Structures of MPND Reveal the Molecular Recognition of Nucleosomes.

Adenine N6 methylation in DNA (6mA) is a well-known epigenetic modification in bacteria, phages, and eukaryotes. Recent research has identified the Mpr1/Pad1 N-terminal (MPN) domain-containing protein (MPND) as a sensor protein that may recognize DNA 6mA modification in eukaryotes. However, the structural details of MPND and the molecular mechanism of their interaction remain unknown. Herein, we report the first crystal structures of the apo-MPND and MPND-DNA complex at resolutions of 2.06 Å and 2.47 Å, respectively. In solution, the assemblies of both apo-MPND and MPND-DNA are dynamic. In addition, MPND was found to possess the ability to bind directly to histones, no matter the N-terminal restriction enzyme-adenine methylase-associated domain or the C-terminal MPN domain. Moreover, the DNA and the two acidic regions of MPND synergistically enhance the interaction between MPND and histones. Therefore, our findings provide the first structural information regarding the MPND-DNA complex and also provide evidence of MPND-nucleosome interactions, thereby laying the foundation for further studies on gene control and transcriptional regulation.

Structures of human TR4LBD-JAZF1 and TR4DBD-DNA complexes reveal the molecular basis of transcriptional regulation.

Testicular nuclear receptor 4 (TR4) modulates the transcriptional activation of genes and plays important roles in many diseases. The regulation of TR4 on target genes involves direct interactions with DNA molecules via the DNA-binding domain (DBD) and recruitment of coregulators by the ligand-binding domain (LBD). However, their regulatory mechanisms are unclear. Here, we report high-resolution crystal structures of TR4DBD, TR4DBD-DNA complexes and the TR4LBD-JAZF1 complex. For DNA recognition, multiple factors come into play, and a specific mutual selectivity between TR4 and target genes is found. The coactivators SRC-1 and CREBBP can bind at the interface of TR4 originally occupied by the TR4 activation function region 2 (AF-2); however, JAZF1 suppresses the binding through a novel mechanism. JAZF1 binds to an unidentified surface of TR4 and stabilizes an α13 helix never reported in the nuclear receptor family. Moreover, the cancer-associated mutations affect the interactions and the transcriptional activation of TR4 in vitro and in vivo, respectively. Overall, our results highlight the crucial role of DNA recognition and a novel mechanism of how JAZF1 reinforces the autorepressed conformation and influences the transcriptional activation of TR4, laying out important structural bases for drug design for a variety of diseases, including diabetes and cancers.

Structural insights into the interactions and epigenetic functions of human nucleic acid repair protein ALKBH6.

Human AlkB homolog 6, ALKBH6, plays key roles in nucleic acid damage repair and tumor therapy. However, no precise structural and functional information are available for this protein. In this study, we determined atomic resolution crystal structures of human holo-ALKBH6 and its complex with ligands. AlkB members bind nucleic acids by NRLs (nucleotide recognition lids, also called Flips), which can recognize DNA/RNA and flip methylated lesions. We found that ALKBH6 has unusual Flip1 and Flip2 domains, distinct from other AlkB family members both in sequence and conformation. Moreover, we show that its unique Flip3 domain has multiple unreported functions, such as discriminating against double-stranded nucleic acids, blocking the active center, binding other proteins, and in suppressing tumor growth. Structural analyses and substrate screening reveal how ALKBH6 discriminates between different types of nucleic acids and may also function as a nucleic acid demethylase. Structure-based interacting partner screening not only uncovered an unidentified interaction of transcription repressor ZMYND11 and ALKBH6 in tumor suppression but also revealed cross talk between histone modification and nucleic acid modification in epigenetic regulation. Taken together, these results shed light on the molecular mechanism underlying ALKBH6-associated nucleic acid damage repair and tumor therapy.

The stability of R-spine defines RAF inhibitor resistance: A comprehensive analysis of oncogenic BRAF mutants with in-frame insertion of αC-ß4 loop.

Although targeting BRAF mutants with RAF inhibitors has achieved promising outcomes in cancer therapy, drug resistance remains a remarkable challenge, and underlying molecular mechanisms are not fully understood. Here, we characterized a previously unknown group of oncogenic BRAF mutants with in-frame insertions (LLRins506 or VLRins506) of αC-ß4 loop. Using structure modeling and molecular dynamics simulation, we found that these insertions formed a large hydrophobic network that stabilizes R-spine and thus triggers the catalytic activity of BRAF. Furthermore, these insertions disrupted BRAF dimer interface and impaired dimerization. Unlike BRAF(V600E), these BRAF mutants with low dimer affinity were strongly resistant to all RAF inhibitors in clinic or clinical trials, which arises from their stabilized R-spines. As predicted by molecular docking, the stabilized R-spines in other BRAF mutants also conferred drug resistance. Together, our data indicated that the stability of R-spine but not dimer affinity determines the RAF inhibitor resistance of oncogenic BRAF mutants.

Crystal structures of REF6 and its complex with DNA reveal diverse recognition mechanisms.

Relative of Early Flowing 6 (REF6) is a DNA-sequence-specific H3K27me3/2 demethylase that contains four zinc finger (ZnF) domains and targets several thousand genes in Arabidopsis thaliana. The ZnF domains are essential for binding target genes, but the structural basis remains unclear. Here, we determined crystal structures of the ZnF domains and REF6-DNA complex, revealing a unique REF6-family-specific half-cross-braced ZnF (RCZ) domain and two C2H2-type ZnFs. DNA-binding induces a profound conformational change in the hinge region of REF6. Each REF6 recognizes six bases and DNA methylation reduces the binding affinity. Both the acidic region and basic region are important for the self-association of REF6. The REF6 DNA-binding affinity is determined by the sequence-dependent conformations of DNA and also the cooperativity in different target motifs. The conformational plasticity enables REF6 to function as a global transcriptional regulator that directly binds to many diverse genes, revealing the structural basis for the epigenetic modification recognition.

Helicase of Type 2 Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome Virus Strain HV Reveals a Unique Structure.

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) is prevalent throughout the world and has caused great economic losses to the swine industry. Nonstructural protein 10 (nsp10) is a superfamily 1 helicase participating in multiple processes of virus replication and one of the three most conserved proteins in nidoviruses. Here we report three high resolution crystal structures of highly pathogenic PRRSV nsp10. PRRSV nsp10 has multiple domains, including an N-terminal zinc-binding domain (ZBD), a ß-barrel domain, a helicase core with two RecA-like domains, and a C-terminal domain (CTD). The CTD adopts a novel fold and is required for the overall structure and enzymatic activities. Although each domain except the CTD aligns well with its homologs, PRRSV nsp10 adopts an unexpected extended overall structure in crystals and solution. Moreover, structural and functional analyses of PRRSV nsp10 versus its closest homolog, equine arteritis virus nsp10, suggest that DNA binding might induce a profound conformational change of PRRSV nsp10 to exert functions, thus shedding light on the mechanisms of activity regulation of this helicase.

Activating mutations in MEK1 enhance homodimerization and promote tumorigenesis.

RAS-RAF-MEK-ERK signaling has a well-defined role in cancer biology. Although aberrant pathway activation occurs mostly upstream of the kinase MEK, mutations in MEK are prevalent in some cancer subsets. Here, we found that cancer-related, activating mutations in MEK can be classified into two groups: those that relieve inhibitory interactions with the helix A region and those that are in-frame deletions of the ß3-αC loop, which enhance MEK1 homodimerization. The former, helix A-associated mutants, are inhibited by traditional MEK inhibitors. However, we found that the increased homodimerization associated with the loop-deletion mutants promoted intradimer cross-phosphorylation of the activation loop and conferred differential resistance to MEK inhibitors both in vitro and in vivo. MEK1 dimerization was required both for its activation by the kinase RAF and for its catalytic activity toward the kinase ERK. Our findings not only identify a previously unknown group of MEK mutants and provide insight into some key steps in RAF-MEK-ERK activation but also have implications for the design of therapies targeting RAS-ERK signaling in cancers.