title: Role of the C-terminal alpha-helical domain of the von Hippel-Lindau protein in its E3 ubiquitin ligase activity.
abstract: In the present study, the role of the C-terminal alpha-helical domain (amino acid (aa) 195-208) of the von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) tumour suppressor was investigated. Deletions of the VHL C-terminus up to the naturally occurring 195-Gln-Term resulted in hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-1alpha downregulation in renal cell carcinoma (RCC)4 cells during normoxia, suggesting that this domain is not an absolute requirement for the ubiquitination of HIF-1alpha. However, detailed investigation of the ubiquitin protein isopeptide ligase ubiquitin ligase properties of VHL revealed C-terminal deletions to cause a significant impairment of HIF-1alpha ubiquitination, which is shown to be due to a loss in high-affinity binding to the target substrate. When VHL regulation of both HIF-1alpha N- and C-terminal oxygen-dependent degradation domains (HIF-ODDD) was investigated, it was found that only ubiquitination of the C-terminal HIF-ODDD was affected by the deletion of the VHL C-terminus. When RCC4 cells expressing C-terminal truncations of VHL were exposed to graded hypoxia, differences in the induction of HIF-1alpha were observed in comparison with full-length VHL, with a shift in the maximal induction of HIF-1alpha to a higher oxygen tension. These changes were accompanied by increased glucose transporter 1 expression, p300 CH1 domain binding and HIF-mediated reporter activity. We have thus defined a role for the C-terminal alpha-helical domain of VHL in the regulation of HIF-1alpha.
authors.affiliation: School of Pharmaceutical, Molecular and Biomedical Sciences, Reid Building, University of South Australia, Frome Rd., Adelaide 5000, Australia.
authors.forename: Martin D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Lewis
authors.forename: Ben J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Roberts
mesh_terms: D048868:Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing; D002352:Carrier Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D000860:Hypoxia / Q000378:metabolism; D009479:Neuropeptides; D017434:Protein Structure, Tertiary; D017384:Sequence Deletion; D025521:Tumor Suppressor Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D044767:Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D051794:Von Hippel-Lindau Tumor Suppressor Protein; D006623:von Hippel-Lindau Disease / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D048868:Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing; D002352:Carrier Proteins; C492009:GIPC1 protein, human; D009479:Neuropeptides; D025521:Tumor Suppressor Proteins; D044767:Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases; D051794:Von Hippel-Lindau Tumor Suppressor Protein