Renaldo C. Drisdel

Neural palmitoyl-proteomics reveals dynamic synaptic palmitoylation

Palmitoylation regulates diverse aspects of neuronal protein trafficking and function. Here a global characterization of rat neural palmitoyl-proteomes identifies most of the known neural palmitoyl proteins—68 in total, plus more than 200 new palmitoyl-protein candidates, with further testing confirming palmitoylation for 21 of these candidates. The new palmitoyl proteins include neurotransmitter receptors, transporters, adhesion molecules, scaffolding proteins, as well as SNAREs and other vesicular trafficking proteins. Of particular interest is the finding of palmitoylation for a brain-specific Cdc42 splice variant. The palmitoylated Cdc42 isoform (Cdc42-palm) differs from the canonical, prenylated form (Cdc42-prenyl), both with regard to localization and function: Cdc42-palm concentrates in dendritic spines and has a special role in inducing these post-synaptic structures. Furthermore, assessing palmitoylation dynamics in drug-induced activity models identifies rapidly induced changes for Cdc42 as well as for other synaptic palmitoyl proteins, suggesting that palmitoylation may participate broadly in the activity-driven changes that shape synapse morphology and function.

Palmitoylation of huntingtin by HIP14 is essential for its trafficking and function.

Post-translational modification by the lipid palmitate is crucial for the correct targeting and function of many proteins. Here we show that huntingtin (htt) is normally palmitoylated at cysteine 214, which is essential for its trafficking and function. The palmitoylation and distribution of htt are regulated by the palmitoyl transferase huntingtin interacting protein 14 (HIP14). Expansion of the polyglutamine tract of htt, which causes Huntington disease, results in reduced interaction between mutant htt and HIP14 and consequently in a marked reduction in palmitoylation. Mutation of the palmitoylation site of htt, making it palmitoylation resistant, accelerates inclusion formation and increases neuronal toxicity. Downregulation of HIP14 in mouse neurons expressing wild-type and mutant htt increases inclusion formation, whereas overexpression of HIP14 substantially reduces inclusions. These results suggest that the expansion of the polyglutamine tract in htt results in decreased palmitoylation, which contributes to the formation of inclusion bodies and enhanced neuronal toxicity.

Labeling and quantifying sites of protein palmitoylation

As a reversible posttranslational modification, protein palmitoylation has the potential to regulate the trafficking and function of a variety of proteins. However, the extent, function, and dynamic nature of palmitoylation are poorly resolved because of limitations in assay methods. Here, we introduce methods where hydroxylamine-mediated cleavage of the palmitoyl-thioester bond generates a free sulfhydryl, which can then be specifically labeled with sulfhydryl-reactive reagents. This methodology is more sensitive and allows for quantitative estimates of palmitoylation. Unlike other techniques used to assay posttranslational modifications, the techniques we have developed can label all sites of modification with a variety of probes, radiolabeled or nonradioactive, and can be used to assay the palmitoylation of proteins expressed in vivo in brain or other tissues.

Neuronal alpha-bungarotoxin receptors differ structurally from other nicotinic acetylcholine receptors

We have characterized the α-bungarotoxin receptors (BgtRs) found on the cell surface of undifferentiated pheochromocytoma (PC12) cells. The PC12 cells express a homogeneous population of α7-containing receptors that bind α-Bgt with high affinity (Kd = 94 pm). The BgtRs mediate most of the response elicited by nicotine, because the BgtR-specific antagonists methyllycaconitine and α-Bgt block ∼90% of the whole-cell current. The binding of nicotinic agonists to cell-surface BgtRs was highly cooperative with four different agonists showing Hill coefficients in the range of 2.3–2.4. A similar agonist binding cooperativity was observed for BgtR homomers formed from chimeric α7/5HT3 subunits expressed in tsA 201 cells. Two classes of agonist binding sites, in the ratio of 4:1 for PC12 cell BgtRs and 3:1 for α7/5HT3 BgtRs, were revealed by bromoacetylcholine alkylation of the reduced sites on both PC12 BgtRs and α7/5HT3 BgtRs. We conclude from this data that PC12 BgtRs and α7/5HT3 homomers contain at least three distinguishable agonist binding sites and thus are different from other nicotinic receptors.

The Role of Palmitoylation in Functional Expression of Nicotinic α7 Receptors

Neuronal α-bungarotoxin receptors (BgtRs) are nicotinic receptors that require as yet unidentified post-translational modifications to achieve functional expression. In this study, we examined the role of protein palmitoylation in BgtR expression. BgtR α7 subunits are highly palmitoylated in neurons from brain and other cells capable of BgtR expression, such as pheochromocytoma 12 (PC12) cells. In PC12 cells, α7 subunits are palmitoylated with a stoichiometry of approximately one palmitate per subunit, and inhibition of palmitoylation blocks BgtR expression. In cells incapable of BgtR expression, such as human embryonic kidney cells, α7 subunits are not significantly palmitoylated. However, in these same cells, chimeric subunits with the N-terminal half of α7 fused to the C-terminal half of serotonin-3A receptor (α7/5-HT3A) subunits form functional BgtRs that are palmitoylated to an extent similar to that of BgtRα7 subunits in PC12 cells. Palmitoylation of PC12 and α7/5-HT3A BgtRs occurred during assembly in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). In conclusion, our data indicate a function for protein palmitoylation in which palmitoylation of assembling α7 subunits in the ER has a role in the formation of functional BgtRs.

Synaptic SAP97 Isoforms Regulate AMPA Receptor Dynamics and Access to Presynaptic Glutamate

The synaptic insertion of GluR1-containing AMPA-type glutamate receptors (AMPARs) is critical for synaptic plasticity. However, mechanisms responsible for GluR1 insertion and retention at the synapse are unclear. The synapse-associated protein SAP97 directly binds GluR1 and participates in its forward trafficking from the Golgi network to the plasma membrane. Whether SAP97 also plays a role in scaffolding GluR1 at the postsynaptic membrane is controversial, attributable to its expression as a collection of alternatively spliced isoforms with ill-defined spatial and temporal distributions. In the present study, we have used live imaging and electrophysiology to demonstrate that two postsynaptic, N-terminal isoforms of SAP97 directly modulate the levels, dynamics, and function of synaptic GluR1-containing AMPARs. Specifically, the unique N-terminal domains confer distinct subsynaptic localizations onto SAP97, targeting the palmitoylated α-isoform to the postsynaptic density (PSD) and the L27 domain-containing β-isoform primarily to non-PSD, perisynaptic regions. Consequently, α- and βSAP97 differentially influence the subsynaptic localization and dynamics of AMPARs by creating binding sites for GluR1-containing receptors within their respective subdomains. These results indicate that N-terminal splicing of SAP97 can control synaptic strength by regulating the distribution of AMPARs and, hence, their responsiveness to presynaptically released glutamate.

Altered palmitoylation and neuropathological deficits in mice lacking HIP14

Huntingtin interacting protein 14 (HIP14, ZDHHC17) is a huntingtin (HTT) interacting protein with palmitoyl transferase activity. In order to interrogate the function of Hip14, we generated mice with disruption in their Hip14 gene. Hip14-/- mice displayed behavioral, biochemical and neuropathological defects that are reminiscent of Huntington disease (HD). Palmitoylation of other HIP14 substrates, but not Htt, was reduced in the Hip14-/- mice. Hip14 is dysfunctional in the presence of mutant htt in the YAC128 mouse model of HD, suggesting that altered palmitoylation mediated by HIP14 may contribute to HD.

S-Palmitoylation of γ-Secretase Subunits Nicastrin and APH-1

Proteolytic processing of amyloid precursor protein (APP) by β- and γ-secretases generates β-amyloid (Aβ) peptides, which accumulate in the brains of individuals affected by Alzheimer disease. Detergent-resistant membrane microdomains (DRM) rich in cholesterol and sphingolipid, termed lipid rafts, have been implicated in Aβ production. Previously, we and others reported that the four integral subunits of the γ-secretase associate with DRM. In this study we investigated the mechanisms underlying DRM association of γ-secretase subunits. We report that in cultured cells and in brain the γ-secretase subunits nicastrin and APH-1 undergo S-palmitoylation, the post-translational covalent attachment of the long chain fatty acid palmitate common in lipid raft-associated proteins. By mutagenesis we show that nicastrin is S-palmitoylated at Cys689, and APH-1 is S-palmitoylated at Cys182 and Cys245. S-Palmitoylation-defective nicastrin and APH-1 form stable γ-secretase complexes when expressed in knock-out fibroblasts lacking wild type subunits, suggesting that S-palmitoylation is not essential for γ-secretase assembly. Nevertheless, fractionation studies show that S-palmitoylation contributes to DRM association of nicastrin and APH-1. Moreover, pulse-chase analyses reveal that S-palmitoylation is important for nascent polypeptide stability of both proteins. Co-expression of S-palmitoylation-deficient nicastrin and APH-1 in cultured cells neither affects Aβ40, Aβ42, and AICD production, nor intramembrane processing of Notch and N-cadherin. Our findings suggest that S-palmitoylation plays a role in stability and raft localization of nicastrin and APH-1, but does not directly modulate γ-secretase processing of APP and other substrates.

Palmitoylation of ATP-Binding Cassette Transporter A1 Is Essential for Its Trafficking and Function

ATP-binding cassette transporter (ABC)A1 lipidates apolipoprotein A-I both directly at the plasma membrane and also uses lipids from the late endosomal or lysosomal compartment in the internal lipidation of apolipoprotein A-I. However, how ABCA1 targeting to these specific membranes is regulated remains unknown. Palmitoylation is a dynamically regulated lipid modification that targets many proteins to specific membrane domains. We hypothesized that palmitoylation may also regulate ABCA1 transport and function. Indeed, ABCA1 is robustly palmitoylated at cysteines 3, -23, -1110, and -1111. Abrogation of palmitoylation of ABCA1 by mutation of the cysteines results in a reduction of ABCA1 localization at the plasma membranes and a reduction in the ability of ABCA1 to efflux lipids to apolipoprotein A-I. ABCA1 is palmitoylated by the palmitoyl transferase DHHC8, and increasing DHHC8 protein results in increased ABCA1-mediated lipid efflux. Thus, palmitoylation regulates ABCA1 localization at the plasma membrane, and regulates its lipid efflux ability.

Palmitoylation of Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors

It is well established that nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) undergo a number of different posttranslational modifications, such as disulfide bond formation, glycosylation, and phosphorylation. Recently, our laboratory has developed more sensitive assays of protein palmitoylation that have allowed us and others to detect the palmitoylation of relatively low abundant proteins such as ligand-gated ion channels. Here, we present evidence that palmitoylation is prevalent on many subunits of different nAChR subtypes, both muscle-type nAChRs and the neuronal “α4β2” and “α7” subtypes most abundant in brain. The loss of ligand binding sites that occurs when palmitoylation is blocked with the inhibitor bromopalmitate suggests that palmitoylation of α4β2 and α7 subtypes occurs during subunit assembly and regulates the formation of ligand binding sites. However, additional experiments are needed to test whether nAChR subunit palmitoylation is involved in other aspects of nAChR trafficking or whether palmitoylation regulates nAChR function. Further investigation would be aided by identifying the sites of palmitoylation on the subunits, and here we propose a mass spectrometry strategy for identification of these sites.