title: Sorting of the neuroendocrine secretory protein Secretogranin II into the regulated secretory pathway: role of N- and C-terminal alpha-helical domains.
abstract: Secretogranin II (SgII) belongs to the granin family of prohormones widely distributed in dense-core secretory granules (DCGs) of endocrine, neuroendocrine, and neuronal cells, including sympathoadrenal chromaffin cells. The mechanisms by which secretory proteins, and granins in particular, are sorted into the regulated secretory pathway are unsettled. We designed a strategy based on novel chimeric forms of human SgII fused to fluorescent (green fluorescent protein) or chemiluminescent (embryonic alkaline phosphatase) reporters to identify trafficking determinants mediating DCG targeting of SgII in sympathoadrenal cells. Three-dimensional deconvolution fluorescence microscopy and secretagogue-stimulated release studies demonstrate that SgII chimeras are correctly targeted to DCGs and released by exocytosis in PC12 and primary chromaffin cells. Results from a Golgi-retained mutant form of SgII suggest that sorting of SgII into DCGs depends on a saturable sorting machinery at the trans-Golgi/trans-Golgi network. Truncation analyses reveal the presence of DCG-targeting signals within both the N- and C-terminal regions of SgII, with the putative alpha-helix-containing SgII-(25-41) and SgII-(334-348) acting as sufficient, independent sorting domains. This study defines sequence features of SgII mediating vesicular targeting in sympathoadrenal cells and suggests a mechanism by which discrete domains of the molecule function in sorting, perhaps by virtue of a particular arrangement in tertiary structure and/or interaction with a specific component of the DCG membrane.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, University of California at San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093-0838, USA.
authors.forename: Maïté
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Courel
authors.forename: Michael S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Vasquez
authors.forename: Vivian Y
authors.initials: VY
authors.lastname: Hook
authors.forename: Sushil K
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Mahata
authors.forename: Laurent
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Taupenot
mesh_terms: D000469:Alkaline Phosphatase / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D002462:Cell Membrane / Q000378:metabolism; D005089:Exocytosis; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D006056:Golgi Apparatus / Q000378:metabolism; D049452:Green Fluorescent Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D016716:PC12 Cells; D011487:Protein Conformation; D017433:Protein Structure, Secondary; D017434:Protein Structure, Tertiary; D051381:Rats; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000737:chemistry; D053381:Secretogranin II / Q000378:metabolism*; D015398:Signal Transduction
chemical_list: D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins; D053381:Secretogranin II; D049452:Green Fluorescent Proteins; D000469:Alkaline Phosphatase