Structural highlights
Function
[GEPH_RAT] Microtubule-associated protein involved in membrane protein-cytoskeleton interactions. It is thought to anchor the inhibitory glycine receptor (GLYR) to subsynaptic microtubules (By similarity). Catalyzes two steps in the biosynthesis of the molybdenum cofactor. In the first step, molybdopterin is adenylated. Subsequently, molybdate is inserted into adenylated molybdopterin and AMP is released.[1] [2] [GBRA3_RAT] GABA, the major inhibitory neurotransmitter in the vertebrate brain, mediates neuronal inhibition by binding to the GABA/benzodiazepine receptor and opening an integral chloride channel.
Publication Abstract from PubMed
gamma-Aminobutyric acid type A and glycine receptors (GABAARs, GlyRs) are the major inhibitory neurotransmitter receptors and contribute to many synaptic functions, dysfunctions and human diseases. GABAARs are important drug targets regulated by direct interactions with the scaffolding protein gephyrin. Here we deduce the molecular basis of this interaction by chemical, biophysical and structural studies of the gephyrin-GABAAR alpha3 complex, revealing that the N-terminal region of the alpha3 peptide occupies the same binding site as the GlyR beta subunit, whereas the C-terminal moiety, which is conserved among all synaptic GABAAR alpha subunits, engages in unique interactions. Thermodynamic dissections of the gephyrin-receptor interactions identify two residues as primary determinants for gephyrin's subunit preference. This first structural evidence for the gephyrin-mediated synaptic accumulation of GABAARs offers a framework for future investigations into the regulation of inhibitory synaptic strength and for the development of mechanistically and therapeutically relevant compounds targeting the gephyrin-GABAAR interaction.
Molecular basis of the alternative recruitment of GABAA versus glycine receptors through gephyrin.,Maric HM, Kasaragod VB, Hausrat TJ, Kneussel M, Tretter V, Stromgaard K, Schindelin H Nat Commun. 2014 Dec 22;5:5767. doi: 10.1038/ncomms6767. PMID:25531214[3]
From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.
References
- ↑ Kirsch J, Wolters I, Triller A, Betz H. Gephyrin antisense oligonucleotides prevent glycine receptor clustering in spinal neurons. Nature. 1993 Dec 23-30;366(6457):745-8. PMID:8264797 doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/366745a0
- ↑ Stallmeyer B, Schwarz G, Schulze J, Nerlich A, Reiss J, Kirsch J, Mendel RR. The neurotransmitter receptor-anchoring protein gephyrin reconstitutes molybdenum cofactor biosynthesis in bacteria, plants, and mammalian cells. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1999 Feb 16;96(4):1333-8. PMID:9990024
- ↑ Maric HM, Kasaragod VB, Hausrat TJ, Kneussel M, Tretter V, Stromgaard K, Schindelin H. Molecular basis of the alternative recruitment of GABAA versus glycine receptors through gephyrin. Nat Commun. 2014 Dec 22;5:5767. doi: 10.1038/ncomms6767. PMID:25531214 doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/ncomms6767
