title: Crystal structures of beta-neurexin 1 and beta-neurexin 2 ectodomains and dynamics of splice insertion sequence 4.
abstract: Presynaptic neurexins (NRXs) bind to postsynaptic neuroligins (NLs) to form Ca(2+)-dependent complexes that bridge neural synapses. beta-NRXs bind NLs through their LNS domains, which contain a single site of alternative splicing (splice site 4) giving rise to two isoforms: +4 and Delta. We present crystal structures of the Delta isoforms of the LNS domains from beta-NRX1 and beta-NRX2, crystallized in the presence of Ca(2+) ions. The Ca(2+)-binding site is disordered in the beta-NRX2 structure, but the 1.7 A beta-NRX1 structure reveals a single Ca(2+) ion, approximately 12 A from the splice insertion site, with one coordinating ligand donated by a glutamic acid from an adjacent beta-NRX1 molecule. NMR studies of beta-NRX1+4 show that the insertion sequence is unstructured, and remains at least partially disordered in complex with NL. These results raise the possibility that beta-NRX insertion sequence 4 may function in roles independent of neuroligin binding.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Columbia University, 630 West 168th Street, New York, NY 10032, USA.
authors.forename: Jesko
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Koehnke
authors.forename: Xiangshu
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Jin
authors.forename: Nikola
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Trbovic
authors.forename: Phinikoula S
authors.initials: PS
authors.lastname: Katsamba
authors.forename: Julia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Brasch
authors.forename: Goran
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ahlsen
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Scheiffele
authors.forename: Barry
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Honig
authors.forename: Arthur G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Palmer
authors.forename: Lawrence
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Shapiro
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D002118:Calcium / Q000378:metabolism; D015816:Cell Adhesion Molecules, Neuronal; D018360:Crystallography, X-Ray; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D008954:Models, Biological; D008958:Models, Molecular; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism; D011485:Protein Binding; D020033:Protein Isoforms / Q000737:chemistry; D017434:Protein Structure, Tertiary; D022821:RNA Splice Sites; D051381:Rats; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000737:chemistry; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid
chemical_list: D015816:Cell Adhesion Molecules, Neuronal; D008565:Membrane Proteins; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins; D020033:Protein Isoforms; D022821:RNA Splice Sites; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; C093175:neurexin II; C093438:neuroligin 1; C098003:neuroligin 2; C086959:neurexin Ibeta; D002118:Calcium