Parallel association of Fos and Jun leucine zippers juxtaposes DNA binding domains

The protein products of the fos and jun proto-oncogenes form a heterodimeric complex that participates in a stable high affinity interaction with DNA elements containing AP-1 binding sites. The effects of deletions and point mutations in Fos and Jun on protein complex formation and DNA binding have been examined. The data suggest that Fos and Jun dimerize via a parallel interaction of helical domains containing a heptad repeat of leucine residues (the leucine zipper). Dimerization is required for DNA binding and results in the appropriate juxtaposition of basic amino acid regions from Fos and Jun, both of which are required for association with DNA.     

Scissors-grip model for DNA recognition by a family of leucine zipper proteins

C/EBP is a sequence-specific DNA binding protein that regulates gene expression in certain mammalian cells. The region of the C/EBP polypeptide required for specific recognition of DNA is related in amino acid sequence to other regulatory proteins, including the Fos and Jun transforming proteins. It has been proposed that these proteins bind DNA via a bipartite structural motif, consisting of a dimerization interface termed the "leucine zipper" and a DNA contact surface termed the "basic region." An evaluation of the properties of conserved amino acids within the basic region of 11 deduced protein sequences, coupled with the observation that they are located at an invariant distance from the leucine zipper, has led to the formulation of a "scissors-grip" model for DNA binding. The architectural features of this model are well suited for interaction with directly abutted, dyadsymmetric DNA sequences. Data supportive of the model were obtained with chemical probes of protein: DNA complexes.     

The leucine zipper: a hypothetical structure common to a new class of DNA binding proteins

A 30-amino-acid segment of C/EBP, a newly discovered enhancer binding protein, shares notable sequence similarity with a segment of the cellular Myc transforming protein. Display of these respective amino acid sequences on an idealized alpha helix revealed a periodic repetition of leucine residues at every seventh position over a distance covering eight helical turns. The periodic array of at least four leucines was also noted in the sequences of the Fos and Jun transforming proteins, as well as that of the yeast gene regulatory protein, GCN4. The polypeptide segments containing these periodic arrays of leucine residues are proposed to exist in an alpha-helical conformation, and the leucine side chains extending from one alpha helix interdigitate with those displayed from a similar alpha helix of a second polypeptide, facilitating dimerization. This hypothetical structure is referred to as the "leucine zipper," and it may represent a characteristic property of a new category of DNA binding proteins.     

Sensing DNA damage through ATRIP recognition of RPA-ssDNA complexes

The function of the ATR (ataxia-telangiectasia mutated- and Rad3-related)-ATRIP (ATR-interacting protein) protein kinase complex is crucial for the cellular response to replication stress and DNA damage. Here, we show that replication protein A (RPA), a protein complex that associates with single-stranded DNA (ssDNA), is required for the recruitment of ATR to sites of DNA damage and for ATR-mediated Chk1 activation in human cells. In vitro, RPA stimulates the binding of ATRIP to ssDNA. The binding of ATRIP to RPA-coated ssDNA enables the ATR-ATRIP complex to associate with DNA and stimulates phosphorylation of the Rad17 protein that is bound to DNA. Furthermore, Ddc2, the budding yeast homolog of ATRIP, is specifically recruited to double-strand DNA breaks in an RPA-dependent manner. A checkpoint-deficient mutant of RPA, rfa1-t11, is defective for recruiting Ddc2 to ssDNA both in vivo and in vitro. Our data suggest that RPA-coated ssDNA is the critical structure at sites of DNA damage that recruits the ATR-ATRIP complex and facilitates its recognition of substrates for phosphorylation and the initiation of checkpoint signaling.     

参与植物防御反应的LRR型蛋白结构与功能

植物含有多种富含亮氨酸重复（LRRs）结构的蛋白质,它们在植物生长、发育和抗病反应等方面发挥着重要作用。综述了这类具有LRRs结构蛋白质家族的结构特征及其参与植物防御反应的功能。参与植物防御反应LRR型蛋白质家族包括：抗病基因编码蛋白质、类受体蛋白激酶、多聚半乳糖醛酸酶抑制蛋白和伸展蛋白家族。这四大蛋白质家族成员主要通过LRRs结构识别并结合病原物蛋白质,参与抗病信号传递,诱导植物防卫基因的表达,使植物获得系统抗性。其中LRRs序列中氨基酸的不同和单位重复数目的差异决定了蛋白识别的特异性和结合能力。     

Methylation-sensitive sequence-specific DNA binding by the c-Myc basic region

The function of the c-Myc oncoprotein and its role in cell growth control is unclear. A basic region of c-Myc is structurally related to the basic motifs of helix-loop-helix (HLH) and leucine zipper proteins, which provide sequence-specific DNA binding function. The c-Myc basic region was tested for its ability to bind DNA by attaching it to the HLH dimerization interface of the E12 enhancer binding factor. Dimers of the chimeric protein, termed E6, specifically bound an E box element (GGCCACGTGACC) recognized by other HLH proteins in a manner dependent on the integrity of the c-Myc basic motif. Methylation of the core CpG in the E box recognition site specifically inhibited binding by E6, but not by two other HLH proteins. Expression of E6 (but not an E6 DNA binding mutant) suppressed the ability of c-myc to cooperate with H-ras in a rat embryo fibroblast transformation assay, suggesting that the DNA recognition specificity of E6 is related to that of c-Myc in vivo.