Biomedical subjects

Begoña García-Alvarez

Publications and source records attributed to Begoña García-Alvarez.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Crystallization and preliminary X-ray diffraction studies on the human Plk1 Polo-box domain in complex with an unphosphorylated and a phosphorylated target peptide from Cdc25C.

Polo-like kinase (Plk1) is crucial for cell-cycle progression via mitosis. Members of the Polo-like kinase family are characterized by the presence of a C-terminal domain termed the Polo-box domain (PBD) in addition to the N-terminal kinase domain. The PBD of Plk1 was cloned and overexpressed in Escherichia coli. Crystallization experiments of the protein in complex with an unphosphorylated and a phosphorylated target peptide from Cdc25C yield crystals suitable for X-ray diffraction analysis. Crystals of the PBD in complex with the phosphorylated peptide belong to the orthorhombic space group P2(1)2(1)2(1), with unit-cell parameters a = 38.23, b = 67.35, c = 88.25 angstroms, alpha = gamma = beta = 90 degrees, and contain one molecule per asymmetric unit. Crystals of the PBD in complex with the unphosphorylated peptide belong to the monoclinic space group P2(1), with unit-cell parameters a = 40.18, b = 49.17, c = 56.23 angstroms, alpha = gamma = 90, beta = 109.48 degrees, and contain one molecule per asymmetric unit. The crystals diffracted to resolution limits of 2.1 and 2.85 angstroms using synchrotron radiation at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) and the Swiss Light Source (SLS), respectively.

Animals↗

PubMed2003

Integrin beta cytoplasmic domain interactions with phosphotyrosine-binding domains: a structural prototype for diversity in integrin signaling.

The cytoplasmic domains (tails) of heterodimeric integrin adhesion receptors mediate integrins' biological functions by binding to cytoplasmic proteins. Most integrin beta tails contain one or two NPXYF motifs that can form beta turns. These motifs are part of a canonical recognition sequence for phosphotyrosine-binding (PTB) domains, protein modules that are present in a wide variety of signaling and cytoskeletal proteins. Indeed, talin and ICAP1-alpha bind to integrin beta tails by means of a PTB domain-NPXY ligand interaction. To assess the generality of this interaction we examined the binding of a series of recombinant PTB domains to a panel of short integrin beta tails. In addition to the known integrin-binding proteins, we found that Numb (a negative regulator of Notch signaling) and Dok-1 (a signaling adaptor involved in cell migration) and their isolated PTB domain bound to integrin tails. Furthermore, Dok-1 physically associated with integrin alpha IIb beta 3. Mutations of the integrin beta tails confirmed that these interactions are canonical PTB domain-ligand interactions. First, the interactions were blocked by mutation of an NPXY motif in the integrin tail. Second, integrin class-specific interactions were observed with the PTB domains of Dab, EPS8, and tensin. We used this specificity, and a molecular model of an integrin beta tail-PTB domain interaction to predict critical interacting residues. The importance of these residues was confirmed by generation of gain- and loss-of-function mutations in beta 7 and beta 3 tails. These data establish that short integrin beta tails interact with a large number of PTB domain-containing proteins through a structurally conserved mechanism.

Alanine↗

PubMed2003

Structural and functional analysis of the actin binding domain of plectin suggests alternative mechanisms for binding to F-actin and integrin beta4.

Plectin is a widely expressed cytoskeletal linker. Here we report the crystal structure of the actin binding domain of plectin and show that this region is sufficient for interaction with F-actin or the cytoplasmic region of integrin alpha6beta4. The structure is formed by two calponin homology domains arranged in a closed conformation. We show that binding to F-actin induces a conformational change in plectin that is inhibited by an engineered interdomain disulfide bridge. A two-step induced fit mechanism involving binding and subsequent domain rearrangement is proposed. In contrast, interaction with integrin alpha6beta4 occurs in a closed conformation. Competitive binding of plectin to F-actin and integrin alpha6beta4 may rely on the observed alternative binding mechanisms and involve both allosteric and steric factors.

Actins↗

PubMed2003

Structural determinants of integrin recognition by talin.

The binding of cytoplasmic proteins, such as talin, to the cytoplasmic domains of integrin adhesion receptors mediates bidirectional signal transduction. Here we report the crystal structure of the principal integrin binding and activating fragment of talin, alone and in complex with fragments of the beta 3 integrin tail. The FERM (four point one, ezrin, radixin, and moesin) domain of talin engages integrins via a novel variant of the canonical phosphotyrosine binding (PTB) domain-NPxY ligand interaction that may be a prototype for FERM domain recognition of transmembrane receptors. In combination with NMR and mutational analysis, our studies reveal the critical interacting elements of both talin and the integrin beta 3 tail, providing structural paradigms for integrin linkage to the cell interior.

Amino Acid Sequence↗