Abstract
For many short-lived eukaryotic proteins, conjugation to ubiquitin, yielding a multiubiquitin chain, is an obligatory pre-degradation step. The conjugated ubiquitin moieties function as a 'secondary' signal for degradation, in that their posttranslational coupling to a substrate protein is mediated by amino acid sequences of the substrate that act as a primary degradation signal. We report that the fusion protein ubiquitin--proline--beta-galactosidase (Ub-P-beta gal) is short-lived in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae because its N-terminal ubiquitin moiety functions as an autonomous, primary degradation signal. This signal mediates the formation of a multiubiquitin chain linked to Lys48 of the N-terminal ubiquitin in Ub-P-beta gal. The degradation of Ub-P-beta gal is shown to require Ubc4, one of at least seven ubiquitin-conjugating enzymes in S.cerevisiae. Our findings provide the first direct evidence that a monoubiquitin moiety can function as an autonomous degradation signal. This generally applicable, cis-acting signal can be used to manipulate the in vivo half-lives of specific intracellular proteins.
Full text
PDF








Images in this article
Selected References
These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.
- Bachmair A., Finley D., Varshavsky A. In vivo half-life of a protein is a function of its amino-terminal residue. Science. 1986 Oct 10;234(4773):179–186. doi: 10.1126/science.3018930. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Bachmair A., Varshavsky A. The degradation signal in a short-lived protein. Cell. 1989 Mar 24;56(6):1019–1032. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(89)90635-1. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Baker R. T., Varshavsky A. Inhibition of the N-end rule pathway in living cells. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1991 Feb 15;88(4):1090–1094. doi: 10.1073/pnas.88.4.1090. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Banerji J., Sands J., Strominger J. L., Spies T. A gene pair from the human major histocompatibility complex encodes large proline-rich proteins with multiple repeated motifs and a single ubiquitin-like domain. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1990 Mar;87(6):2374–2378. doi: 10.1073/pnas.87.6.2374. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Bartel B., Wünning I., Varshavsky A. The recognition component of the N-end rule pathway. EMBO J. 1990 Oct;9(10):3179–3189. doi: 10.1002/j.1460-2075.1990.tb07516.x. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Butt T. R., Khan M. I., Marsh J., Ecker D. J., Crooke S. T. Ubiquitin-metallothionein fusion protein expression in yeast. A genetic approach for analysis of ubiquitin functions. J Biol Chem. 1988 Nov 5;263(31):16364–16371. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Chau V., Tobias J. W., Bachmair A., Marriott D., Ecker D. J., Gonda D. K., Varshavsky A. A multiubiquitin chain is confined to specific lysine in a targeted short-lived protein. Science. 1989 Mar 24;243(4898):1576–1583. doi: 10.1126/science.2538923. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Chen Z., Pickart C. M. A 25-kilodalton ubiquitin carrier protein (E2) catalyzes multi-ubiquitin chain synthesis via lysine 48 of ubiquitin. J Biol Chem. 1990 Dec 15;265(35):21835–21842. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Dohmen R. J., Madura K., Bartel B., Varshavsky A. The N-end rule is mediated by the UBC2(RAD6) ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1991 Aug 15;88(16):7351–7355. doi: 10.1073/pnas.88.16.7351. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Driscoll J., Goldberg A. L. The proteasome (multicatalytic protease) is a component of the 1500-kDa proteolytic complex which degrades ubiquitin-conjugated proteins. J Biol Chem. 1990 Mar 25;265(9):4789–4792. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Dunten R. L., Cohen R. E., Gregori L., Chau V. Specific disulfide cleavage is required for ubiquitin conjugation and degradation of lysozyme. J Biol Chem. 1991 Feb 15;266(5):3260–3267. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Field J., Nikawa J., Broek D., MacDonald B., Rodgers L., Wilson I. A., Lerner R. A., Wigler M. Purification of a RAS-responsive adenylyl cyclase complex from Saccharomyces cerevisiae by use of an epitope addition method. Mol Cell Biol. 1988 May;8(5):2159–2165. doi: 10.1128/mcb.8.5.2159. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Finley D., Bartel B., Varshavsky A. The tails of ubiquitin precursors are ribosomal proteins whose fusion to ubiquitin facilitates ribosome biogenesis. Nature. 1989 Mar 30;338(6214):394–401. doi: 10.1038/338394a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Finley D., Chau V. Ubiquitination. Annu Rev Cell Biol. 1991;7:25–69. doi: 10.1146/annurev.cb.07.110191.000325. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Finley D., Ozkaynak E., Varshavsky A. The yeast polyubiquitin gene is essential for resistance to high temperatures, starvation, and other stresses. Cell. 1987 Mar 27;48(6):1035–1046. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(87)90711-2. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Gonda D. K., Bachmair A., Wünning I., Tobias J. W., Lane W. S., Varshavsky A. Universality and structure of the N-end rule. J Biol Chem. 1989 Oct 5;264(28):16700–16712. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Gregori L., Poosch M. S., Cousins G., Chau V. A uniform isopeptide-linked multiubiquitin chain is sufficient to target substrate for degradation in ubiquitin-mediated proteolysis. J Biol Chem. 1990 May 25;265(15):8354–8357. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Guarente L., Yocum R. R., Gifford P. A GAL10-CYC1 hybrid yeast promoter identifies the GAL4 regulatory region as an upstream site. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1982 Dec;79(23):7410–7414. doi: 10.1073/pnas.79.23.7410. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Haas A. L., Ahrens P., Bright P. M., Ankel H. Interferon induces a 15-kilodalton protein exhibiting marked homology to ubiquitin. J Biol Chem. 1987 Aug 15;262(23):11315–11323. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Hershko A. The ubiquitin pathway for protein degradation. Trends Biochem Sci. 1991 Jul;16(7):265–268. doi: 10.1016/0968-0004(91)90101-z. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Hochstrasser M., Ellison M. J., Chau V., Varshavsky A. The short-lived MAT alpha 2 transcriptional regulator is ubiquitinated in vivo. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1991 Jun 1;88(11):4606–4610. doi: 10.1073/pnas.88.11.4606. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Hochstrasser M., Varshavsky A. In vivo degradation of a transcriptional regulator: the yeast alpha 2 repressor. Cell. 1990 May 18;61(4):697–708. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(90)90481-s. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Hough R., Pratt G., Rechsteiner M. Purification of two high molecular weight proteases from rabbit reticulocyte lysate. J Biol Chem. 1987 Jun 15;262(17):8303–8313. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Ito H., Fukuda Y., Murata K., Kimura A. Transformation of intact yeast cells treated with alkali cations. J Bacteriol. 1983 Jan;153(1):163–168. doi: 10.1128/jb.153.1.163-168.1983. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Jentsch S., Seufert W., Sommer T., Reins H. A. Ubiquitin-conjugating enzymes: novel regulators of eukaryotic cells. Trends Biochem Sci. 1990 May;15(5):195–198. doi: 10.1016/0968-0004(90)90161-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Johnson E. S., Gonda D. K., Varshavsky A. cis-trans recognition and subunit-specific degradation of short-lived proteins. Nature. 1990 Jul 19;346(6281):287–291. doi: 10.1038/346287a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Johnston R. F., Pickett S. C., Barker D. L. Autoradiography using storage phosphor technology. Electrophoresis. 1990 May;11(5):355–360. doi: 10.1002/elps.1150110503. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Meyers G., Tautz N., Dubovi E. J., Thiel H. J. Viral cytopathogenicity correlated with integration of ubiquitin-coding sequences. Virology. 1991 Feb;180(2):602–616. doi: 10.1016/0042-6822(91)90074-L. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Nagai K., Thøgersen H. C. Synthesis and sequence-specific proteolysis of hybrid proteins produced in Escherichia coli. Methods Enzymol. 1987;153:461–481. doi: 10.1016/0076-6879(87)53072-5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Redman K. L., Rechsteiner M. Identification of the long ubiquitin extension as ribosomal protein S27a. Nature. 1989 Mar 30;338(6214):438–440. doi: 10.1038/338438a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Schlesinger M. J., Bond U. Ubiquitin genes. Oxf Surv Eukaryot Genes. 1987;4:77–91. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Seufert W., Jentsch S. Ubiquitin-conjugating enzymes UBC4 and UBC5 mediate selective degradation of short-lived and abnormal proteins. EMBO J. 1990 Feb;9(2):543–550. doi: 10.1002/j.1460-2075.1990.tb08141.x. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Sikorski R. S., Hieter P. A system of shuttle vectors and yeast host strains designed for efficient manipulation of DNA in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Genetics. 1989 May;122(1):19–27. doi: 10.1093/genetics/122.1.19. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Stueber D., Ibrahimi I., Cutler D., Dobberstein B., Bujard H. A novel in vitro transcription-translation system: accurate and efficient synthesis of single proteins from cloned DNA sequences. EMBO J. 1984 Dec 20;3(13):3143–3148. doi: 10.1002/j.1460-2075.1984.tb02271.x. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Toniolo D., Persico M., Alcalay M. A "housekeeping" gene on the X chromosome encodes a protein similar to ubiquitin. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1988 Feb;85(3):851–855. doi: 10.1073/pnas.85.3.851. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Varshavsky A. Naming a targeting signal. Cell. 1991 Jan 11;64(1):13–15. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(91)90202-a. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]