title: Design and signaling mechanism of light-regulated histidine kinases.
abstract: Signal transduction proteins are organized into sensor (input) domains that perceive a signal and, in response, regulate the biological activity of effector (output) domains. We reprogrammed the input signal specificity of a normally oxygen-sensitive, light-inert histidine kinase by replacing its chemosensor domain by a light-oxygen-voltage photosensor domain. Illumination of the resultant fusion kinase YF1 reduced net kinase activity by approximately 1000-fold in vitro. YF1 also controls gene expression in a light-dependent manner in vivo. Signals are transmitted from the light-oxygen-voltage sensor domain to the histidine kinase domain via a 40 degrees -60 degrees rotational movement within an alpha-helical coiled-coil linker; light is acting as a rotary switch. These signaling principles are broadly applicable to domains linked by alpha-helices and to chemo- and photosensors. Conserved sequence motifs guide the rational design of light-regulated variants of histidine kinases and other proteins.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Institute for Biophysical Dynamics, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA.
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Möglich
authors.forename: Rebecca A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Ayers
authors.forename: Keith
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Moffat
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000201:enzymology; D000071677:Histidine Kinase; D008027:Light; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010766:Phosphorylation; D011494:Protein Kinases / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D017433:Protein Structure, Secondary; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D015398:Signal Transduction
chemical_list: D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins; D011494:Protein Kinases; D000071677:Histidine Kinase