Ligand‐induced CaMKIIα hub Trp403 flip, hub domain stacking, and modulation of kinase activity

• Published in: Protein science Vol. 33; no. 10; pp. e5152 - n/a
• Main Authors: Narayanan, Dilip, Larsen, Anne Sofie G., Gauger, Stine Juul, Adafia, Ruth, Hammershøi, Rikke Bartschick, Hamborg, Louise, Bruus‐Jensen, Jesper, Griem‐Krey, Nane, Gee, Christine L., Frølund, Bente, Stratton, Margaret M., Kuriyan, John, Kastrup, Jette Sandholm, Langkilde, Annette E., Wellendorph, Petrine, Solbak, Sara M. Ø.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hoboken, USA John Wiley & Sons, Inc 01.10.2024; Wiley Subscription Services, Inc
• Subjects: Acetic acid; Allosteric properties; allosteric regulation; Analogs; Binding; Calcium-Calmodulin-Dependent Protein Kinase Type 2 - chemistry; Calcium-Calmodulin-Dependent Protein Kinase Type 2 - genetics; Calcium-Calmodulin-Dependent Protein Kinase Type 2 - metabolism; CaMKIIα; Conformation; Crystal structure; Crystallography, X-Ray; hub domain; Humans; Kinases; Leucine; Ligands; Models, Molecular; Neuroprotection; Phosphorylation; Photometry; Placement; Protein Domains; Pyridazines - chemistry; Pyridazines - metabolism; Scattering, Small Angle; self‐association; small‐angle X‐ray scattering; Substrates; Thermal stability; Tryptophan; Tryptophan - chemistry; Tryptophan - metabolism; X‐ray crystallography; γ-Hydroxybutyric acid; ligands; self‐association; CaMKIIα; hub domain; X‐ray crystallography; allosteric regulation; small‐angle X‐ray scattering
• ISSN: 0961-8368; 1469-896X; 1469-896X
• DOI: 10.1002/pro.5152

γ‐Hydroxybutyric acid (GHB) analogs are small molecules that bind competitively to a specific cavity in the oligomeric CaMKIIα hub domain. Binding affects conformation and stability of the hub domain, which may explain the neuroprotective action of some of these compounds. Here, we describe molecular details of interaction of the larger‐type GHB analog 2‐(6‐(4‐chlorophenyl)imidazo[1,2‐b]pyridazine‐2‐yl)acetic acid (PIPA). Like smaller‐type analogs, PIPA binding to the CaMKIIα hub domain promoted thermal stability. PIPA additionally modulated CaMKIIα activity under sub‐maximal CaM concentrations and ultimately led to reduced substrate phosphorylation. A high‐resolution X‐ray crystal structure of a stabilized CaMKIIα (6x mutant) hub construct revealed details of the binding mode of PIPA, which involved outward placement of tryptophan 403 (Trp403), a central residue in a flexible loop close to the upper hub cavity. Small‐angle X‐ray scattering (SAXS) solution structures and mass photometry of the CaMKIIα wild‐type hub domain in the presence of PIPA revealed a high degree of ordered self‐association (stacks of CaMKIIα hub domains). This stacking neither occurred with the smaller compound 3‐hydroxycyclopent‐1‐enecarboxylic acid (HOCPCA), nor when Trp403 was replaced with leucine (W403L). Additionally, CaMKIIα W403L hub was stabilized to a larger extent by PIPA compared to CaMKIIα hub wild type, indicating that loop flexibility is important for holoenzyme stability. Thus, we propose that ligand‐induced outward placement of Trp403 by PIPA, which promotes an unforeseen mechanism of hub domain stacking, may be involved in the observed reduction in CaMKIIα kinase activity. Altogether, this sheds new light on allosteric regulation of CaMKIIα activity via the hub domain.