Free clathrin triskelions are required for the stability of clathrin-associated adaptor protein (AP-2) coated pit nucleation sites

1999 ◽  
Vol 77 (5) ◽  
pp. 439-448 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claire M Brown ◽  
Nils O Petersen

In this study image correlation spectroscopy was used to demonstrate the presence of two populations of clathrin in situ, on intact cells. In the periphery of the cell ~35% of the clathrin triskelions are free within the cytosol while ~65% are in large aggregates, presumably coated pits. Although endocytosis is inhibited at low temperature, free clathrin triskelions are still present and small AP-2 aggregates (of ~20 proteins), or coated pit nucleation sites, are still observed. Following hypertonic treatment, or cytoplasmic acidification, free clathrin triskelions within the cytosol are depleted and all of the clathrin becomes associated with the membrane. Under these conditions coated pit associated AP-2 remains while the smaller AP-2 aggregates, or coated pit nucleation sites, dissociate. This indicates that the stabilization of AP-2 coated pit nucleation sites requires the presence of free clathrin triskelions within the cytosol. Furthermore, this indicates that free clathrin is required for the early stages of coated pit formation and presumably the continuation of the clathrin-mediated endocytic process. We also provide indirect evidence that AP-2 binding to the membrane in coated pit nucleation sites may be regulated in part by binding to internalization-competent membrane receptors.Key words: adaptor protein (AP-2), clathrin, distribution, nucleation sites, endocytosis.

1998 ◽  
Vol 111 (2) ◽  
pp. 271-281 ◽  
Author(s):  
C.M. Brown ◽  
N.O. Petersen

Clathrin associated adaptor protein is involved in endocytosis at the plasma membrane (AP-2) and protein sorting at the Golgi membrane (AP-1). There is a great deal of information available on the structure, function and binding characteristics of AP-2, however, there is little quantitative data on the AP-2 distribution at the membrane. Image correlation spectroscopy is a technique which yields number counts from an autocorrelation analysis of intensity fluctuations within confocal microscopy images. Image correlation spectroscopy analysis of the indirect immunofluorescence from AP-2 at the plasma membrane of CV-1 cells shows that AP-2 is in a bimodal distribution consisting of large coated pit associated aggregates of approximately 60 AP-2 molecules, and smaller aggregates containing approximately 20 AP-2 molecules, which we propose are coated pit nucleation sites. Following hypertonic treatment 25% of the AP-2 molecules dissociate from the large AP-2 aggregates and form AP-2 dimers, leaving the remaining AP-2 as large aggregates with approximately 45 molecules. The smaller AP-2 aggregates completely dissociate forming AP-2 dimers. Dispersion of AP-2 with hypertonic treatment is not seen qualitatively because the number of large AP-2 aggregates is unchanged, the aggregates are just 25% smaller. Change in temperature from 37 degrees C to 4 degrees C has no affect on the number of AP-2 aggregates or the AP-2 distribution between the two populations. These data and estimates of the coated pit size suggest that coated pits cover approximately 0.9% of the cell membrane. Combination of image correlation spectroscopy analysis and measurements of the CV-1 cell surface area show that there are approximately 6x10(5) AP-2 molecules per CV-1 cell with approximately 2x10(5) AP-2 molecules within coated pit structures.


2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ali Isbilir ◽  
Jan Möller ◽  
Andreas Bock ◽  
Ulrike Zabel ◽  
Paolo Annibale ◽  
...  

AbstractG protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) represent the largest class of cell surface receptors conveying extracellular information into intracellular signals. Many GPCRs have been shown to be able to oligomerize and it is firmly established that Class C GPCRs (e.g. metabotropic glutamate receptors) function as obligate dimers. However, the oligomerization capability of the larger Class A GPCRs (e.g. comprising the β-adrenergic receptors (β-ARs)) is still, despite decades of research, highly debated.Here we assess the oligomerization behavior of three prototypical Class A GPCRs, the β1-ARs, β2-ARs, and muscarinic M2Rs in single, intact cells. We combine two image correlation spectroscopy methods based on molecular brightness, i.e. the analysis of fluorescence fluctuations over space and over time, and thereby provide an assay able to robustly and precisely quantify the degree of oligomerization of GPCRs. In addition, we provide a comparison between two labelling strategies, namely C-terminally-attached fluorescent proteins and N-terminally-attached SNAP-tags, in order to rule out effects arising from potential fluorescent protein-driven oligomerization. The degree of GPCR oligomerization is expressed with respect to a set of previously reported as well as newly established monomeric or dimeric control constructs. Our data reveal that all three prototypical GPRCs studied display, under unstimulated conditions, a prevalently monomeric fingerprint. Only the β2-AR shows a slight degree of oligomerization.From a methodological point of view, our study suggests three key aspects. First, the combination of two image correlation spectroscopy methods allows addressing cells transiently expressing high concentrations of membrane receptors, far from the single molecule regime, at a density where the kinetic equilibrium should favor dimers and higher-order oligomers. Second, our methodological approach, allows to selectively target cell membrane regions devoid of artificial oligomerization hot-spots (such as vesicles). Third, our data suggest that the β1-AR appears to be a superior monomeric control than the widely used membrane protein CD86.Taken together, we suggest that our combined image correlation spectroscopy method is a powerful approach to assess the oligomerization behavior of GPCRs in intact cells at high expression levels.


2005 ◽  
Vol 72 ◽  
pp. 71-76 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tomas Kirchhausen ◽  
Werner Boll ◽  
Antoine van Oijen ◽  
Marcelo Ehrlich

Clathrin-coated vesicles carry traffic from the plasma membrane to endosomes. We report here the first real-time visualization of cargo sorting and endocytosis by clathrin-coated pits in living cells. We have visualized the formation of coats by monitoring the incorporation of fluorescently tagged clathrin or its adaptor AP-2 (adaptor protein 2), and have followed clathrin-mediated uptake of transferrin, single LDL (low-density lipoprotein) and single reovirus particles. The intensity of a cargo-loaded clathrin cluster grows steadily during its lifetime, and the time required to complete assembly is proportional to the size of the cargo particle. These results are consistent with a nucleation-growth mechanism and an approximately constant growth rate. There are no preferred nucleation sites. A proportion of the nucleation events appear to be abortive. Cargo incorporation occurs primarily or exclusively in a newly formed coated pit, and loading appears to commit that pit to finish assembly. Our data led to a model in which coated pits initiate randomly, but collapse with high likelihood unless stabilized, presumably by cargo capture.


1999 ◽  
Vol 146 (4) ◽  
pp. 755-764 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ibragim Gaidarov ◽  
James H. Keen

The clathrin-associated AP-2 adaptor protein is a major polyphosphoinositide-binding protein in mammalian cells. A high affinity binding site has previously been localized to the NH2-terminal region of the AP-2 α subunit (Gaidarov et al. 1996. J. Biol. Chem. 271:20922–20929). Here we used deletion and site- directed mutagenesis to determine that α residues 21–80 comprise a discrete folding and inositide-binding domain. Further, positively charged residues located within this region are involved in binding, with a lysine triad at positions 55–57 particularly critical. Mutant peptides and protein in which these residues were changed to glutamine retained wild-type structural and functional characteristics by several criteria including circular dichroism spectra, resistance to limited proteolysis, and clathrin binding activity. When expressed in intact cells, mutated α subunit showed defective localization to clathrin-coated pits; at high expression levels, the appearance of endogenous AP-2 in coated pits was also blocked consistent with a dominant-negative phenotype. These results, together with recent work indicating that phosphoinositides are also critical to ligand-dependent recruitment of arrestin-receptor complexes to coated pits (Gaidarov et al. 1999. EMBO (Eur. Mol. Biol. Organ.) J. 18:871–881), suggest that phosphoinositides play a critical and general role in adaptor incorporation into plasma membrane clathrin-coated pits.


Membranes ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 568
Author(s):  
Jakob L. Kure ◽  
Thommie Karlsson ◽  
Camilla B. Andersen ◽  
B. Christoffer Lagerholm ◽  
Vesa Loitto ◽  
...  

The formation of nanodomains in the plasma membrane are thought to be part of membrane proteins regulation and signaling. Plasma membrane proteins are often investigated by analyzing the lateral mobility. k-space ICS (kICS) is a powerful image correlation spectroscopy (ICS) technique and a valuable supplement to fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS). Here, we study the diffusion of aquaporin-9 (AQP9) in the plasma membrane, and the effect of different membrane and cytoskeleton affecting drugs, and therefore nanodomain perturbing, using kICS. We measured the diffusion coefficient of AQP9 after addition of these drugs using live cell Total Internal Reflection Fluorescence imaging on HEK-293 cells. The actin polymerization inhibitors Cytochalasin D and Latrunculin A do not affect the diffusion coefficient of AQP9. Methyl-β-Cyclodextrin decreases GFP-AQP9 diffusion coefficient in the plasma membrane. Human epidermal growth factor led to an increase in the diffusion coefficient of AQP9. These findings led to the conclusion that kICS can be used to measure diffusion AQP9, and suggests that the AQP9 is not part of nanodomains.


2018 ◽  
Vol 207 ◽  
pp. 409-421 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hirak Chakraborty ◽  
Md. Jafurulla ◽  
Andrew H. A. Clayton ◽  
Amitabha Chattopadhyay

Photobleaching image correlation spectroscopy (pbICS) reveals that membrane cholesterol modulates the oligomeric state of the serotonin1A receptor.


2006 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 389-401 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lene E. Johannessen ◽  
Nina Marie Pedersen ◽  
Ketil Winther Pedersen ◽  
Inger Helene Madshus ◽  
Espen Stang

ABSTRACT In HeLa cells depleted of adaptor protein 2 complex (AP2) by small interfering RNA (siRNA) to the μ2 or α subunit or by transient overexpression of an AP2 sequestering mutant of Eps15, endocytosis of the transferrin receptor (TfR) was strongly inhibited. However, epidermal growth factor (EGF)-induced endocytosis of the EGF receptor (EGFR) was inhibited only in cells where the α subunit had been knocked down. By immunoelectron microscopy, we found that in AP2-depleted cells, the number of clathrin-coated pits was strongly reduced. When such cells were incubated with EGF, new coated pits were formed. These contained EGF, EGFR, clathrin, and Grb2 but not the TfR. The induced coated pits contained the α subunit, but labeling density was reduced compared to control cells. Induction of clathrin-coated pits required EGFR kinase activity. Overexpression of Grb2 with inactivating point mutations in N- or C-terminal SH3 domains or in both SH3 domains inhibited EGF-induced formation of coated pits efficiently, even though Grb2 SH3 mutations did not block activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) or phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K). Our data demonstrate that EGFR-induced signaling and Grb2 are essential for formation of clathrin-coated pits accommodating the EGFR, while activation of MAPK and PI3K is not required.


2016 ◽  
Vol 110 (3) ◽  
pp. 176a
Author(s):  
Jelle Hendrix ◽  
Tomas Dekens ◽  
Don C. Lamb

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