No abstract

Two autophagy-related ubiquitin-like systems have unique features: the E2 enzyme Atg3 conjugates the ubiquitin-like protein Atg8 to the lipid phosphatidylethanolamine, and the other ubiquitin-like protein conjugate Atg12-Atg5 promotes that conjugase activity of Atg3. Here, we elucidate the mode of this action of Atg12-Atg5 as a new E3 enzyme by using Saccharomyces cerevisiae proteins. Biochemical analyses based on structural information suggest that Atg3 requires a threonine residue to catalyze the conjugation reaction instead of the typical asparagine residue used by other E2 enzymes. Moreover, the catalytic cysteine residue of Atg3 is arranged in the catalytic center such that the conjugase activity is suppressed; Atg12-Atg5 induces a reorientation of the cysteine residue toward the threonine residue, which enhances the conjugase activity of Atg3. Thus, this study reveals the mechanism of the key reaction that drives membrane biogenesis during autophagy.

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is selectively degraded by autophagy (ER-phagy) through proteins called ER-phagy receptors. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Atg40 acts as an ER-phagy receptor to sequester ER fragments into autophagosomes by binding Atg8 on forming autophagosomal membranes. During ER-phagy, parts of the ER are morphologically rearranged, fragmented, and loaded into autophagosomes, but the mechanism remains poorly understood. Here we find that Atg40 molecules assemble in the ER membrane concurrently with autophagosome formation via multivalent interaction with Atg8. Atg8-mediated superassembly of Atg40 generates highly-curved ER regions, depending on its reticulon-like domain, and supports packing of these regions into autophagosomes. Moreover, tight binding of Atg40 to Atg8 is achieved by a short helix C-terminal to the Atg8-family interacting motif, and this feature is also observed for mammalian ER-phagy receptors. Thus, this study significantly advances our understanding of the mechanisms of ER-phagy and also provides insights into organelle fragmentation in selective autophagy of other organelles.

Autophagy requires ubiquitin-like Atg8 and Atg12 conjugation systems, where Atg7 has a critical role as the sole E1 enzyme. Although Atg7 recognizes two distinct E2s, Atg3 and Atg10, it is not understood how Atg7 correctly loads these E2s with their cognate ubiquitin-like proteins, Atg8 and Atg12. Here, we report the crystal structures of the N-terminal domain of Atg7 bound to Atg10 or Atg3 of thermotolerant yeast and plant homologs. The observed Atg7-Atg10 and Atg7-Atg3 interactions, which resemble each other but are quite distinct from the canonical E1-E2 interaction, makes Atg7 suitable for transferring Atg12 to Atg10 and Atg8 to Atg3 by a trans mechanism. Notably, in vitro experiments showed that Atg7 loads Atg3 and Atg10 with Atg8 and Atg12 in a nonspecific manner, which suggests that cognate conjugate formation in vivo is not an intrinsic quality of Atg7.

Selective autophagy mediates the degradation of various cargoes, including protein aggregates and organelles, thereby contributing to cellular homeostasis. Cargo receptors ensure selectivity by tethering specific cargo to lipidated Atg8 at the isolation membrane. However, little is known about the structural requirements underlying receptor-mediated cargo recognition. Here, we report structural, biochemical, and cell biological analysis of the major selective cargo protein in budding yeast, aminopeptidase I (Ape1), and its complex with the receptor Atg19. The Ape1 propeptide has a trimeric coiled-coil structure, which tethers dodecameric Ape1 bodies together to form large aggregates. Atg19 disassembles the propeptide trimer and forms a 2:1 heterotrimer, which not only blankets the Ape1 aggregates but also regulates their size. These receptor activities may promote elongation of the isolation membrane along the aggregate surface, enabling sequestration of the cargo with high specificity.

No abstract

Selective modulation of autophagy is a promising therapeutic strategy, especially for cancer treatment. However, the lack of specific autophagy inhibitors limits this strategy. The formation of the ATG12–ATG5–ATG16L1 complex is essential for targeting the ATG12–ATG5 conjugate to proper membranes and to generate LC3-II for the progression of autophagy. Thus, targeting ATG5–ATG16L1 protein–protein interactions (PPIs) might inhibit early stage autophagy with high specificity. In this paper, we report that a stapled peptide derived from ATG16L1 exhibits potent binding affinity to ATG5, striking resistance to proteolysis, and significant autophagy inhibition activities in cells.

This paper describes a novel surface-processing technique aimed at the in vivo formation of ordered functionalized structures on surfaces. The essential feature of this technique is the utilization of an intrinsic and stable two-dimensional crystal of bacteriorhodopsin (bR) as a template. A simple technique to form a functional chimera of the halophilic enzyme dihydrofolate reductase (hDHFR) with bR is demonstrated. The gene encoding hDHFR from Haloferax volcanii (H. volcanii) was conjugated to that encoding bR (bop) from Halobacterium salinarum (H. salinarum). This chimera was expressed in a bop-deficient strain of H. salinarum. The novel bifunctional fusion protein bR−hDHFR was localized in the plasma membrane of H. salinarum and retained the intrinsic characteristics of each component. Microscopic patches composed of ordered bR−hDHFR molecules were observed on the plasma membrane by electron microscopy. The hDHFR portion of the chimera was detected on the cytoplasmic side of each patch, which confirms that the molecular orientation of the fused proteins was vectorially controlled. The molecular packing of the fusion protein closely resembled the ordered structure of the wild-type bR in the “purple membrane”, which forms a two-dimensional crystal. This technique for the immobilization of functional proteins on a surface is applicable to a wide range of proteins for organizing ordered supramolecular surfaces on the nanometer scale.