces by using the standard amine coupling procedure as previously described (7, 20). The same coupling procedure, in the absence of protein, was used to prepare mock (control) surfaces.
Experimental controls for Biacore experiments. In preliminary experiments, PABP-His or HMK-PABP(C-term)-His (200 resonance units [RU]) was coupled to a dextran matrix on a Pioneer B1 sensor chip, and 100 nM HMK-Paip1-His was injected over these surfaces or a mock surface. Similarly, HMK-Paip1-His (200 RU) was coupled to a surface, and 50 nM PABP-His, PABP(RRM1-4), or HMK-PABP(C-term)-His was injected. Nonspecific interactions of HMK-Paip1-His with the dextran surface were negligible compared to the specific interactions recorded when the injections were performed over the PABP-His and HMK-PABP(C-term)-His surfaces. Likewise, PABP(RRM1-4) did not interact with the dextran surface but interacted specifically with the HMK-Paip1-His surface. However, PABP-His and HMK-PABP(C-term)-His interacted nonspecifically with the dextran surface of the Pioneer B1 sensor chip, as was previously observed with the CM5 sensor chip (20). Since PABP-His and HMK-PABP(C-term)-His could not be used as analytes (the protein flowing over the surface), their interactions were analyzed further only when they were used as ligands (the coupled proteins). The PABP-His, HMK-PABP(C-term)-His, and HMK-Paip1-His surfaces were used to determine the optimal regeneration conditions. Optimal regeneration was accomplished by using two 25-µl pulse injections (flow rate of 100 µl/min) of a 120 mM HCl solution for the HMK-Paip1-His surface and of a 60 mM HCl-20 mM n-octyl glucopyranoside solution for the PABP-His or HMK-PABP(C-term)-His surface. The regeneration procedures were followed by an EXTRACLEAN procedure and a RINSE procedure (Biacore Upgrade Instrument Handbook, APB, 1995).
To minimize artifacts due to mass transport and rebinding effects (13, 30, 31) or steric hindrance (crowding problems) (33) and to maintain a high signal-to-noise ratio, we determined the minimal amount of PABP-His, HMK-PABP(C-term)-His, or HMK-Paip1-His that needed to be coupled to the surface (200, 150, and 100 RU, respectively). The absence of mass transport limitations was confirmed experimentally by injecting HMK-Paip1-His solution over the PABP-His and HMK-PABP(C-term)-His surfaces, or by injecting PABP(RRM1-4) solution over the HMK-Paip1-His surface, at different flow rates ranging from 5 to 100 µl/min. There was no mass transport effect when the flow rate was higher than 20 µl/min for injections of PABP(RRM1-4) over the HMK-Paip1-His surface or when it was higher than 50 µl/min for injections of HMK-Paip1-His over the PABP-His and PABP(C-term)-His surfaces. Indeed, at these higher flow rates, after data analysis, the interaction curves (sensorgrams) were superimposable, indicating the absence of mass transport (data not shown).
Kinetic assays on the Biacore. Kinetic experiments were carried out in duplicate at 25°C. The data collection rate was set to 10 Hz for every kinetic assay. HEPES-buffered saline (20 mM HEPES-KOH [pH 7.4], 150 mM NaCl, 3.4 mM EDTA, 0.05% Tween 20) was used as running buffer and to dilute the injected proteins. Kinetic experiments were carried out at a flow rate of 40 µl/min for PABP(RRM1-4) injections over an HMK-Paip1-His surface or at 100 µl/min for HMK-Paip1-His injections over PABP-His and HMK-PABP(C-term)-His surfaces. Different concentrations of HMK-Paip1-His or PABP(RRM1-4) were injected for 120 s over HMK-PABP(C-term)-His or HMK-Paip1-His optimized surfaces, respectively (see above) and over a mock surface, followed by a 240-s buffer injection. Different concentrations of HMK-Paip1-His were injected for 90 s over the PABP-His optimized surface and over a mock surface, followed by a 240-s buffer injection.
Biacore data preparation and analysis. The data preparation was done as described elsewhere by the method of double referencing (34). The sensorgrams were transformed to concentration units by using the molecular weights of the injected proteins. All of the curves were reduced to 500 evenly spaced sampling points. For each set of individual curves, corresponding to injections of various concentrations of protein over the same surface, global fitting was carried out using different kinetic models available in the SPRevolution software (7). The models, parameter estimations, and statistical analyses used in this study were described in detail previously (20).
Multiple-binding experiments on the Biacore. All multiple-binding experiments were carried out at a flow rate of 5 µl/min. For sequential injections, HMK-Paip1-His (1 µM) or Paip2 (100 nM) was injected (300 s) over a PABP-His surface (1,500 RU) and over a mock surface. Paip1 and Paip2 injections were followed by an injection (180 s) of PABP(RRM1-4) (100 nM). For preincubation experiments, HMK-Paip1-His (25 nM) was preincubated (or not) with PABP(RRM1-4) (75 nM) and injected (300 s) over an HMK-PABP(C-term)-His surface (150 RU) and over a control surface.
Sequences. Paip1 and PABP sequences and amino acid numbers used in this paper are according to GenBank accession numbers AF013758 and Y00345, respectively.
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FIG. 1. Identification of a new PABP binding site in Paip1. (A) Sequence alignment of PAM2 in Paip1 and Paip2 performed with PIMA multisequence alignment software (Baylor College of Medicine Search Launcher). Black and gray boxes indicate conserved and similar residues, respectively. (B) Purified GST and GST-Paip1 proteins ( 100 ng) were resolved by SDS-10% PAGE and transferred onto a nitrocellulose membrane. The membrane was probed with a rabbit polyclonal anti-GST antibody. (C) Autoradiography of a duplicate membrane processed for far-Western analysis with 32P-labeled HMK-PABP as a probe. Positions of molecular mass markers are shown on the left. wt, wild-type.
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FIG. 2. Identification of PABP binding sites in Paip1. (A) Purified GST and GST-Paip1 proteins ( 100 ng) were resolved by SDS-10% PAGE and transferred onto a nitrocellulose membrane. The membrane was probed with a rabbit polyclonal anti-GST antibody. Positions of molecular mass markers are shown on the left. wt, wild-type. (B) Autoradiography of a duplicate membrane processed for far-Western analysis with 32P-labeled HMK-PABP as a probe. (C) Schematic diagram of the results from the interaction of GST-Paip1 fragments with PABP. Relative binding was evaluated visually. Light gray, dark gray, and black boxes represent GST, PAM2, and PAM1, respectively.
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FIG. 3. Identification of Paip1 binding sites in PABP. (A) Purified GST and GST-PABP proteins ( 100 ng) were subjected to SDS-10% PAGE and transferred onto a nitrocellulose membrane. The membrane was blotted with a rabbit polyclonal anti-GST antibody. Positions of molecular mass markers are shown on the left. wt, wild-type. (B) Autoradiography of a duplicate membrane processed for far-Western analysis with 32P-labeled HMK-Paip1 as a probe. The upper and lower panels represent 30-min and 3-h exposures against an X-ray film, respectively. (C) Schematic diagram of the results from the interaction of GST-PABP fragments with Paip1. Relative binding was evaluated visually. Light gray, dark gray, and black boxes represent GST, PABP(RRM1-2), and PABP(C-term) binding sites, respectively.
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FIG. 4. Interactions of Paip1 fragments with PABP fragments in vitro. GST and GST-Paip1 fragments (5 µg) were immobilized on glutathione-Sepharose for GST pull-down analysis and incubated with various PABP fragments (5 µg) as indicated. Bound proteins were eluted in Laemmli sample buffer and resolved by SDS-10% PAGE. Recombinant proteins (1 µg) were loaded in lanes 1 to 7 (input). The gel was stained with Coomassie blue R-250. Positions of the molecular mass markers are shown on the left. Proteins are identified on the right.
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FIG. 5. SPR analysis of the interaction between PABP(RRM1-4) and Paip1. PABP(RRM1-4) was injected, at the concentrations indicated, over a Paip1 surface (100 RU) and over a mock surface. Data were treated and integrated with a simple 1:1 model. (Top panel) Experimental sensorgrams (points) and calculated fits (solid lines). (Bottom panel) Related residuals (difference between calculated and experimental data points). Related kinetic constants are listed in Table 1.
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TABLE 1. Kinetic and thermodynamic constants for the Paip1-PABP(RRM1-4) interaction calculated by globally fitting the experimental data set shown in Fig. 5 to a simple 1:1 model
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FIG. 6. SPR analysis of the interaction between PABP(C-term) and Paip1. Paip1 was injected, at the concentrations indicated, over a PABP(C-term) surface (150 RU) and over a mock surface. Data were treated and integrated with a simple 1:1 model (A), a 2:1 model (B), or a 1:1 model with rearrangement of the protein complex (C). (Top panels) Experimental sensorgrams (points) and calculated fits (solid lines). (Bottom panels) Related residuals. Related kinetic constants are listed in Table 2.
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TABLE 2. Kinetic and thermodynamic constants for the Paip1-PABP(C-term) interaction calculated by globally fitting the experimental data set shown in Fig. 6 to various kinetic models
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Full-length PABP interacts with Paip1 with a 1:1 stoichiometry as determined by SPR. We next determined the kinetic and thermodynamic constants for the interaction of full-length PABP with Paip1. Paip1 was injected over a PABP surface at different concentrations (from 0 to 90 nM). The analysis of the sensorgrams yielded a poor fit when a simple 1:1 interaction model was used (Fig. 7A). Since PABP possesses two binding sites for Paip1 and vice versa, as determined by far-Western (Fig. 2 and 3) and GST-pull-down (Fig. 4) experiments, and because the Paip1-PABP(C-term) interaction is consistent with a rearrangement model (Fig. 6; Table 2), such a deviation from a simple kinetic model is not surprising. Consequently, two more complex kinetic models were considered. First, a 2:1 model in which two Paip1 molecules bind to one PABP molecule was applied. Also, a 1:1 rearrangement model in which an initial binding event is followed by a rearrangement of the complex was examined. The 2:1 model and the 1:1 rearrangement model displayed similar fits and statistical values (Fig. 7B and C; Table 3). It is therefore difficult to discriminate between these two complex kinetic models by using this approach.
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FIG. 7. SPR analysis of the interaction between PABP and Paip1. Paip1 was injected, at the concentrations indicated, over a PABP surface (200 RU) and over a mock surface. Data were treated and integrated with a simple 1:1 model (A), a 2:1 model (B), or a 1:1 model with rearrangement of the protein complex (C). (Top panels) Experimental sensorgrams (points) and calculated fits (solid lines). (Bottom panels) Related residuals. Related kinetic constants are listed in Table 3.
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TABLE 3. Kinetic and thermodynamic constants for the full-length PABP-Paip1 interaction calculated by globally fitting the experimental data set shown in Fig. 7 to various kinetic models
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FIG. 8. Stoichiometry of the PABP-Paip1 interaction determined by SPR. (A) Interactions between PABP(RRM1-4) and Paip1 or Paip2 captured on a PABP surface. Paip1 (1 µM) or Paip2 (100 nM) was injected over a PABP surface (1,500 RU) and a mock surface. The Paip1 and Paip2 injections were followed by an injection of PABP(RRM1-4) (100 nM) (dashed line). (B and C) Enlargements of PABP(RRM1-4) binding curves shown in panel A after injection of PABP(RRM1-4) for Paip1 (B) or Paip2 (C). (D) PABP(C-term) interactions with Paip1-PABP(RRM1-4) complex. Paip1 (25 nM) preincubated (or not) with PABP(RRM1-4) (75 nM) was injected (300 s) over a PABP(C-term) surface (150 RU) and a mock surface.
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FIG. 9. Stoichiometry of the PABP-Paip1 interaction in vitro. GST pull-down assays were performed with purified PABP and Paip1 fragments. (A) GST, GST-Paip1, and GST-PABP (5 µg) were immobilized on glutathione-Sepharose beads and incubated with Paip1(117-479) and/or PABP (5 µg). (B) GST and GST-PABP(C-term) (10 µg) were immobilized on glutathione-Sepharose beads and incubated with Paip1 (2.4 µg) and/or PABP(RRM1-2) (1.8 µg). Bound proteins were eluted in Laemmli loading buffer and analyzed by SDS-11% PAGE. One microgram of each protein was loaded as input. The gels were stained with Coomassie blue R-250. Positions of the molecular mass markers are shown on the left of each panel. Proteins are identified on the right of each panel. The presence of additional bands is due to protein degradation.
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To further confirm the SPR results suggesting that one Paip1 molecule could contact the RRMs and the C-terminal regions of PABP simultaneously (1:1 stoichiometry with two contact sites), we performed additional GST pull-down assays with PABP fragments (Fig. 9B). The proteins used in this pull-down experiment were predominantly intact as observed by SDS-PAGE followed by Coomassie blue staining (Fig. 9B, input, lanes 1 to 4). GST did not interact with full-length Paip1 and PABP(RRM1-2) (lanes 5 to 7). GST-PABP(C-term) clearly precipitated full-length Paip1 but not PABP(RRM1-2) (lanes 8 and 9). Interestingly, GST-PABP(C-term) associated with PABP(RRM1-2) in the presence of full-length Paip1 (lane 10). This result confirms that Paip1 can interact simultaneously with RRMs 1 and 2 and the C-terminal domain of PABP and supports the 1:1 stoichiometry model. In addition, this experiment demonstrates that the interactions between Paip1 and the different PABP regions are relatively stable and that these pull-down experiments can effectively detect a ternary complex.
PABP and Paip1 interact with a 1:1 stoichiometry in HeLa cell extracts.
We wished to further establish the 1:1 stoichiometry model that was based on in vitro data by carrying out experiments using GST pull-down assays and immunoprecipitation with extracts prepared from HeLa cells. HeLa cells were cotransfected with various combinations of pcDNA3-GST, pcDNA3-GST-Paip1, and pcDNA3-Flag-Paip1, followed by GST pull-down assays on cell extracts. The levels of expression of recombinant GST, GST-Paip1, and Flag-Paip1, as well as endogenous PABP, are shown for each cotransfection set (Fig. 10A, lanes 5 to 8). Both GST and GST-Paip1 bound efficiently to the glutathione-Sepharose resin (lanes 1 to 4). As expected, endogenous PABP was associated with GST-Paip1 but not with GST (compare lanes 1 and 2 to lanes 3 and 4). However, Flag-Paip1 failed to associate with the GST-Paip1-PABP complex (lane 1) or GST (lane 3). To ensure that the transfected Flag-Paip1 protein is capable of binding to PABP, immunoprecipitation experiments with anti-Flag antibody were performed. The levels of expression of transfected proteins and endogenous PABP are shown for each cotransfection set (Fig. 10B, lanes 5 to 8). Flag-Paip1 immunoprecipitated with anti-Flag antibody and was associated with endogenous PABP (lanes 1 and 3). GST-Paip1 did not coprecipitate with the Flag-Paip1-PABP complex (lane 1). GST-Paip1 and GST were not immunoprecipitated with anti-Flag antibody (lanes 2 and 4). We estimate (by visual inspection) that the sensitivity of detection of the Flag-Paip1 and GST-Paip1 by the anti-Flag and anti-GST antibodies, respectively, is such that 0.5% of the transfected proteins would be detected in this assay. Approximately 10% of GST-Paip1 and Flag-Paip1 were precipitated with glutathione-Sepharose and Flag antibody, respectively (Fig. 10A, lanes 1 and 2, and B, lanes 1 and 3). Both proteins interact with similar affinity with endogenous PABP, since they both precipitated
5% of endogenous PABP (Fig. 10A, lanes 1 and 2, and B, lanes 1 and 3). Thus, if the stoichiometry of interaction were 2:1, equivalent amounts of both tagged Paip1 proteins would be expected to coprecipitate in a complex with PABP. This amount is
2.5% of the expressed GST-Paip1 or Flag-Paip1 and thus is fivefold above the level of detection (0.5% of the transfected proteins). Therefore, these data strongly suggest that only one Paip1 molecule can bind to one PABP molecule in cells, supporting the 1:1 stoichiometry model.
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FIG. 10. Stoichiometry of the PABP-Paip1 interaction in HeLa cell extracts. HeLa cells were cotransfected with different combinations of pcDNA3-GST, pcDNA3-GST-Paip1, pcDNA3-Flag-Paip1, pcDNA3-GST-Paip2, and pACTAG-2-Paip2 as indicated. GST pull-down assays using glutathione-Sepharose beads (A and C) or immunoprecipitations with anti-Flag antibody (B) were performed with protein extracts (300 µg) prepared from the transfected cells. Precipitated proteins (indicated as GST pull-down or immunoprecipitation anti-Flag) or expressed and endogenous proteins (30 µg; input) were resuspended in Laemmli sample buffer and resolved by and SDS-8 or 12.5% PAGE. Proteins were subsequently transferred onto a nitrocellulose membrane and detected by Western blotting with the following antibodies: anti-GST, anti-Flag, anti-HA, and anti-PABP (see Materials and Methods). Proteins are identified on the left of each panel. IgG, immunoglobulin G.
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Taken together, our data demonstrate that Paip1 binds to PABP with a 1:1 stoichiometry and that the binding involves two contact sites on each of the interacting partners.
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FIG. 11. Model of the Paip1-PABP interaction. (A) Schematic representation of the PAM1 and PAM2 domains in Paip1 and Paip2. PAM1 corresponds to aa 440 to 479 and 22 to 75 in Paip1 and Paip2, respectively. PAM2 is located at aa 123 to 137 and 106 to 120 in Paip1 and Paip2, respectively. (B) Paip1 and PABP interact with a 1:1 stoichiometry via two contact sites on each protein. The Paip1-PABP complex possibly interacts with eIF4A and other translation factors to participate in ribosome recruitment and translation initiation.
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It was previously shown that Paip1 interacts with RRMs 1 and 2 (aa 3 to 182) of Xenopus PABP and with a C-terminal truncation of RRMs 1 and 2 (aa 3 to 137, compared to aa 1 to 189 of human PABP used in this study) (14). RRMs 1 and 2 are also responsible for the interaction of PABP with eIF4G (14). However, a C-terminal truncation of RRMs 1 and 2 of Xenopus PABP (aa 3 to 137) resulted in the loss of interaction with eIF4G (14). It will be important to investigate whether Paip1, eIF4G, and the poly(A) tail can bind simultaneously to RRMs 1 and 2 and to further characterize the effects of these interactions on translation. Unlike Paip1, Paip2 interacts with a sequence located within RRMs 2 and 3 and interferes with the binding of PABP to the poly(A) tail (20, 22), probably by steric hindrance. Paip1 also interacts with PABP fragments RRM2-3 and RRM3-4, but to a much lesser extent than with RRM1-2 (Fig. 3). It also interacts weakly with the individual RRM1 and RRM2 fragments (Fig. 3). Since RRMs 1 and 2 are responsible for most of the poly(A) binding activity of PABP (6, 24) and Paip1 interacts strongly with this region, additional experiments will be necessary to determine whether Paip1 binding to PABP affects the poly(A) binding affinity of PABP in solution. It is noteworthy, however, that Paip1 interacts with PABP which is bound to poly(A)-Sepharose (5).
The stoichiometry of the interactions of Paip1 with full-length PABP and PABP fragments was determined by a combination of SPR, GST pull-down, and immunoprecipitation experiments (Fig. 5 to 10). Paip1 interacts with both the RRMs and C-terminal fragments of PABP with a 1:1 stoichiometry (Fig. 5 and 6). Interestingly, the interactions of both Paip1 and Paip2 with the RRM region of PABP are well depicted by a simple 1:1 stoichiometry model, whereas their interactions with the C terminus of PABP are better depicted by a 1:1 stoichiometry rearrangement model. The interaction of Paip1 with the RRM region is about 10-fold stronger than that with the C-terminal domain of PABP (Kd = 0.56 and 5.7 nM, respectively [Tables 1 and 2]), compared to a >200-fold difference in Paip2 (Kd = 0.31 and 85 nM, respectively) (20). Strikingly, the kinetic and thermodynamic constants for the interactions between Paip1 and Paip2 with the PABP(RRM1-4) fragment are very similar (Kd = 0.56 and 0.31 nM, kass= 1.31 x 106 and 1.9 x 106 M-1 s-1, and kdiss = 7.4 x 10-4 and 6 x 10-4 s-1 for Paip1 and Paip2, respectively) (Table 1) (20).
In contrast to the similarity of the Paip1 and Paip2 interactions with the PABP(RRM1-4) region, the kinetic and thermodynamic constants for the interactions with the PABP(C-term) fragment are different. Paip1 has a 15-fold-higher affinity for the C terminus of PABP than Paip2 (Kdapp= 5.7 and 85 nM for Paip1 and Paip2, respectively) (Table 2) (20). This difference is mainly due to a higher association rate (kass1 = 4.9 x 105 and 1.1 x 105 M-1 s-1 for Paip1 and Paip2, respectively) (Table 2) (20) and to a higher rearrangement rate (kass2 = 12 x 10-3 and 3 x 10-3 s-1 for Paip1 and Paip2, respectively) (Table 2) (20). In both cases, the protein complex dissociation rates (kdiss1) are similar (2.3 x 10-2 and 2.5 x 10-2 s-1 for Paip1 and Paip2, respectively) (Table 2) (20). The difference in the affinities of Paip1 and Paip2 for the C-terminal region of PABP, as well as the existence of other C-terminal PABP binding partners, suggests that this region plays an important role in modulating the activity of PABP by recruiting different binding partners depending on their relative affinities and different local concentrations. The physiological significance of this needs to be examined.
We previously demonstrated that the interaction between Paip2 and full-length PABP is consistent with a 2:1 stoichiometry model (20). Paip2 exhibits the same affinity for the RRM and the C-terminal domains of PABP when full-length PABP or PABP fragments are used (20). In contrast, this study provides strong evidence that the interaction of Paip1 with PABP occurs with a 1:1 stoichiometry (Fig. 8 to 10). According to the SPR data, the interaction between Paip1 and full-length PABP has an apparent Kd of 1.9 nM (Table 3), which is intermediate to the Kds of the Paip1-PABP(RRM1-4) and Paip1-PABP(C-term) interactions (0.56 nM [Table 1] and 5.7 nM [Table 2], respectively). In light of the 1:1 stoichiometry model for the interaction between full-length PABP and Paip1 and the association rates for the interaction of the RRMs and the C terminus of PABP (compare kass1 in Tables 1 and 2), it is likely that Paip1 first binds to the RRM region and then contacts the C terminus of PABP. This multiple-contact mode of binding may weaken the RRMs-Paip1 interaction, thereby explaining why the Kd for Paip1 binding to full-length PABP falls between the Kd values determined for the PABP fragments. Interestingly, the kinetic constants for the rearrangement step of Paip1 binding to full-length PABP and to the C-terminal fragment of PABP are strikingly similar (compare kass2 and kdiss2 in Tables 2 and 3). This rearrangement step may correspond to a change in conformation, which occurs when Paip1 binds to the C terminus of PABP, in the contexts of both the fragment and full-length PABP. We found that the same kinetic model (1:1 stoichiometry with rearrangement) fit the data for the binding of Paip2 to the C terminus of PABP (20). It was suggested from nuclear magnetic resonance studies that Paip2, which is unfolded, becomes structured by an induced-fit mechanism upon binding to the C terminus of PABP (23). Accordingly, this induced folding of Paip2 may correspond to the rearrangement step that was detected by SPR. Since SPR also detected a rearrangement step for Paip1, it may be that Paip1 is unfolded and becomes structured upon binding.
Paip2, which is a small protein (14 kDa), interacts with PABP with a 2:1 stoichiometry (20); however, Paip1 interacts with a 1:1 stoichiometry. Interestingly, a similar 1:1 stoichiometry was shown for two other translation initiation factors. eIF4G possesses two separate eIF4A binding sites, one in its middle domain and the other in its C-terminal domain (17, 29). However, it was proposed that one eIF4A molecule contacts both eIF4A binding sites in eIF4G simultaneously (17, 29). This is also supported by in vivo data (27). It was shown that the eIF4A binding to the C terminus of eIF4G has a modulatory function (29). It is possible that a similar mechanism exists for the PABP-Paip1 interaction.
Since both Paip1 and eIF4G interact with eIF4A and PABP (5, 16, 17), it will be interesting to determine if these proteins are found together in a complex that regulates translation initiation and to elucidate the stoichiometry of these proteins in such a complex (Fig. 11B). It will also be important to map the eIF4A binding site in Paip1 as well as the Paip1 and eIF4G binding sites in eIF4A.
In conclusion, PABP possesses two Paip1 binding sites, one located within RRMs 1 and 2 and the other located within the C-terminal domain. Paip1 also possesses two PABP binding sites, PAM1 and PAM2. PAM1, the higher-affinity binding site, is located within the C terminus of Paip1 (aa 440 to 479) and binds to RRMs 1 and 2. PAM2, the lower-affinity binding site, is located within the N terminus of Paip1 (aa 116 to 143) and interacts with the C terminus of PABP. Paip1 interacts with PABP with a 1:1 stoichiometry, in contrast to Paip2, which binds to PABP with a 2:1 stoichiometry. These newly described interactions will serve as a basis to design dominant negative mutants of Paip1 and PABP which may be used to shed more light on the roles of these proteins and their mechanisms of action in translation regulation.
This research was supported by a grant from the Canadian Institute of Health Research (CIHR). N.S. is a CIHR distinguished scientist and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute International Scholar. G.R., K.K., and A.K. are recipients of predoctoral studentships from the CIHR. G.R. is the recipient of a McGill Major studentship. G.D.C. is supported by the Protein Engineering Network of Centres of Excellence.
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