Catastrophic disassembly of actin filaments via Mical-mediated oxidation

Nat Commun. 2017 Dec 19;8(1):2183. doi: 10.1038/s41467-017-02357-8.

Abstract

Actin filament assembly and disassembly are vital for cell functions. MICAL Redox enzymes are important post-translational effectors of actin that stereo-specifically oxidize actin's M44 and M47 residues to induce cellular F-actin disassembly. Here we show that Mical-oxidized (Mox) actin can undergo extremely fast (84 subunits/s) disassembly, which depends on F-actin's nucleotide-bound state. Using near-atomic resolution cryoEM reconstruction and single filament TIRF microscopy we identify two dynamic and structural states of Mox-actin. Modeling actin's D-loop region based on our 3.9 Å cryoEM reconstruction suggests that oxidation by Mical reorients the side chain of M44 and induces a new intermolecular interaction of actin residue M47 (M47-O-T351). Site-directed mutagenesis reveals that this interaction promotes Mox-actin instability. Moreover, we find that Mical oxidation of actin allows for cofilin-mediated severing even in the presence of inorganic phosphate. Thus, in conjunction with cofilin, Mical oxidation of actin promotes F-actin disassembly independent of the nucleotide-bound state.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Actin Cytoskeleton / chemistry*
  • Actin Cytoskeleton / ultrastructure
  • Actin Depolymerizing Factors / chemistry*
  • Actins / chemistry*
  • Actins / genetics
  • Actins / isolation & purification
  • Actins / ultrastructure
  • Cryoelectron Microscopy
  • Crystallography, X-Ray
  • DNA-Binding Proteins / chemistry*
  • DNA-Binding Proteins / isolation & purification
  • DNA-Binding Proteins / ultrastructure
  • Methionine / chemistry
  • Molecular Docking Simulation
  • Mutagenesis, Site-Directed
  • Oxidation-Reduction
  • Protein Binding / genetics
  • Protein Domains
  • Protein Multimerization*
  • Recombinant Proteins / chemistry
  • Recombinant Proteins / genetics
  • Recombinant Proteins / isolation & purification
  • Recombinant Proteins / ultrastructure

Substances

  • Actin Depolymerizing Factors
  • Actins
  • DNA-Binding Proteins
  • MICAL protein, Drosophila
  • Recombinant Proteins
  • Methionine