title: Crystal structure of nerve growth factor in complex with the ligand-binding domain of the TrkA receptor.
abstract: Nerve growth factor (NGF) is involved in a variety of processes involving signalling, such as cell differentiation and survival, growth cessation and apoptosis of neurons. These events are mediated by NGF as a result of binding to its two cell-surface receptors, TrkA and p75. TrkA is a receptor with tyrosine kinase activity that forms a high-affinity binding site for NGF. Of the five domains comprising its extracellular portion, the immunoglobulin-like domain proximal to the membrane (TrkA-d5 domain) is necessary and sufficient for NGF binding. Here we present the crystal structure of human NGF in complex with human TrkA-d5 at 2.2 A resolution. The ligand-receptor interface consists of two patches of similar size. One patch involves the central beta-sheet that forms the core of the homodimeric NGF molecule and the loops at the carboxy-terminal pole of TrkA-d5. The second patch comprises the amino-terminal residues of NGF, which adopt a helical conformation upon complex formation, packing against the 'ABED' sheet of TrkA-d5. The structure is consistent with results from mutagenesis experiments for all neurotrophins, and indicates that the first patch may constitute a conserved binding motif for all family members, whereas the second patch is specific for the interaction between NGF and TrkA.
authors.affiliation: Department of Protein Engineering, Genentech, Inc., South San Francisco, California 94080, USA.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wiesmann
authors.forename: M H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Ultsch
authors.forename: S H
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Bass
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: de Vos
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001665:Binding Sites; D018360:Crystallography, X-Ray; D004926:Escherichia coli; D006801:Humans; D008024:Ligands; D046911:Macromolecular Substances; D051379:Mice; D008958:Models, Molecular; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009414:Nerve Growth Factors / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism; D011487:Protein Conformation; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism; D020794:Receptor Protein-Tyrosine Kinases / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism; D020917:Receptor, trkA; D017475:Receptors, Nerve Growth Factor / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid
chemical_list: D008024:Ligands; D046911:Macromolecular Substances; D009414:Nerve Growth Factors; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins; D017475:Receptors, Nerve Growth Factor; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D020794:Receptor Protein-Tyrosine Kinases; D020917:Receptor, trkA