title: Tetrahymena Expresses More than a Hundred Proteins with Lipid-binding MORN Motifs that can Differ in their Subcellular Localisations.
abstract: Proteins with membrane occupation and recognition nexus (MORN) motifs are associated with cell fission in apicomplexan parasites, chloroplast division in Arabidopsis and the motility of sperm cells. We found that ciliates are among those that encode the largest variety of MORN proteins. Tetrahymena thermophila expresses 129 MORN protein-encoding genes, some of which are specifically up-regulated during conjugation. A lipid-binding assay underpins the assumption that the predominant function of MORN motifs themselves is to confer the ability of lipid binding. The localisation of four MORN candidate proteins with similar characteristics highlights the functional diversity of this group especially in ciliates.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Molecular Evolution, Heinrich-Heine-University, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany.
authors.forename: Jörn
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Habicht
authors.affiliation: Institute for Microbiology, Christian-Albrecht-University, 24118, Kiel, Germany.
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Woehle
authors.affiliation: Institute for Molecular Evolution, Heinrich-Heine-University, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany.
authors.forename: Sven B
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Gould
mesh_terms: D020816:Amino Acid Motifs; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D050356:Lipid Metabolism; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D017434:Protein Structure, Tertiary; D015800:Protozoan Proteins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism*; D016808:Tetrahymena thermophila / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D008565:Membrane Proteins; D015800:Protozoan Proteins
keywords: Ciliates; MORN; membrane targeting; membrane tethering