title: Membrane topology of Alzheimer's disease-related presenilin 1. Evidence for the existence of a molecular species with a seven membrane-spanning and one membrane-embedded structure.
abstract: A significant member of early-onset familial type of Alzheimer's disease cases has been shown to be caused by dominant mutations in either of the two genes encoding presenilin 1 (PS1) and presenilin 2 (PS2). These two proteins are highly homologous to each other and have been reported to be mainly localized to the membranes of intracellular compartments such as the endoplasmic reticulum. Information about the membrane topological structures of these proteins is indispensable for understanding their physiological and pathological roles. Although several models have been proposed previously, their precise membrane topologies remain unknown. In this study, we examined this issue in detail by expressing a series of C-terminally deleted PS1 mutants fused to the hydrophilic portion of Escherichia coli leader peptidase in vitro using a reticulocyte lysate in the presence of microsomal membranes. Our results predict that PS1 exists mainly in a seven membrane-spanning structure with its C-terminal end exposed to the luminal space. This was also confirmed by expressing these fusion proteins in cultured cells. We further showed that a ninth hydrophobic segment is tightly bound to the membrane without spanning it. Based on the above observations, we propose a novel "seven membrane-spanning and one membrane-embedded" topological model for presenilins.
authors.affiliation: Radioisotope Research Center, Yokohama City University School of Medicine, 3-9 Fukuura, Kanazawa-ku, Yokohama 236-0004, Japan.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nakai
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Yamasaki
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sakaguchi
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kosaka
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Mihara
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Amaya
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Miura
mesh_terms: D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000378:metabolism*; D000818:Animals; D016466:CHO Cells; D019556:COS Cells; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D006224:Cricetinae; D006801:Humans; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics; D053764:Presenilin-1; D011487:Protein Conformation; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D017384:Sequence Deletion
chemical_list: D008565:Membrane Proteins; C508853:PSEN1 protein, human; D053764:Presenilin-1; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins