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ABSTRACT: The BolA homologue Fra2 and the cytosolic monothiol glutaredoxins Grx3 and Grx4 together play a key role in regulating iron homeostasis in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Genetic studies indicate that Grx3/4 and Fra2 regulate activity of the iron-responsive transcription factors Aft1 and Aft2 in response to mitochondrial Fe-S cluster biosynthesis. We have previously shown that Fra2 and Grx3/4 form a [2Fe-2S](2+)-bridged heterodimeric complex with iron ligands provided by the active site cysteine of Grx3/4, glutathione, and a histidine residue. To further characterize this unusual Fe-S-binding complex, site-directed mutagenesis was used to identify specific residues in Fra2 that influence Fe-S cluster binding and regulation of Aft1 activity in vivo. Here, we present spectroscopic evidence that His-103 in Fra2 is an Fe-S cluster ligand in the Fra2-Grx3 complex. Replacement of this residue does not abolish Fe-S cluster binding, but it does lead to a change in cluster coordination and destabilization of the [2Fe-2S] cluster. In vivo genetic studies further confirm that Fra2 His-103 is critical for control of Aft1 activity in response to the cellular iron status. Using CD spectroscopy, we find that ∼1 mol eq of apo-Fra2 binds tightly to the [2Fe-2S] Grx3 homodimer to form the [2Fe-2S] Fra2-Grx3 heterodimer, suggesting a mechanism for formation of the [2Fe-2S] Fra2-Grx3 heterodimer in vivo. Taken together, these results demonstrate that the histidine coordination and stability of the [2Fe-2S] cluster in the Fra2-Grx3 complex are essential for iron regulation in yeast.
Journal of Biological Chemistry 10/2010; 286(1):867-76. · 4.77 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: The transcription of iron uptake and storage genes in Saccharomyces cerevisiae is primarily regulated by the transcription factor Aft1. Nucleocytoplasmic shuttling of Aft1 is dependent upon mitochondrial Fe-S cluster biosynthesis via a signaling pathway that includes the cytosolic monothiol glutaredoxins (Grx3 and Grx4) and the BolA homologue Fra2. However, the interactions between these proteins and the iron-dependent mechanism by which they control Aft1 localization are unclear. To reconstitute and characterize components of this signaling pathway in vitro, we have overexpressed yeast Fra2 and Grx3/4 in Escherichia coli. We have shown that coexpression of recombinant Fra2 with Grx3 or Grx4 allows purification of a stable [2Fe-2S](2+) cluster-containing Fra2-Grx3 or Fra2-Grx4 heterodimeric complex. Reconstitution of a [2Fe-2S] cluster on Grx3 or Grx4 without Fra2 produces a [2Fe-2S]-bridged homodimer. UV-visible absorption and CD, resonance Raman, EPR, ENDOR, Mossbauer, and EXAFS studies of [2Fe-2S] Grx3/4 homodimers and the [2Fe-2S] Fra2-Grx3/4 heterodimers indicate that inclusion of Fra2 in the Grx3/4 Fe-S complex causes a change in the cluster stability and coordination environment. Taken together, our analytical, spectroscopic, and mutagenesis data indicate that Grx3/4 and Fra2 form a Fe-S-bridged heterodimeric complex with Fe ligands provided by the active site cysteine of Grx3/4, glutathione, and a histidine residue. Overall, these results suggest that the ability of the Fra2-Grx3/4 complex to assemble a [2Fe-2S] cluster may act as a signal to control the iron regulon in response to cellular iron status in yeast.
Biochemistry 09/2009; 48(40):9569-81. · 3.42 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Yeast glutaredoxin 3 (Grx3) is a cytosolic protein that regulates the activity of the iron-responsive transcriptional activator Aft1. This member of the monothiol glutaredoxin family contains a thioredoxin-like domain and a glutaredoxin-like domain, which both possess a monothiol active site. The crystal structure of the thioredoxin-like domain has been determined at 1.5 A resolution and represents the first published structure of this domain for the monothiol glutaredoxin family. The loop containing the signature motif WAxxC is partially disordered, indicating a greater degree of flexibility in this region compared with classical dithiol thioredoxins with a WCGPC active-site motif.
Acta Crystallographica Section D Biological Crystallography 10/2008; 64(Pt 9):927-32. · 12.62 Impact Factor
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Attila Kumánovics,
Opal S Chen,
Liangtao Li,
Dustin Bagley,
Erika M Adkins,
Huilan Lin, Nin N Dingra,
Caryn E Outten,
Greg Keller,
Dennis Winge,
Diane M Ward,
Jerry Kaplan
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ABSTRACT: The nature of the connection between mitochondrial Fe-S cluster synthesis and the iron-sensitive transcription factor Aft1 in regulating the expression of the iron transport system in Saccharomyces cerevisiae is not known. Using a genetic screen, we identified two novel cytosolic proteins, Fra1 and Fra2, that are part of a complex that interprets the signal derived from mitochondrial Fe-S synthesis. We found that mutations in FRA1 (YLL029W) and FRA2 (YGL220W) led to an increase in transcription of the iron regulon. In cells incubated in high iron medium, deletion of either FRA gene results in the translocation of the low iron-sensing transcription factor Aft1 into the nucleus, where it occupies the FET3 promoter. Deletion of either FRA gene has the same effect on transcription as deletion of both genes and is not additive with activation of the iron regulon due to loss of mitochondrial Fe-S cluster synthesis. These observations suggest that the FRA proteins are in the same signal transduction pathway as Fe-S cluster synthesis. We show that Fra1 and Fra2 interact in the cytosol in an iron-independent fashion. The Fra1-Fra2 complex binds to Grx3 and Grx4, two cytosolic monothiol glutaredoxins, in an iron-independent fashion. These results show that the Fra-Grx complex is an intermediate between the production of mitochondrial Fe-S clusters and transcription of the iron regulon.
Journal of Biological Chemistry 05/2008; 283(16):10276-86. · 4.77 Impact Factor
