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Specificity protein 4 functionally regulates the transcription of NMDA receptor subunits GluN1, GluN2A, and GluN2B.

ABSTRACT: N-Methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptors are major glutamatergic receptors involved in most excitatory neurotransmission in the brain. The transcriptional regulation of NMDA receptors is not fully understood. Previously, we found that the GluN1 and GluN2B subunits of the NMDA receptor are regulated by nuclear respiratory factors 1 and 2 (NRF-1 and NRF-2). NRF-1 and NRF-2 also regulate all 13 subunits of cytochrome c oxidase (COX), a critical energy-generating enzyme, thereby coupling neuronal activity and energy metabolism at the transcriptional level. Specificity protein (Sp) is a family of transcription factors that bind to GC-rich regions, with Sp1, Sp3, and Sp4 all binding to the same cis- motifs. Sp1 and Sp3 are ubiquitously expressed, whereas Sp4 expression is restricted to neurons and testicular cells. Recently, we found that the Sp1 factor regulates all subunits of COX. The goal of the present study was to test our hypothesis that the Sp factors also regulate specific subunits of NMDA receptors, and that they function with NRF-1 and NRF-2 via one of three mechanisms: complementary, concurrent and parallel, or a combination of complementary and concurrent/parallel. By means of multiple approaches we found that Sp4 functionally regulated GluN1, GluN2A, and GluN2B, but not GluN2C. On the other hand, Sp1 and Sp3 did not regulate these subunits as previously thought. Our data suggest that Sp4 operates in a complementary and concurrent/parallel manner with NRF-1 and NRF-2 to mediate the tight coupling between energy metabolism and neuronal activity at the molecular level.

SUBMITTER: Priya A

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3834217 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Specificity protein 4 functionally regulates the transcription of NMDA receptor subunits GluN1, GluN2A, and GluN2B.

Priya Anusha A Johar Kaid K Wong-Riley Margaret T T MTT

Biochimica et biophysica acta 20130718 12

N-Methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptors are major glutamatergic receptors involved in most excitatory neurotransmission in the brain. The transcriptional regulation of NMDA receptors is not fully understood. Previously, we found that the GluN1 and GluN2B subunits of the NMDA receptor are regulated by nuclear respiratory factors 1 and 2 (NRF-1 and NRF-2). NRF-1 and NRF-2 also regulate all 13 subunits of cytochrome c oxidase (COX), a critical energy-generating enzyme, thereby coupling neuronal activ ...[more]

PMID: 23871830

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Project description:Since it was discovered that the anti-hypertensive agent ifenprodil has neuroprotective activity through its effects on NMDA (N-methyl-D-aspartate) receptors, a determined effort has been made to understand the mechanism of action and to develop improved therapeutic compounds on the basis of this knowledge. Neurotransmission mediated by NMDA receptors is essential for basic brain development and function. These receptors form heteromeric ion channels and become activated after concurrent binding of glycine and glutamate to the GluN1 and GluN2 subunits, respectively. A functional hallmark of NMDA receptors is that their ion-channel activity is allosterically regulated by binding of small compounds to the amino-terminal domain (ATD) in a subtype-specific manner. Ifenprodil and related phenylethanolamine compounds, which specifically inhibit GluN1 and GluN2B NMDA receptors, have been intensely studied for their potential use in the treatment of various neurological disorders and diseases, including depression, Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease. Despite considerable enthusiasm, mechanisms underlying the recognition of phenylethanolamines and ATD-mediated allosteric inhibition remain limited owing to a lack of structural information. Here we report that the GluN1 and GluN2B ATDs form a heterodimer and that phenylethanolamine binds at the interface between GluN1 and GluN2B, rather than within the GluN2B cleft. The crystal structure of the heterodimer formed between the GluN1b ATD from Xenopus laevis and the GluN2B ATD from Rattus norvegicus shows a highly distinct pattern of subunit arrangement that is different from the arrangements observed in homodimeric non-NMDA receptors and reveals the molecular determinants for phenylethanolamine binding. Restriction of domain movement in the bi-lobed structure of the GluN2B ATD, by engineering of an inter-subunit disulphide bond, markedly decreases sensitivity to ifenprodil, indicating that conformational freedom in the GluN2B ATD is essential for ifenprodil-mediated allosteric inhibition of NMDA receptors. These findings pave the way for improving the design of subtype-specific compounds with therapeutic value for neurological disorders and diseases.

Dataset Information

Specificity protein 4 functionally regulates the transcription of NMDA receptor subunits GluN1, GluN2A, and GluN2B.

Publications

Specificity protein 4 functionally regulates the transcription of NMDA receptor subunits GluN1, GluN2A, and GluN2B.

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