Structural highlights
Function
[UBB_HUMAN] Ubiquitin exists either covalently attached to another protein, or free (unanchored). When covalently bound, it is conjugated to target proteins via an isopeptide bond either as a monomer (monoubiquitin), a polymer linked via different Lys residues of the ubiquitin (polyubiquitin chains) or a linear polymer linked via the initiator Met of the ubiquitin (linear polyubiquitin chains). Polyubiquitin chains, when attached to a target protein, have different functions depending on the Lys residue of the ubiquitin that is linked: Lys-6-linked may be involved in DNA repair; Lys-11-linked is involved in ERAD (endoplasmic reticulum-associated degradation) and in cell-cycle regulation; Lys-29-linked is involved in lysosomal degradation; Lys-33-linked is involved in kinase modification; Lys-48-linked is involved in protein degradation via the proteasome; Lys-63-linked is involved in endocytosis, DNA-damage responses as well as in signaling processes leading to activation of the transcription factor NF-kappa-B. Linear polymer chains formed via attachment by the initiator Met lead to cell signaling. Ubiquitin is usually conjugated to Lys residues of target proteins, however, in rare cases, conjugation to Cys or Ser residues has been observed. When polyubiquitin is free (unanchored-polyubiquitin), it also has distinct roles, such as in activation of protein kinases, and in signaling.[1] [2]
Publication Abstract from PubMed
Although protein design has been used to introduce new functions, designed variants generally only function as well as natural proteins after rounds of laboratory evolution. One possibility for this pattern is that designed mutants frequently sample nonfunctional conformations. To test this idea, we exploited advances in multiconformer modeling of room-temperature X-ray data collection on redesigned ubiquitin variants selected for increasing binding affinity to the deubiquitinase USP7. Initial core mutations disrupt natural packing and lead to increased flexibility. Additional, experimentally selected mutations quenched conformational heterogeneity through new stabilizing interactions. Stabilizing interactions, such as cation-pi stacking and ordered waters, which are not included in standard protein design energy functions, can create specific interactions that have long-range effects on flexibility across the protein. Our results suggest that increasing flexibility may be a useful strategy to escape local minima during initial directed evolution and protein design steps when creating new functions.
Flexibility and Design: Conformational Heterogeneity along the Evolutionary Trajectory of a Redesigned Ubiquitin.,Biel JT, Thompson MC, Cunningham CN, Corn JE, Fraser JS Structure. 2017 May 2;25(5):739-749.e3. doi: 10.1016/j.str.2017.03.009. Epub 2017, Apr 13. PMID:28416112[3]
From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.
References
- ↑ Huang F, Kirkpatrick D, Jiang X, Gygi S, Sorkin A. Differential regulation of EGF receptor internalization and degradation by multiubiquitination within the kinase domain. Mol Cell. 2006 Mar 17;21(6):737-48. PMID:16543144 doi:S1097-2765(06)00120-1
- ↑ Komander D. The emerging complexity of protein ubiquitination. Biochem Soc Trans. 2009 Oct;37(Pt 5):937-53. doi: 10.1042/BST0370937. PMID:19754430 doi:10.1042/BST0370937
- ↑ Biel JT, Thompson MC, Cunningham CN, Corn JE, Fraser JS. Flexibility and Design: Conformational Heterogeneity along the Evolutionary Trajectory of a Redesigned Ubiquitin. Structure. 2017 May 2;25(5):739-749.e3. doi: 10.1016/j.str.2017.03.009. Epub 2017, Apr 13. PMID:28416112 doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.str.2017.03.009
