Super-resolution 3D tomography of interactions and competition in the nuclear pore complex

Nat Struct Mol Biol. 2016 Mar;23(3):239-47. doi: 10.1038/nsmb.3174. Epub 2016 Feb 15.

Abstract

A selective barrier formed by intrinsically disordered Phe-Gly (FG) nucleoporins (Nups) allows transport receptor (TR)-facilitated translocation of signal-dependent cargos through the nuclear pore complexes (NPCs) of eukaryotic cells. However, the configuration of the FG-Nup barrier and its interactions with multiple TRs in native NPCs remain obscure. Here, we mapped the interaction sites of various TRs or FG segments within the FG-Nup barrier by using high-speed super-resolution microscopy and used these sites to reconstruct the three-dimensional tomography of the native barrier in the NPC. We found that each TR possesses a unique interaction zone within the FG-Nup barrier and that two major TRs, importin β1 and Crm1, outcompete other TRs in binding FG Nups. Moreover, TRs may alter the tomography of the FG-Nup barrier and affect one another's pathways under circumstances of heavy competition.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

  • HeLa Cells
  • Humans
  • Imaging, Three-Dimensional
  • Nuclear Pore / chemistry*
  • Nuclear Pore / metabolism*
  • Nuclear Pore Complex Proteins / chemistry
  • Nuclear Pore Complex Proteins / metabolism
  • Nucleocytoplasmic Transport Proteins / chemistry
  • Nucleocytoplasmic Transport Proteins / metabolism
  • Protein Interaction Mapping
  • Tomography / methods*

Substances

  • Nuclear Pore Complex Proteins
  • Nucleocytoplasmic Transport Proteins