Trimethylguanosine nucleoside inhibits cross-linking between Snurportin 1 and m3G-CAPPED U1 snRNA.

Macromolecular nuclear import is an energy-and signal-dependent process. The best characterized type of nuclear import consists of proteins carrying the classical NLS that is mediated by the heterodimeric receptor importin alpha/beta. Spliceosomal snRNPs U1, U2, U4, and U5 nuclear import depend both on the 5' terminal m3G (trimethylguanosine) cap structure of the U snRNA and the Sm core domain. Snurportin 1 recognizes the m3G-cap structure of m3G-capped U snRNPs. In this report, we show how a synthesized trimethylguanosine nucleoside affects the binding of Snurportin 1 to m3G-capped U1 snRNA in a UV-cross-linking assay. The data indicated that TMG nucleoside is an essential component required in the recognition by Snurportin 1, thus suggesting that interaction of Snurportin 1 with U1 snRNA is not strictly dependent on the presence of the whole cap structure, but rather on the presence of the TMG nucleoside structure. These results indicate that the free nucleoside TMG could be a candidate to be an inhibitor of the interaction between Snurportin 1 and U snRNAs. We also show the behavior of free TMG nucleoside in in vitro U snRNPs nuclear import.

Localization, ion channel regulation, and genetic interactions during abscisic acid signaling of the nuclear mRNA cap-binding protein, ABH1.

Abscisic acid (ABA) regulates developmental processes and abiotic stress responses in plants. We recently characterized a new Arabidopsis mutant, abh1, which shows ABA-hypersensitive regulation of seed germination, stomatal closing, and cytosolic calcium increases in guard cells (V. Hugouvieux, J.M. Kwak, J.I. Schroeder [2001] Cell 106: 477-487). ABH1 encodes the large subunit of a dimeric Arabidopsis mRNA cap-binding complex and in expression profiling experiments was shown to affect mRNA levels of a subset of genes. Here, we show that the dimeric ABH1 and AtCBP20 subunits are ubiquitously expressed. Whole-plant growth phenotypes of abh1 are described and properties of ABH1 in guard cells are further analyzed. Complemented abh1 lines expressing a green fluorescent protein-ABH1 fusion protein demonstrate that ABH1 mainly localizes in guard cell nuclei. Stomatal apertures were smaller in abh1 compared with wild type (WT) when plants were grown at 40% humidity, and similar at 95% humidity. Correlated with stomatal apertures from plants grown at 40% humidity, slow anion channel currents were enhanced and inward potassium channel currents were decreased in abh1 guard cells compared with WT. Gas exchange measurements showed similar primary humidity responses in abh1 and WT, which together with results from abh1/abi1-1 double-mutant analyses suggest that abh1 shows enhanced sensitivity to endogenous ABA. Double-mutant analyses of the ABA-hypersensitive signaling mutants, era1-2 and abh1, showed complex genetic interactions, suggesting that ABH1 and ERA1 do not modulate the same negative regulator in ABA signaling. Mutations in the RNA-binding protein sad1 showed hypersensitive ABA-induced stomatal closing, whereas hyl1 did not affect this response. These data provide evidence for the model that the mRNA-processing proteins ABH1 and SAD1 function as negative regulators in guard cell ABA signaling.