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Structural basis of p38α regulation by hematopoietic tyrosine phosphatase

Nature Chemical Biology volume 7, pages 916–924 (2011)Cite this article

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Abstract

MAP kinases regulate essential cellular events, including cell growth, differentiation and inflammation. The solution structure of a complete MAPK–MAPK-regulatory protein complex, p38α–HePTP, was determined, enabling a comprehensive investigation of the molecular basis of specificity and fidelity in MAPK regulation. Structure determination was achieved by combining NMR spectroscopy and small-angle X-ray scattering data with a new ensemble calculation–refinement procedure. We identified 25 residues outside of the HePTP kinase interaction motif necessary for p38α recognition. The complex adopts an extended conformation in solution and rarely samples the conformation necessary for kinase deactivation. Complex formation also does not affect the N-terminal lobe, the activation loop of p38α or the catalytic domain of HePTP. Together, these results show how the downstream tyrosine phosphatase HePTP regulates p38α and provide for fundamentally new insights into MAPK regulation and specificity.

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Figure 1: The sequence-specific backbone assignment of p38α is the most complete of any MAPK.
Figure 2: 2D [1H,15N]-TROSY spectra obtained for [2H,15N]p38α in complex with various HePTP domains.
Figure 3: The p38α binding site for HePTP extends beyond the KIM binding pocket.
Figure 4: Val31 binds hydrophobic pocket ΦB in p38α.
Figure 5: The p38–HePTP resting state complex is extended in solution.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank L. Yang and M. Allaire (National Synchrotron Light Source, NSLS) for their support at NSLS beamline X9. The authors thank P. Vogel (Southern Methodist University) for providing SL-ATP for the titration studies. This research was supported by grant RSG-08-067-01-LIB from the American Cancer Society to R.P. B.R. was supported by a Marie Curie International Outgoing Fellowship within the Seventh European Community Framework Program. B.R. and G.H. were supported by the Intramural Research Program of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, US National Institutes of Health (NIH). Use of the NSLS at Brookhaven National Laboratory was supported by the US Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of Basic Energy Sciences under contract no. DE-AC02-98CH10886. 800 MHz NMR data were recorded at Brandeis University and were purchased with support from NIH S10-RR017269. Molecular simulations were performed on the Biowulf computing cluster at NIH.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Molecular Pharmacology, Physiology and Biotechnology, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, USA

    Dana M Francis & Wolfgang Peti

  2. Laboratory of Chemical Physics, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA

    Bartosz Różycki & Gerhard Hummer

  3. Department of Molecular Biology, Cell Biology and Biochemistry, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, USA

    Dorothy Koveal & Rebecca Page

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  1. Dana M Francis
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Contributions

D.M.F. and D.K. cloned and purified all proteins. D.M.F. and W.P. performed and analyzed all NMR measurements. D.M.F., W.P. and R.P. performed and analyzed the SAXS measurements. D.K. performed all ITC measurements. R.P. and W.P. helped design the biochemical and NMR experiments. B.R. and G.H. performed all EROS and EROS-NMR calculations. R.P. and W.P. wrote the paper and all authors discussed the results and commented on the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Rebecca Page or Wolfgang Peti.

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Francis, D., Różycki, B., Koveal, D. et al. Structural basis of p38α regulation by hematopoietic tyrosine phosphatase. Nat Chem Biol 7, 916–924 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/nchembio.707

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