BackgroundThe rd1 mouse retina is a well-studied model of retinal degeneration where rod photoreceptors undergo cell death beginning at postnatal day (P) 10 until P21. This period coincides with photoreceptor terminal differentiation in a normal retina. We have used the rd1 retina as a model to investigate early molecular defects in developing rod photoreceptors prior to the onset of degeneration.ResultsUsing a microarray approach, we performed gene profiling comparing rd1 and wild type (wt) retinas at four time points starting at P2, prior to any obvious biochemical or morphological differences, and concluding at P8, prior to the initiation of cell death. Of the 143 identified differentially expressed genes, we focused on Rab acceptor 1 (Rabac1), which codes for the protein Prenylated rab acceptor 1 (PRA1) and plays an important role in vesicular trafficking. Quantitative RT-PCR analysis confirmed reduced expression of PRA1 in rd1 retina at all time points examined. Immunohistochemical observation showed that PRA1-like immunoreactivity (LIR) co-localized with the cis-Golgi marker GM-130 in the photoreceptor as the Golgi translocated from the perikarya to the inner segment during photoreceptor differentiation in wt retinas. Diffuse PRA1-LIR, distinct from the Golgi marker, was seen in the distal inner segment of wt photoreceptors starting at P8. Both plexiform layers contained PRA1 positive punctae independent of GM-130 staining during postnatal development. In the inner retina, PRA1-LIR also colocalized with the Golgi marker in the perinuclear region of most cells. A similar pattern was seen in the rd1 mouse inner retina. However, punctate and significantly reduced PRA1-LIR was present throughout the developing rd1 inner segment, consistent with delayed photoreceptor development and abnormalities in Golgi sorting and vesicular trafficking.ConclusionsWe have identified genes that are differentially regulated in the rd1 retina at early time points, which may give insights into developmental defects that precede photoreceptor cell death. This is the first report of PRA1 expression in the retina. Our data support the hypothesis that PRA1 plays an important role in vesicular trafficking between the Golgi and cilia in differentiating and mature rod photoreceptors.

Tec1 is a transcription factor in the yeast mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway that controls invasive growth. Previously we reported that a fraction of Tec1 protein is sumoylated on residue lysine 54 in normally growing cells. Here we describe regulation and functional consequences of Tec1 sumoylation. We found that activation of Kss1, the MAPK that directly activates Tec1, results in a decrease in Tec1 sumoylation and a concurrent increase of Tec1 transcriptional activity. Consistent with a role of sumoylation in inhibiting Tec1 activity, specifically increasing sumoylation of Tec1 by fusing it to the sumoylating enzyme Ubc9 leads to a dramatic decrease of Tec1 transcriptional activity. Invasive growth is also compromised in Tec1-Ubc9. In contrast, fusing sumoylation-site mutant Tec1, i.e., Tec1K54R, to Ubc9 did not significantly alter transcriptional activation and had a less effect on invasive growth. Taken together, these findings provide evidence for regulated sumoylation as a mechanism to modulate the activity of Tec1 and validate Ubc9 fusion-directed sumoylation as a useful approach for studying protein sumoylation.

Sumoylation, a post-translational protein modification by small ubiquitin-like modifier (SUMO), has been implicated in many stress responses. Here we analyzed the potential role of sumoylation in osmo-response in yeast. We find that osmotic stress induces rapid accumulation of sumoylated species in normal yeast cells. Interestingly, disruption of MAP kinase Hog1 leads to a much higher level of accumulation of sumoylated conjugates that are independent of new protein synthesis. We also find that the accumulation of sumoylated species is dependent on a SUMO ligase Siz1. Notably, overexpression of SIZ1 in HOG1-disruption mutants (hog1Δ) but not in wild type cells leads to a markedly increased and prolonged accumulation of sumoylated species. Examination of osmo-tolerance of yeast mutants that display either an increase or a decrease in the global sumoylation level revealed an inverse relationship between accumulation of sumoylated conjugates and osmo-tolerance. Further investigation has shown that many of the sumoylated species induced by hyperosmotic stress are actually poly-sumoylated. Together, these findings indicate that abnormal accumulation of poly-sumoylated conjugates is harmful for osmo-tolerance in yeast, and suggest that Hog1 promotes adaptation to hyperosmotic stress partially via regulation of global sumoylation level.

Objective Prenylated Rab Acceptor 1 (PRA1) is a transmembrane protein localized to the early secretory pathway. It has been found to interact with an array of Rab GTPases, leading to its hypothesized function in the recycling of Rab GTPases. However, all previous strategies used to screen for novel interacting partners have utilized a classic yeast two-hybrid approach that requires both bait and its potential binding partners to be cytosolic proteins. In the split-ubiquitin yeast two-hybrid screen, a protein interaction leads to the re-constitution of ubiquitin, which is followed by proteolytic release of a transcription activator that migrates to the nucleus alone. This allows for bait and/or prey to be integral membrane protein(s). To better understand the in vivo function of PRA1, we took an unbiased approach that screened PRA1 against a normalized mouse neuronal cDNA library using this variant of the classic screening strategy. Results We report 41 previously unidentified potential PRA1 binding partners revealed by this screen and validate the screen by confirming three of these interactions using a bi-molecular fluorescence complementation assay in mammalian cells. The identified proteins reside throughout the secretory pathway and are both membrane-bound and cytosolic in their identity, suggesting alternative functions for PRA1.

Prenylated Rab Acceptor 1 (PRA1/Rabac1) is a four-pass transmembrane protein that has been found to localize to the Golgi and promiscuously associate with a diverse array of Rab GTPases. We have previously identified PRA1 to be among the earliest significantly down-regulated genes in the rd1 mouse model of retinitis pigmentosa, a retinal degenerative disease. Here, we show that an endogenous subpopulation of PRA1 resides within the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) at ER-mitochondria membrane contact sites in cultured mammalian cells. We also demonstrate that PRA1 contains two previously unidentified ER retention/retrieval amino acid sequences on its cytosolic N-terminal region: a membrane distal di-arginine motif and a novel membrane proximal FFAT-like motif. Using a truncation construct that lacks complete Golgi targeting information, we show that mutation of either motif leads to an increase in cell surface localization, while mutation of both motifs exhibits an additive effect. We also present evidence that illustrates that N- or C- terminal addition of a tag to full-length PRA1 leads to differential localization to either the Golgi or reticular ER, phenotypes that do not completely mirror endogenous protein localization. The presence of multiple ER retention motifs on the PRA1 N-terminal region further suggests that it has a functional role within the ER.

Retinitis pigmentosa is the most common form of inherited blindness in humans. A well-studied model of the disease is the rd1 mouse, characterized by a loss of function mutation in the catalytic β subunit of the phosphodiesterase 6 (Pde6) holoenzyme involved in phototransduction within rods and cones. The period of photoreceptor degeneration in the rd1 mouse occurs during postnatal days 10–21. In previous work, only Pde6β and vesicular-trafficking protein Prenylated Rab Acceptor 1 (PRA1) have been found to be consistently downregulated during the first ten days following birth. In a yeast-two-hybrid assay conducted by our lab, PRA1 was shown to interact with Charged Multivesicular Body Protein 2B (CHMP2B), an endosomal sorting protein that has been implicated in several neurodegenerative diseases, such as frontotemporal dementia and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. We investigated whether CHMP2B is mislocalized in the rd1 mouse. Immunohistochemical labeling of CHMP2B was done in both postnatal wild type and rd1 mouse retinas. Prior to the onset of degeneration, CHMP2B immunolabeling was weaker in rd1 retinas, particularly in the developing photoreceptor synaptic layer, compared to wild type. Furthermore, staining of CHMP2B in wild type photoreceptors peaked at postnatal day 12, while CHMP2B staining in rd1 retinas was diffuse and disorganized. In conclusion, these findings show that proper localization of CHMP2B is disrupted in rd1 photoreceptors. Further studies are needed to investigate possible roles for CHMP2B in endocytic activity that is vital to photoreceptor maintenance, as well as differentiation, and development in mouse photoreceptors.

Sumoylation, a post‐translational protein modification by small ubiquitin‐like modifier (SUMO), has been implicated in many stress responses. Here we analyzed the potential role of sumoylation in osmo‐response in yeast. We find that osmotic stress induces rapid accumulation of sumoylated species in normal cells. Interestingly, disruption of MAP kinase Hog1 leads to a much higher level of accumulation of sumoylated conjugates that are independent of new protein synthesis. We also find that the accumulation of sumoylated species is dependent on a SUMO ligase Siz1. Notably, overexpression of SIZ1 in Hog1‐disruptive mutants (hog1[[Unsupported Character ‐ Symbol Font □]]) but not in wild type cells leads to a markedly increased and prolonged accumulation of sumoylated species. Examination of osmo‐tolerance of mutants that display either an increase or a decrease in the global sumoylation level revealed an inverse relationship between accumulation of sumoylated conjugates and somo‐tolerance. Further investigation has shown that many of the sumoylated species induced by hyperosmotic stress are actually poly‐sumoylated. Together, these findings indicated that abnormal accumulation of poly‐sumoylated conjugates is harmful for osmo‐tolerance, and suggest that Hog1 promotes adaptation to hyperosmotic stress partially via regulation of global sumoylation level.