The adaptor protein Ste50 directly modulates yeast MAPK signaling specificity through differential connections of its RA domain

Mol Biol Cell. 2019 Mar 15;30(6):794-807. doi: 10.1091/mbc.E18-11-0708. Epub 2019 Jan 16.

Abstract

Discriminating among diverse environmental stimuli is critical for organisms to ensure their proper development, homeostasis, and survival. Saccharomyces cerevisiae regulates mating, osmoregulation, and filamentous growth using three different MAPK signaling pathways that share common components and therefore must ensure specificity. The adaptor protein Ste50 activates Ste11p, the MAP3K of all three modules. Its Ras association (RA) domain acts in both hyperosmolar and filamentous growth pathways, but its connection to the mating pathway is unknown. Genetically probing the domain, we found mutants that specifically disrupted mating or HOG-signaling pathways or both. Structurally these residues clustered on the RA domain, forming distinct surfaces with a propensity for protein-protein interactions. GFP fusions of wild-type (WT) and mutant Ste50p show that WT is localized to the shmoo structure and accumulates at the growing shmoo tip. The specifically pheromone response-defective mutants are severely impaired in shmoo formation and fail to localize ste50p, suggesting a failure of association and function of Ste50 mutants in the pheromone-signaling complex. Our results suggest that yeast cells can use differential protein interactions with the Ste50p RA domain to provide specificity of signaling during MAPK pathway activation.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing / metabolism
  • Amino Acid Sequence / genetics
  • DNA-Binding Proteins
  • MAP Kinase Kinase Kinases / metabolism*
  • MAP Kinase Kinase Kinases / physiology
  • Peptides / metabolism
  • Peptides / physiology
  • Pheromones / metabolism
  • Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases / metabolism
  • Saccharomyces cerevisiae / metabolism
  • Saccharomyces cerevisiae / physiology
  • Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins / genetics
  • Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins / metabolism*
  • Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins / physiology*
  • Schizosaccharomyces pombe Proteins / metabolism
  • Schizosaccharomyces pombe Proteins / physiology
  • Signal Transduction

Substances

  • Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing
  • DNA-Binding Proteins
  • Mating Factor, S pombe
  • Peptides
  • Pheromones
  • STE50 protein, S cerevisiae
  • Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins
  • Schizosaccharomyces pombe Proteins
  • Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases
  • MAP Kinase Kinase Kinases
  • Ste11 protein, S cerevisiae