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Tuning the structural coupling between the transmembrane and cytoplasmic domains of phospholamban to control sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-ATPase (SERCA) function

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Abstract

Phospholamban (PLN) is the endogenous inhibitor of the sarco(endo)plasmic reticulum Ca2+-ATPase (SERCA), the integral membrane enzyme responsible for 70 % of the removal of Ca2+ from the cytosol, inducing cardiac muscle relaxation in humans. Dysfunctions in SERCA:PLN interactions have been implicated as having a critical role in cardiac disease, and targeting Ca2+ transport has been demonstrated to be a promising avenue in treating conditions of heart failure. Here, we designed a series of new mutants able to tune SERCA function, targeting the loop sequence that connects the transmembrane and cytoplasmic helices of PLN. We found that a variable degree of loss of inhibition mutants is attainable by engineering glycine mutations along PLN’s loop domain. Remarkably, a double glycine mutation results in a complete loss-of-function mutant, fully mimicking the phosphorylated state of PLN. Using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, we rationalized the effects of these mutations in terms of entropic control on PLN function, whose inhibitory function can be modulated by increasing its conformational dynamics. However, if PLN mutations go past a threshold set by the phosphorylated state, they break the structural coupling between the transmembrane and cytoplasmic domains, resulting in a species that behaves as the inhibitory transmembrane domain alone. These studies provide new potential candidates for gene therapy to reverse the effects of heart failure.

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Abbreviations

PLN:

Phospholamban

SERCA:

Sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-ATPase

SR:

Sarcoplasmic reticulum

LOF:

Loss-of-function

DPC:

Dodecylphosphocholine

NMR:

Nuclear magnetic resonance

PKA:

Protein kinase A

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by grants to G. V. from the National Institutes of Health (GM64742) and predoctoral fellowships to K. N. H. from the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute (5F31HL095361) and M. G. from the American Heart Association (10PRE3860050).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Biophysics, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA

    Kim N. Ha, Martin Gustavsson & Gianluigi Veglia

  2. Department of Chemistry, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA

    Gianluigi Veglia

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  1. Kim N. Ha
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  2. Martin Gustavsson
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  3. Gianluigi Veglia
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Correspondence to Gianluigi Veglia.

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This article is dedicated to the late Michael and Kate Bárány, in tribute to their outstanding contributions to understanding the biochemistry and biophysics of muscle proteins. I had the privilege to share my ideas on phospholamban with Michael and I continue to enjoy my friendship with his son George, my colleague at the University of Minnesota.

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Ha, K.N., Gustavsson, M. & Veglia, G. Tuning the structural coupling between the transmembrane and cytoplasmic domains of phospholamban to control sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-ATPase (SERCA) function. J Muscle Res Cell Motil 33, 485–492 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10974-012-9319-4

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