The comprehensive native interactome of a fully functional tagged prion protein

PLoS One. 2009;4(2):e4446. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0004446. Epub 2009 Feb 11.

Abstract

The enumeration of the interaction partners of the cellular prion protein, PrP(C), may help clarifying its elusive molecular function. Here we added a carboxy proximal myc epitope tag to PrP(C). When expressed in transgenic mice, PrP(myc) carried a GPI anchor, was targeted to lipid rafts, and was glycosylated similarly to PrP(C). PrP(myc) antagonized the toxicity of truncated PrP, restored prion infectibility of PrP(C)-deficient mice, and was physically incorporated into PrP(Sc) aggregates, indicating that it possessed all functional characteristics of genuine PrP(C). We then immunopurified myc epitope-containing protein complexes from PrP(myc) transgenic mouse brains. Gentle differential elution with epitope-mimetic decapeptides, or a scrambled version thereof, yielded 96 specifically released proteins. Quantitative mass spectrometry with isotope-coded tags identified seven proteins which co-eluted equimolarly with PrP(C) and may represent component of a multiprotein complex. Selected PrP(C) interactors were validated using independent methods. Several of these proteins appear to exert functions in axomyelinic maintenance.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Cell Membrane / drug effects
  • Cell Membrane / metabolism
  • Detergents / pharmacology
  • Isotope Labeling
  • Mass Spectrometry
  • Mice
  • Mice, Transgenic
  • Nervous System / drug effects
  • Nervous System / metabolism
  • Nervous System / pathology
  • PrPSc Proteins / isolation & purification
  • PrPSc Proteins / metabolism
  • Prions / isolation & purification
  • Prions / metabolism*
  • Protein Binding / drug effects
  • Protein Transport / drug effects
  • Recombinant Fusion Proteins / isolation & purification
  • Recombinant Fusion Proteins / metabolism*
  • Survival Analysis

Substances

  • Detergents
  • PrPSc Proteins
  • Prions
  • Recombinant Fusion Proteins