Gene/Protein
Disease
Symptom
Drug
Enzyme
Compound
Pivot Concepts:
Gene/Protein
Disease
Symptom
Drug
Enzyme
Compound
Target Concepts:
Gene/Protein
Disease
Symptom
Drug
Enzyme
Compound
Query: EC:2.5.1.18 (
glutathione S-transferase
)
22,582
document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)
NPHS2 was recently identified as a gene whose mutations cause autosomal recessive steroid-resistant nephrotic syndrome. Its product, podocin, is a new member of the stomatin family, which consists of hairpin-like integral membrane proteins with intracellular NH(2)- and COOH-termini. Podocin is expressed in glomerular podocytes, but its subcellular distribution and interaction with other proteins are unknown. Here we show, by immunoelectron microscopy, that podocin localizes to the podocyte foot process membrane, at the insertion site of the slit diaphragm. Podocin accumulates in an oligomeric form in lipid rafts of the slit diaphragm. Moreover,
GST
pull-down experiments reveal that podocin associates via its COOH-terminal domain with CD2AP, a cytoplasmic binding partner of
nephrin
, and with
nephrin
itself. That podocin interacts with CD2AP and
nephrin
in vivo is shown by coimmunoprecipitation of these proteins from glomerular extracts. Furthermore, in vitro studies reveal direct interaction of podocin and CD2AP. Hence, as with the erythrocyte lipid raft protein stomatin, podocin is present in high-order oligomers and may serve a scaffolding function. We postulate that podocin serves in the structural organization of the slit diaphragm and the regulation of its filtration function.
...
PMID:Podocin, a raft-associated component of the glomerular slit diaphragm, interacts with CD2AP and nephrin. 1173 53
Nephrin is a signalling cell-cell adhesion protein of the Ig superfamily and the first identified component of the slit diaphragm that forms the critical and ultimate part of the glomerular ultrafiltration barrier. The extracellular domains of the
nephrin
molecules form a network of homophilic and heterophilic interactions building the structural scaffold of the slit diaphragm between the podocyte foot processes. The intracellular domain of
nephrin
is connected indirectly to the actin cytoskeleton, is tyrosine phosphorylated, and mediates signalling from the slit diaphragm into the podocytes. CD2AP, podocin, Fyn kinase, and phosphoinositide 3-kinase are reported intracellular interacting partners of
nephrin
, although the biological roles of these interactions are unclarified. To characterize the structural properties and protein-protein interactions of the
nephrin
intracellular domain, we produced a series of recombinant
nephrin
proteins. These were able to bind all previously identified ligands, although the interaction with CD2AP appeared to be of extremely low stoichiometry. Fyn phosphorylated
nephrin
proteins efficiently in vitro. This phosphorylation was required for the binding of phosphoinositide 3-kinase, and significantly enhanced binding of Fyn itself. A protein of 190 kDa was found to associate with the immobilized
glutathione S-transferase
-
nephrin
. Peptide mass fingerprinting and amino acid sequencing identified this protein as IQGAP1, an effector protein of small GTPases Rac1 and Cdc42 and a putative regulator of cell-cell adherens junctions. IQGAP1 is expressed in podocytes at significant levels, and could be found at the immediate vicinity of the slit diaphragm. However, further studies are needed to confirm the biological significance of this interaction and its occurrence in vivo.
...
PMID:Characterization of the interactions of the nephrin intracellular domain. 1563 46
Nephrin is a cell surface receptor of the Ig superfamily that localizes to slit diaphragms, the specialized junctions between the interdigitating foot processes of the glomerular epithelium (podocytes) in the kidney. Mutations in the NPHS1 gene encoding
nephrin
lead to proteinuria and congenital nephrotic syndrome, indicating that
nephrin
is essential for normal glomerular development and function. To identify
nephrin
-binding proteins, we performed mass spectrometry on proteins obtained from pull-down assays with
GST
-
nephrin
cytoplasmic domain. Nephrin specifically pulled down six proteins from glomerular lysates, MAGI-2/S-SCAM (membrane-associated guanylate kinase inverted 2/synaptic scaffolding molecule), IQGAP1 (IQ motif-containingGTPase-activatingprotein1),CASK(calcium/calmodulin-dependent serine protein kinase), alpha-actinin, alphaII spectrin, and betaII spectrin. All of these scaffolding proteins are often associated with cell junctions. By immunofluorescence these proteins are expressed in glomerular epithelial cells, where they colocalize with
nephrin
in the foot processes. During glomerular development, IQGAP1 is expressed in the junctional complexes between the earliest identifiable podocytes, MAGI-2/S-SCAM is first detected in junctional complexes in podocytes after their migration to the base of the cells. Thus, the
nephrin
-slit diaphragm protein complex contains a group of scaffolding proteins that function to connect junctional membrane proteins to the actin cytoskeleton and signaling cascades. Despite their special morphology and function, there is considerable compositional similarity between the podocyte slit diaphragm and typical junctional complexes of other epithelial cells.
...
PMID:Cell junction-associated proteins IQGAP1, MAGI-2, CASK, spectrins, and alpha-actinin are components of the nephrin multiprotein complex. 1599 32
Densin is a member of LAP (leucine-rich repeat and PDZ domain) protein family that localizes in kidney to slit diaphragms, which are essential components of the glomerular filtration barrier. We have previously shown that densin interacts with a crucial slit diaphragm protein,
nephrin
. Here, we searched for novel binding partners of densin by yeast-two hybrid assay and identified beta-catenin. The interaction was confirmed by reciprocal co-immunoprecipitation assay and the binding site in densin was determined by
GST
-pull down assays. The
GST
-tagged densin was also able to pull down P-cadherin together with beta-catenin from human kidney glomerular lysates. Furthermore, densin co-localized with beta-catenin and F-actin in cell-cell contacts in cultured mouse podocytes. During cell-cell contact disruption and reformation densin and beta-catenin were dislocated from and relocated back to plasma membrane in a similar fashion. These and our previous findings suggest that densin may associate with the cadherin-catenin and
nephrin
complex(es), and may be involved in the formation of the cell-cell contacts including the slit diaphragm.
...
PMID:Densin and beta-catenin form a complex and co-localize in cultured podocyte cell junctions. 1758 99
We carried out a yeast two-hybrid screen to identify proteins that interact with large-conductance Ca2+-activated K+ (BKCa) channels encoded by the Slo1 gene. Nephrin, an essential adhesion and scaffolding molecule expressed in podocytes, emerged in this screen. The Slo1-
nephrin
interaction was confirmed by coimmunoprecipitation from the brain and kidney, from HEK-293T cells expressing both proteins, and by
glutathione S-transferase
pull-down assays. We detected
nephrin
binding to the Slo1 VEDEC splice variant, which is typically retained in intracellular stores, and to the beta4-subunit. However, we did not detect significant binding of
nephrin
to the Slo1 QEERL or Slo1 EMVYR splice variants. Coexpression of
nephrin
with Slo1 VEDEC increased expression of functional BKCa channels on the surface of HEK-293T cells but did not affect steady-state surface expression of the other COOH-terminal Slo1 variants. Nephrin did not affect the kinetics or voltage dependence of channel activation in HEK-293T cells expressing Slo1. Stimulation of Slo1 VEDEC surface expression in HEK-293T cells was also observed by coexpressing a small construct encoding only the distal COOH-terminal domains of
nephrin
that interact with Slo1. Reduction of endogenous
nephrin
expression by application of small interfering RNA to differentiated cells of an immortalized podocyte cell line markedly reduced the steady-state surface expression of Slo1 as assessed by electrophysiology and cell-surface biotinylation assays. Nephrin therefore plays a role in organizing the surface expression of ion channel proteins in podocytes and may play a role in outside-in signaling to allow podocytes to adapt to mechanical or neurohumoral stimuli originating in neighboring cells.
...
PMID:Nephrin binds to the COOH terminus of a large-conductance Ca2+-activated K+ channel isoform and regulates its expression on the cell surface. 1848 Jan 78
Large-conductance Ca(2+)-activated K(+) (BK(Ca)) channels encoded by the Slo1 gene are often components of large multiprotein complexes in excitable and nonexcitable cells. Here we show that Slo1 proteins interact with Neph1, a member of the immunoglobulin superfamily expressed in slit diaphragm domains of podocytes and in vertebrate and invertebrate nervous systems. This interaction was established by reciprocal coimmunoprecipitation of endogenous proteins from differentiated cells of a podocyte cell line, from parasympathetic neurons of the embryonic chick ciliary ganglion, and from HEK293T cells heterologously expressing both proteins. Neph1 can interact with all three extreme COOH-terminal variants of Slo1 (Slo1(VEDEC), Slo1(QEERL), and Slo1(EMVYR)) as ascertained by
glutathione S-transferase
(
GST
) pull-down assays and by coimmunoprecipitation. Neph1 is partially colocalized in intracellular compartments with endogenous Slo1 in podocytes and ciliary ganglion neurons. Coexpression in HEK293T cells of Neph1 with any of the Slo1 extreme COOH-terminal splice variants suppresses their steady-state expression on the cell surface, as assessed by cell surface biotinylation assays, confocal microscopy, and whole cell recordings. Consistent with this, small interfering RNA (siRNA) knockdown of endogenous Neph1 in embryonic day 10 ciliary ganglion neurons causes an increase in steady-state surface expression of Slo1 and an increase in whole cell Ca(2+)-dependent K(+) current. Surprisingly, a comparable Neph1 knockdown in podocytes causes a decrease in surface expression of Slo1 and a decrease in whole cell BK(Ca) currents. In podocytes, Neph1 siRNA also caused a decrease in
nephrin
, even though the Neph1 siRNA had no sequence homology with
nephrin
. However, we could not detect
nephrin
in ciliary ganglion neurons.
...
PMID:Neph1 regulates steady-state surface expression of Slo1 Ca(2+)-activated K(+) channels: different effects in embryonic neurons and podocytes. 1979 50
Podocytes help form the glomerular blood filtration barrier in the kidney and their injury or loss leads to renal disease. The Wilms' tumor suppressor-1 (Wt1) and the FoxC1/2 transcription factors, as well as Notch signaling, have been implicated as important regulators of podocyte fate. It is not known whether these factors work in parallel or sequentially on different gene targets, or as higher-order transcriptional complexes on common genes. Here, we use the zebrafish to demonstrate that embryos treated with morpholinos against wt1a, foxc1a, or the Notch transcriptional mediator rbpj develop fewer podocytes, as determined by wt1b, hey1 and
nephrin
expression, while embryos deficient in any two of these factors completely lack podocytes. From
GST
-pull-downs and co-immunoprecipitation experiments we show that Wt1a, Foxc1a, and Rbpj can physically interact with each other, whereas only Rbpj binds to the Notch intracellular domain (NICD). In transactivation assays, combinations of Wt1, FoxC1/2, and NICD synergistically induce the Hey1 promoter, and have additive or repressive effects on the Podocalyxin promoter, depending on dosage. Taken together, these data suggest that Wt1, FoxC1/2, and Notch signaling converge on common target genes where they physically interact to regulate a podocyte-specific gene program. These findings further our understanding of the transcriptional circuitry responsible for podocyte formation and differentiation during kidney development.
...
PMID:Wt1a, Foxc1a, and the Notch mediator Rbpj physically interact and regulate the formation of podocytes in zebrafish. 2187 48
The transmembrane protein
nephrin
is an essential component of slit diaphragms, the specialized cell junctions that link podocyte foot processes. Podocytes are epithelial cells that surround the glomerular capillaries in the kidney and are necessary for the organ-filtering function. Nephrin signaling complex transduces extracellular cues to the podocyte cytoskeleton and regulates podocyte shape and function. Vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A) is a required growth factor produced and secreted by podocytes. Accumulating evidence suggests a cross-talk between VEGF-A and
nephrin
signaling pathways. We previously showed that in vivo
nephrin
associates with VEGF receptor-2 (VEGFR2), the signaling receptor for VEGF-A. In the present work, we characterized the interaction between
nephrin
and VEGFR2 in cultured cells and in vitro. We demonstrate that
nephrin
-VEGFR2 interaction is direct using mass spectrometry, immunoprecipitation,
GST
-binding assays, and blot overlay experiments. This interaction occurs through VEGFR2 and
nephrin
cytoplasmic domains. Nephrin-VEGFR2 interaction is modulated by tyrosine phosphorylation of both cytoplasmic domains. Furthermore, the
nephrin
-VEGFR2 complex involves Nck and actin. VEGF-A signaling via this complex results in decreased cell size. We provide evidence that this multiprotein interaction occurs in cultured podocytes. We propose that the
nephrin
-VEGFR2 complex acts as a key mediator to transduce local VEGF-A signals to the podocyte actin cytoskeleton, regulating the foot process structure and glomerular filter integrity.
...
PMID:Vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 direct interaction with nephrin links VEGF-A signals to actin in kidney podocytes. 2193 43