NMR Detection and Structural Modeling of the Ethylene Receptor LeETR2 from Tomato
Shukun Wei,
Yaqing Yang,
Yuan Yuan,
Lingyu Du,
Hongjuan Xue,
Bo OuYang
Affiliations
Shukun Wei
State Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China
Yaqing Yang
State Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China
Yuan Yuan
State Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China
Lingyu Du
State Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China
Hongjuan Xue
National Facility for Protein Science in Shanghai, Zhangjiang Laboratory, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201203, China
Bo OuYang
State Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China
The gaseous plant hormone ethylene influences many physiological processes in plant growth and development. Plant ethylene responses are mediated by a family of ethylene receptors, in which the N-terminal transmembrane domains are responsible for ethylene binding and membrane localization. Until now, little structural information was available on the molecular mechanism of ethylene responses by the transmembrane binding domain of ethylene receptors. Here, we screened different constructs, fusion tags, detergents, and purification methods of the transmembrane sensor domain of ethylene receptors. However, due to their highly hydrophobic transmembrane domain (TMD), only a KSI-fused LeETR21–131 from tomato yielded a good-quality nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrum in the organic solvent. Interestingly, a dimer model of LeETR21–131 built by the AlphaFold2 algorithm showed greatly converged structures. The interaction analysis of ethylene and LeETR21–131 using molecular docking and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations demonstrated the potential binding sites of ethylene in LeETR21–131. Our exploration provides valuable knowledge for further understanding of the ethylene-perception process in ethylene receptors.
