4IN3

The exomer cargo adaptor features a flexible hinge domain.

(2013) Structure 21: 486-492

• PubMed: 23395181 Search on PubMedSearch on PubMed Central
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.str.2013.01.003
• Primary Citation of Related Structures:  
  4IN3


• PubMed Abstract: 
  

  Exomer is a cargo adaptor that mediates the sorting of specific plasma membrane proteins into vesicles at the trans-Golgi network. Cargo adaptors must bind to multiple partners, including their cargo, regulatory proteins, and the membrane surface. During biogenesis of a vesicle, the membrane makes a transition from a relatively flat surface to one of high curvature, requiring cargo adaptors to somehow maintain protein-protein and protein-membrane interactions on a changing membrane environment. Here, we present the crystal structure of a tetrameric Chs5/Bch1 exomer complex and use small-angle X-ray scattering to demonstrate its flexibility in solution. The structural data suggest that the complex flexes primarily around the dimeric N-terminal domain of the Chs5 subunits, which adopts a noncanonical β sandwich fold. We propose that this flexible hinge domain enables exomer to maintain interactions in the context of a dynamic membrane environment.

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Organizational Affiliation: 

Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Weill Institute for Cell and Molecular Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA.