Purification, crystallization and X-ray diffraction analysis of human synaptotagmin 1 C2A-C2B

Negative coupling as a mechanism for signal propagation between C2 domains of synaptotagmin I

Synaptotagmin I (Syt I) is a vesicle-localized protein implicated in sensing the calcium influx that triggers fast synchronous release of neurotransmitter. How Syt I utilizes its two C2 domains to integrate signals and mediate neurotransmission has continued to be a controversial area of research, though prevalent hypotheses favor independent function. Using differential scanning calorimetry and fluorescence lifetime spectroscopy in a thermodynamic denaturation approach, we tested an alternative hypothesis in which both domains interact to cooperatively disseminate binding information. The free energy of stability was determined for C2A, C2B, and C2AB constructs by globally fitting both methods to a two-state model of unfolding. By comparing the additive free energies of C2A and C2B with C2AB, we identified a negative coupling interaction between the C2 domains of Syt I. This interaction not only provides a mechanistic means for propagating signals, but also a possible means for coordinating the molecular events of neurotransmission.

A DOC2 protein identified by mutational profiling is essential for apicomplexan parasite exocytosis

Exocytosis is essential to the lytic cycle of apicomplexan parasites and required for the pathogenesis of toxoplasmosis and malaria. DOC2 proteins recruit the membrane fusion machinery required for exocytosis in a Ca(2+)-dependent fashion. Here, the phenotype of a Toxoplasma gondii conditional mutant impaired in host cell invasion and egress was pinpointed to a defect in secretion of the micronemes, an apicomplexan-specific organelle that contains adhesion proteins. Whole-genome sequencing identified the etiological point mutation in TgDOC2.1. A conditional allele of the orthologous gene engineered into Plasmodium falciparum was also defective in microneme secretion. However, the major effect was on invasion, suggesting that microneme secretion is dispensable for Plasmodium egress.

Synaptotagmin I stabilizes synaptic vesicles via its C(2)A polylysine motif

The synaptic vesicle protein, synaptotagmin I, is a multifunctional protein required for several steps in the synaptic vesicle cycle. It is primarily composed of two calcium-binding domains, C(2)A and C(2)B. Within each of these domains, a polylysine motif has been identified that is proposed to mediate specific functions within the synaptic vesicle cycle. While the C(2)B polylysine motif plays an important role in synaptic transmission in vivo, the C(2)A polylysine motif has not previously been analyzed at an intact synapse. Here, we show that mutation of the C(2)A polylysine motif increases the frequency of spontaneous transmitter release in vivo. The increased frequency is not a developmental consequence of disrupted synaptic transmission, as evoked transmitter release is unimpaired in the mutants. Our results demonstrate that synaptotagmin I plays a direct role in regulating spontaneous transmitter release, indicative of an active role in synaptic vesicle stabilization mediated by the C(2)A polylysine motif.

Structure of human synaptotagmin 1 C2AB in the absence of Ca2+ reveals a novel domain association

Release of neurotransmitter from synaptic vesicles requires the Ca2+/phospholipid-binding protein synaptotagmin 1. There is considerable evidence that cooperation between the tandem C2 domains of synaptotagmin is a requirement of regulated exocytosis; however, high-resolution structural evidence for this interaction has been lacking. The 2.7 A crystal structure of the cytosolic domains of human synaptotagmin 1 in the absence of Ca2+ reveals a novel closed conformation of the protein. The shared interface between C2A and C2B is stabilized by a network of interactions between residues on the C-terminal alpha-helix of the C2B domain and residues on loops 1-3 of the Ca2+-binding region of C2A. These interactions alter the overall shape of the Ca2+-binding pocket of C2A, but not that of C2B. Thus, synaptotagmin 1 C2A-C2B may utilize a novel regulatory mechanism whereby one C2 domain could regulate the other until an appropriate triggering event decouples them.