Dual fatty acylation of p59(Fyn) is required for association with the T cell receptor zeta chain through phosphotyrosine-Src homology domain-2 interactions

The first 10 residues within the Src homology domain (SH)-4 domain of the Src family kinase Fyn are required for binding to the immune receptor tyrosine-based activation motif (ITAM) of T cell receptor (TCR) subunits. Recently, mutation of glycine 2, cysteine 3, and lysines 7 and 9 was shown to block binding of Fyn to TCR zeta chain ITAMs, prompting the designation of these residues as an ITAM recognition motif (Gauen, L.K.T., M.E. Linder, and A.S. Shaw. 1996. J. Cell Biol. 133:1007-1015). Here we show that these residues do not mediate direct interactions with TCR ITAMs, but rather are required for efficient myristoylation and palmitoylation of Fyn. Specifically, coexpression of a K7,9A-Fyn mutant with N-myristoyltransferase restored myristoylation, membrane binding, and association with the cytoplasmic tail of TCR zeta fused to CD8. Conversely, treatment of cells with 2-hydroxymyristate, a myristoylation inhibitor, blocked association of wild-type Fyn with zeta. The Fyn NH2 terminus was necessary but not sufficient for interaction with zeta and both Fyn kinase and SH2 domains were required, directing phosphorylation of zeta ITAM tyrosines and binding to zeta ITAM phosphotyrosines. Fyn/zeta interaction was sensitive to octylglucoside and filipin, agents that disrupt membrane rafts. Moreover, a plasma membrane bound, farnesylated Fyn construct, G2A,C3S-FynKRas, was not enriched in the detergent insoluble fraction and did not associate with zeta. We conclude that the Fyn SH4 domain provides the signals for fatty acylation and specific plasma membrane localization, stabilizing the interactions between the Fyn SH2 domain and phosphotyrosines in TCR zeta chain ITAMs.

Chemical ligation of folded recombinant proteins: segmental isotopic labeling of domains for NMR studies

A convenient in vitro chemical ligation strategy has been developed that allows folded recombinant proteins to be joined together. This strategy permits segmental, selective isotopic labeling of the product. The src homology type 3 and 2 domains (SH3 and SH2) of Abelson protein tyrosine kinase, which constitute the regulatory apparatus of the protein, were individually prepared in reactive forms that can be ligated together under normal protein-folding conditions to form a normal peptide bond at the ligation junction. This strategy was used to prepare NMR sample quantities of the Abelson protein tyrosine kinase-SH(32) domain pair, in which only one of the domains was labeled with 15N. Mass spectrometry and NMR analyses were used to confirm the structure of the ligated protein, which was also shown to have appropriate ligand-binding properties. The ability to prepare recombinant proteins with selectively labeled segments having a single-site mutation, by using a combination of expression of fusion proteins and chemical ligation in vitro, will increase the size limits for protein structural determination in solution with NMR methods. In vitro chemical ligation of expressed protein domains will also provide a combinatorial approach to the synthesis of linked protein domains.