Monastrol inhibition of the mitotic kinesin Eg5.

Monastrol is a small, cell-permeable molecule that arrests cells in mitosis by specifically inhibiting Eg5, a member of the Kinesin-5 family. We have used steady-state and presteady-state kinetics as well as equilibrium binding approaches to define the mechanistic basis of S-monastrol inhibition of monomeric human Eg5/KSP. In the absence of microtubules (Mts), the basal ATPase activity is inhibited through slowed product release. In the presence of microtubules, the ATPase activity is also reduced with weakened binding of Eg5 to microtubules during steady-state ATP turnover. Monastrol-treated Eg5 also shows a decreased relative affinity for microtubules under equilibrium conditions. The Mt.Eg5 presteady-state kinetics of ATP binding and the subsequent ATP-dependent isomerization are unaffected during the first ATP turnover. However, monastrol appears to stabilize a conformation that allows for reversals at the ATP hydrolysis step. Monastrol promotes a dramatic decrease in the observed rate of Eg5 association with microtubules, and ADP release is slowed without trapping the Mt.Eg5.ADP intermediate. We propose that S-monastrol binding to Eg5 induces a stable conformational change in the motor domain that favors ATP re-synthesis after ATP hydrolysis. The aberrant interactions with the microtubule and the reversals at the ATP hydrolysis step alter the ability of Eg5 to generate force, thereby yielding a nonproductive Mt.Eg5 complex that cannot establish or maintain the bipolar spindle.

Microtubule-kinesin interface mutants reveal a site critical for communication.

Strict coordination of the two motor domains of kinesin is required for driving the processive movement of organelles along microtubules. Glutamate 164 of the kinesin heavy chain was shown to be critical for kinesin function through in vivo genetics in Drosophila melanogaster. The mutant motor E164K exhibited reduced steady-state ATPase activity and higher affinity for both ATP and microtubules. Moreover, an alanine substitution at this position (E164A) caused similar defects. It became stalled on the microtubule and was unable to bind and hydrolyze ATP at the second motor domain. Glu(164), which has been conserved through evolution, is located at the motor-microtubule interface close to key residues on helix alpha12 of beta-tubulin. We explored further the contributions of Glu(164) to motor function using several site-directed mutant proteins: E164K, E164N, E164D, E164Q, and D165A. The results indicate that the microtubule-E164K complex can only bind and hydrolyze one ATP. ATP with increased salt was able to dissociate a population of E164K motors from the microtubule but could not dissociate E164A. We tested the basis of the stabilized microtubule interaction with E164K, E164N, and E164A. The results provide new insights about the motor-microtubule interface and the pathway of communication for processive motility.