Impaired selective turnover of p62 by autophagy causes severe liver injury accompanied by the formation of p62-positive inclusions and upregulation of detoxifying enzymes. These phenotypes correspond closely to the pathological conditions seen in human liver diseases, including alcoholic hepatitis and hepatocellular carcinoma. However, the molecular mechanisms and pathophysiological processes in these events are still unknown. Here we report the identification of a novel regulatory mechanism by p62 of the transcription factor Nrf2, whose target genes include antioxidant proteins and detoxification enzymes. p62 interacts with the Nrf2-binding site on Keap1, a component of Cullin-3-type ubiquitin ligase for Nrf2. Thus, an overproduction of p62 or a deficiency in autophagy competes with the interaction between Nrf2 and Keap1, resulting in stabilization of Nrf2 and transcriptional activation of Nrf2 target genes. Our findings indicate that the pathological process associated with p62 accumulation results in hyperactivation of Nrf2 and delineates unexpected roles of selective autophagy in controlling the transcription of cellular defence enzyme genes.

The expression of the phase 2 detoxification enzymes and antioxidant proteins is induced at the transcriptional level by Nrf2 and negatively regulated at the posttranslational level by Keap1 through protein-protein interactions with and subsequent proteolysis of Nrf2. We found that the Neh2 domain of Nrf2 is an intrinsically disordered but biologically active regulatory domain containing a 33-residue central ␣-helix followed by a mini antiparallel ␤-sheet. Isothermal calorimetry analysis indicated that one Neh2 molecule interacts with two molecules of Keap1 via two binding sites, the stronger binding ETGE motif and the weaker binding DLG motif. Nuclear magnetic resonance titration study showed that these two motifs of the Neh2 domain bind to an overlapping site on the bottom surface of the ␤-propeller structure of Keap1. In contrast, the central ␣-helix of the Neh2 domain does not have any observable affinity to Keap1, suggesting that this region may serve as a bridge connecting the two motifs for the association with the two ␤-propeller structures of a dimer of Keap1. Based on these observations, we propose that Keap1 recruits Nrf2 by the ETGE motif and that the DLG motif of the Neh2 domain locks its lysine-rich central ␣-helix in a correct position to benefit ubiquitin signaling.

Nrf2 regulates the cellular oxidative stress response, whereas Keap1 represses Nrf2 through its molecular interaction. To elucidate the molecular mechanism of the Keap1 and Nrf2 interaction, we resolved the six-bladed beta propeller crystal structure of the Kelch/DGR and CTR domains of mouse Keap1 and revealed that extensive inter- and intrablade hydrogen bonds maintain the structural integrity and proper association of Keap1 with Nrf2. A peptide containing the ETGE motif of Nrf2 binds the beta propeller of Keap1 at the entrance of the central cavity on the bottom side via electrostatic interactions with conserved arginine residues. We found a somatic mutation and a gene variation in human lung cancer cells that change glycine to cysteine in the DGR domain, introducing local conformational changes that reduce Keap1's affinity for Nrf2. These results provide a structural basis for the loss of Keap1 function and gain of Nrf2 function.

The nuclear factor E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) is a master transcriptional activator of genes encoding numerous cytoprotective enzymes that are induced in response to environmental and endogenously derived oxidative/electrophilic agents. Under normal, nonstressed circumstances, low cellular concentrations of Nrf2 are maintained by proteasomal degradation through a Keap1-Cul3-Roc1-dependent mechanism. A model for Nrf2 activation has been proposed in which two amino-terminal motifs, DLG and ETGE, promote efficient ubiquitination and rapid turnover; known as the two-site substrate recognition/hinge and latch model. Here, we show that in human cancer, somatic mutations occur in the coding region of NRF2, especially among patients with a history of smoking or suffering from squamous cell carcinoma; in the latter case, this leads to poor prognosis. These mutations specifically alter amino acids in the DLG or ETGE motifs, resulting in aberrant cellular accumulation of Nrf2. Mutant Nrf2 cells display constitutive induction of cytoprotective enzymes and drug efflux pumps, which are insensitive to Keap1-mediated regulation. Suppression of Nrf2 protein levels by siRNA knockdown sensitized cancer cells to oxidative stress and chemotherapeutic reagents. Our results strongly support the contention that constitutive Nrf2 activation affords cancer cells with undue protection from their inherently stressed microenvironment and anti-cancer treatments. Hence, inactivation of the Nrf2 pathway may represent a therapeutic strategy to reinforce current treatments for malignancy. Congruously, the present study also provides in vivo validation of the two-site substrate recognition model for Nrf2 activation by the Keap1-Cul3-based E3 ligase.cancer cell microenvironment ͉ multidrug resistant-associated protein ͉ oxidative stress ͉ somatic mutation ͉ ubiquitin-proteasome system

The Keap1-Nrf2 system is the major regulatory pathway of cytoprotective gene expression against oxidative and/or electrophilic stresses. Keap1 acts as a stress sensor protein in this system. While Keap1 constitutively suppresses Nrf2 activity under unstressed conditions, oxidants or electrophiles provoke the repression of Keap1 activity, inducing the Nrf2 activation. However, the precise molecular mechanisms behind the liberation of Nrf2 from Keap1 repression in the presence of stress remain to be elucidated. We hypothesized that oxidative and electrophilic stresses induce the nuclear accumulation of Nrf2 by affecting the Keap1-mediated rapid turnover of Nrf2, since such accumulation was diminished by the protein synthesis inhibitor cycloheximide. While both the Cys273 and Cys288 residues of Keap1 are required for suppressing Nrf2 nuclear accumulation, treatment of cells with electrophiles or mutation of these cysteine residues to alanine did not affect the association of Keap1 with Nrf2 either in vivo or in vitro. Rather, these treatments impaired the Keap1-mediated proteasomal degradation of Nrf2. These results support the contention that Nrf2 protein synthesized de novo after exposure to stress accumulates in the nucleus by bypassing the Keap1 gate and that the sensory mechanism of oxidative and electrophilic stresses is closely linked to the degradation mechanism of Nrf2.

No abstract

In a variety of cells, the Ca2+ signalling process is mediated by the endoplasmic-reticulum-membrane-associated Ca2+ release channel, inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (InsP3) receptor (InsP3R). Being ubiquitous and present in organisms ranging from humans to Caenorhabditis elegans, InsP3R has a vital role in the control of cellular and physiological processes as diverse as cell division, cell proliferation, apoptosis, fertilization, development, behaviour, memory and learning. Mouse type I InsP3R (InsP3R1), found in high abundance in cerebellar Purkinje cells, is a polypeptide with three major functionally distinct regions: the amino-terminal InsP3-binding region, the central modulatory region and the carboxy-terminal channel region. Here we present a 2.2-A crystal structure of the InsP3-binding core of mouse InsP3R1 in complex with InsP3. The asymmetric, boomerang-like structure consists of an N-terminal beta-trefoil domain and a C-terminal alpha-helical domain containing an 'armadillo repeat'-like fold. The cleft formed by the two domains exposes a cluster of arginine and lysine residues that coordinate the three phosphoryl groups of InsP3. Putative Ca2+-binding sites are identified in two separate locations within the InsP3-binding core.

Nrf2 is the regulator of the oxidative/electrophilic stress response. Its turnover is maintained by Keap1-mediated proteasomal degradation via a two-site substrate recognition mechanism in which two Nrf2-Keap1 binding sites form a hinge and latch. The E3 ligase adaptor Keap1 recognizes Nrf2 through its conserved ETGE and DLG motifs. In this study, we examined how the ETGE and DLG motifs bind to Keap1 in a very similar fashion but with different binding affinities by comparing the crystal complex of a Keap1-DC domain-DLG peptide with that of a Keap1-DC domain-ETGE peptide. We found that these two motifs interact with the same basic surface of either Keap1-DC domain of the Keap1 homodimer. The DLG motif works to correctly position the lysines within the Nrf2 Neh2 domain for efficient ubiquitination. Together with the results from calorimetric and functional studies, we conclude that different electrostatic potentials primarily define the ETGE and DLG motifs as a hinge and latch that senses the oxidative/electrophilic stress.