Characterization of Soft Amyloid Cores in Human Prion-Like Proteins

Sci Rep. 2017 Sep 21;7(1):12134. doi: 10.1038/s41598-017-09714-z.

Abstract

Prion-like behaviour is attracting much attention due to the growing evidences that amyloid-like self-assembly may reach beyond neurodegeneration and be a conserved functional mechanism. The best characterized functional prions correspond to a subset of yeast proteins involved in translation or transcription. Their conformational promiscuity is encoded in Prion Forming Domains (PFDs), usually long and intrinsically disordered protein segments of low complexity. The compositional bias of these regions seems to be important for the transition between soluble and amyloid-like states. We have proposed that the presence of cryptic soft amyloid cores embedded in yeast PFDs can also be important for their assembly and demonstrated their existence and self-propagating abilities. Here, we used an orthogonal approach in the search of human domains that share yeast PFDs compositional bias and exhibit a predicted nucleating core, identifying 535 prion-like candidates. We selected seven proteins involved in transcriptional or translational regulation and associated to disease to characterize the properties of their amyloid cores. All of them self-assemble spontaneously into amyloid-like structures able to propagate their polymeric state. This provides support for the presence of short sequences able to trigger conformational conversion in prion-like human proteins, potentially regulating their functionality.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Amino Acid Sequence
  • Amyloid / chemistry*
  • DEAD-box RNA Helicases / chemistry
  • Databases, Protein
  • Fungal Proteins / chemistry
  • Humans
  • Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins / chemistry
  • Intrinsically Disordered Proteins / chemistry
  • Mediator Complex / chemistry
  • Nuclear Factor 90 Proteins / chemistry
  • Nuclear Proteins / chemistry
  • Nuclear Receptor Coactivator 2 / chemistry
  • Polycomb Repressive Complex 1 / chemistry
  • Prion Proteins / chemistry*
  • Protein Aggregates
  • Protein Domains
  • Protein Tyrosine Phosphatases / chemistry
  • Solubility
  • T-Cell Intracellular Antigen-1 / chemistry
  • Yeasts / chemistry

Substances

  • Amyloid
  • Fungal Proteins
  • ILF3 protein, human
  • Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins
  • Intrinsically Disordered Proteins
  • MED15 protein, human
  • Mediator Complex
  • NCOA2 protein, human
  • Nuclear Factor 90 Proteins
  • Nuclear Proteins
  • Nuclear Receptor Coactivator 2
  • PHC1 protein, human
  • Prion Proteins
  • Protein Aggregates
  • T-Cell Intracellular Antigen-1
  • TIA1 protein, human
  • Polycomb Repressive Complex 1
  • EYA1 protein, human
  • Protein Tyrosine Phosphatases
  • Ddx5 protein, human
  • DEAD-box RNA Helicases