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J. Biol. Chem., Vol. 280, Issue 12, 11120-11126, March 25, 2005
Stabilization of the Unliganded Glucocorticoid Receptor by TSG101*
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| ABSTRACT |
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| INTRODUCTION |
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GR is phosphorylated in the absence of hormone, and additional phosphorylation events occur in conjunction with agonist binding (58). We have developed antibodies that specifically recognize GR phosphorylated at major hormone-dependent sites, serine 203 (Ser-203) and serine 211 (Ser-211) (9). Using a battery of agonists and antagonists in combination with kinetic studies we demonstrated that phosphorylation of human GR is dynamic. In the absence of hormone only a small portion of the receptors are phosphorylated at Ser-211, and this fraction increases dramatically upon agonist binding, whereas under basal conditions a large receptor pool is phosphorylated at Ser-203, which further increases in the presence of hormone (9, 10). Our more recent findings suggest that in the absence of ligand GR is being constantly phosphorylated and dephosphorylated at Ser-203 and Ser-211.2 Thus, in the absence of ligand, different subpopulations of phosphorylated GR are present in vivo.
The hormone-activated GR regulates the transcription of target genes using specific receptor domains (e.g. AF-1 and AF-2) (12) that interact with distinct transcriptional regulatory factors. The unliganded GR uses the C-terminal domain to recruit chaperones that confer high affinity ligand binding to the receptor (13, 14). Conceivably, the unliganded receptor employs additional domains and cofactors to control its localization or stability. To discover cofactors that interact with the N-terminal region of GR, we performed a yeast two-hybrid screen using this domain as bait and identified the tumor susceptibility gene 101 (TSG101) (15). TSG101 was originally identified in a screen for tumor suppressors (16). It has been implicated in the regulation of cellular proliferation; mouse homozygous tsg101/ embryos die during early embryogenesis, and TSG101-deficient embryos display decreased rates of proliferation, which correlate with the accumulation of p53 and p21 (17). TSG101 transcripts with different coding regions, attributed to alternative splicing, have been found in different carcinomas (18, 19).
The predicted TSG101 protein structure reveals a C-terminal coiled coil domain, a central proline-rich segment, and an N-terminal ubiquitin-conjugating E2 variant (UEV) domain that is catalytically inactive, because it lacks a cysteine residue required for thioester bond formation with ubiquitin. The coiled coil domain of TSG101 interacts with GR AF-1, and the overexpression of TSG101 inhibits GR transcriptional enhancement (15). Interestingly, the inhibitory effect of TSG101 on transcriptional activity extends to other members of the nuclear hormone receptor family (20, 21). In the case of the androgen receptor, inhibition of transcriptional activation was proposed to result from an interaction of TSG101 with the coactivator p300 (20). Paradoxically for a transcriptional regulatory factor, the subcellular location of the TSG101 protein is largely non-nuclear, suggesting that TSG101 performs additional functions outside the nucleus (22).
Because TSG101 is homologous to ubiquitin-conjugating (E2) enzymes, but is catalytically inactive, it has been suggested that TSG101 functions as a dominant negative regulator of ubiquitination (23, 24). In support of this idea, recent studies reported the existence of a regulatory loop between TSG101 and MDM2, an E3 ubiquitin ligase; the TSG101 UEV domain binds MDM2 and prevents polyubiquitination and degradation of MDM2, which in turn leads to down-regulation of p53, an MDM2 target (25). Thus, TSG101 affects ubiquitin-dependent proteolysis (26).
TSG101 has also been implicated in the sorting and/or trafficking of ubiquitinated proteins. TSG101 interacts with hVSP28, a protein involved in vesicular trafficking (27) and appears to be recruited to early endosomes (28). In addition, TSG101, through its N-terminal UEV domain, binds the HIV gag protein and leads to viral release (29, 30).
Although it is well established that TSG101 interacts with the GR N terminus and reduces receptor transcriptional activation when overexpressed, it is unclear whether this is the only role TSG101 plays in modulating GR function. TSG101 is localized outside the nucleus and functions, in part, as a regulator of protein stability. Given that GR is confined to the cytoplasm in the absence of hormone in a hypophosphorylated state, we examined whether GR phosphorylation could modulate GR-TSG101 interaction and whether TSG101 affects GR stability in the absence of ligand.
| MATERIALS AND METHODS |
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-galactosidase and is used as a marker for transfection efficiency. The untagged human TSG101 as well as myc-tagged human TSG101 expression vectors have been described previously (16, 25).
Modified Yeast Two-hybrid AssayThe yeast two-hybrid assay was performed as described previously (15). The yeast two-hybrid "bait" proteins, 1) rat GR107237 wild type, 2) rat GR107237 30IIB, and 3) rat GR107237 S224A/S232A are in pJG4/5, which contains the GAL110 promoter and expresses HA-tagged, B42 activation domain fusion proteins when grown in the presence of galactose. The TSG101 "prey" protein is constitutively expressed from the alcohol dehydrogenase promoter as a LexA DNA binding domain fusion protein to TSG101 residues 183381 in pEG202. Bait and prey vectors, along with a
-galactosidase reporter gene with a single LexA-operator (pJK103), were transformed into yeast strain EGY 188. For quantitative liquid
-galactosidase assays, yeast were grown in selective liquid medium containing 2% glucose for 12 h, pelleted, washed once in H2O, normalized according to cell number, and resuspended to an optical density (A600) of 0.15 in 2% galactose, 1% raffinose medium.
-Galactosidase assays were performed 12 h later as described previously (31).
Cell Culture and Transient TransfectionsHeLa cells were cultured in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's Medium (DMEM) (Cellgro) supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum (FBS; HyClone), 2 mM L-glutamine (Cellgro), and 10 units/ml each penicillin and streptomycin (Cellgro). Cells were seeded on 6-well plates at a density of 1.5 x 105 using antibiotic- and phenol red-free DMEM supplemented with 10% charcoal-stripped FBS and 2 mM L-glutamine 24 h prior to the transfection. Transfections were performed in phenol red-free DMEM without serum using the cationic polymer Exgen 500 (MBI Fermentas) according to manufacturer's recommendation. Total amount of DNA transfected is held constant in each transfection using an equivalent empty vector. Four hours post-transfection, an equal volume of phenol red-free DMEM supplemented with 20% charcoal stripped-FBS and 4 mM L-glutamine was added to the transfection medium. Cells were treated with 100 nM dexamethasone or ethanol vehicle for 1618 h, and whole cell lysates were prepared. For receptor half-life experiments, HeLa cells were transfected, and 18-h post transfection the cells were treated with 1 µM cycloheximide (Sigma) for 2, 4, and 8 h, and whole cell lysates were prepared.
ImmunoprecipitationFor immunoprecipitation of transfected GR, HeLa cells (10-cm dish) expressing the indicated receptor derivative or vector alone were lysed in 200 µl of 50 mM Tris, pH 7.4, 150 mM NaCl, 1% Triton X-100, 0.1% SDS, and protease inhibitor mixture (Roche Applied Science). The supernatant was incubated at 4 °C with 10 µg of HA monoclonal antibody for 5 h. A 50% slurry of protein A-Sepharose beads (20 µl) were added to the reaction for an additional 2 h. The supernatant was removed, and beads were washed four times in 0.5x lysis buffer. The pelleted beads were resuspended in 1x SDS sample buffer and boiled for 5 min prior to loading onto a gel. For immunoprecipitation of endogenous GR, a 10-cm dish of HeLa cells that was 90% confluent was lysed in 500 µl of 50 mM Tris, pH 7.4, 150 mM NaCl, 1% Triton X-100, and protease inhibitors. Protein A-Sepharose beads (100 µl) were coupled to GR Ser(P)-203 antibody, using the cross-linker dimethyl pimelimidate as per the manufactures instructions (Pierce). For the control reaction, beads were coupled to a nonspecific rabbit polyclonal IgG antibody. The beads were added to the lysates and incubated overnight at 4 °C. The protein concentration in the unbound fraction from the supernatant was determined using the Bio-Rad protein assay kit, and equal amounts of protein were loaded on the gel. The bound fraction in the beads was washed three times in 0.5x lysis buffer and once with PBS. The beads were resuspended in 50 µl of 1x SDS sample buffer, boiled, and cooled, and a portion of the sample was run on a gel.
RNA InterferenceA small interfering RNA (siRNA) duplex specific for the human TSG101 was designed as described previously (32) and was synthesized by Dharmacon. The nonspecific siRNA duplex used as a negative control targets luciferase (5'-CUU ACG CUG AGU ACU UCG AdTdT; Dharmacon). siRNA transfections were carried out by seeding HeLa cells in 6-well plates at a density of 1.5 x 105 in antibiotic- and phenol red-free DMEM supplemented with 10% charcoal stripped-FBS and 2 mM L-glutamine 24 h prior to the transfection. Transfections were performed using Oligofectamine reagent (Invitrogen) according to the manufacturer's recommendations. 300 pmol of siRNA duplexes were transfected in Opti-MEM with pCMV-hGR wild type or the indicated phosphorylation site derivatives (0.25 µg), along with an equal amount of pCMV-LacZ expression vector as an internal control for transfection efficiency. Four hours post-transfection, an equal volume of phenol red-free DMEM supplemented with 20% charcoal stripped-FBS and 4 mM L-glutamine was added to the transfection medium. Cell lysates were typically analyzed 20 h post-transfection. For the proteasome inhibitor treatment, the medium was changed 16 h post-transfection and replaced with phenol red-free DMEM, 10% charcoal stripped-FBS, 2 mM glutamine, and either 2 µM MG132 (Calbiochem) in Me2SO or Me2SO alone. Whole cell lysates were prepared 4 h post-treatment.
Western Blot AnalysisCells were typically lysed directly on the plate in 100 µl of 1x reporter lysis buffer (Promega). The whole cell extract was normalized for total protein using the Bio-Rad protein assay kit and boiled for 5 min in SDS sample buffer. Equal amounts of protein were fractionated by 9% SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Gel-fractionated proteins were then transferred to Immobilon membrane (Millipore) and probed with an anti-HA mouse monoclonal antibody (12CA5, Roche Applied Science), anti-TSG101 mouse monoclonal antibody (A410, Abcam), anti-
-galactosidase rabbit polyclonal antibody (CR7001RP1, Cortex Biochem), and an anti-tubulin mouse monoclonal antibody (TU27, Covance). GR phosphorylation site-specific antisera to Ser(P)-203 and Ser(P)-211 as well as the antibody N499 to total GR have been described previously (7). The blots were developed using horseradish peroxidase-coupled goat anti-rabbit or anti-mouse antibodies and the ECL substrate as per the manufacturer's instructions (Amersham Biosciences). The same membrane was used for each experiment. After probing with a particular antibody, membranes were stripped in 62.5 mM Tris, pH 8.6, 100 mM
-mercaptoethanol, and 2% SDS at 50 °C for 10 min twice, blocked for 2 h, and reprobed with the next antibody. Quantitative analysis of immunoblots was performed using the NIH Image software package (version 1.62).
| RESULTS |
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To further ensure that this GR phosphorylation site mutant reflects the non-phosphorylated state, wild type GR or GR S203A/S211A derivatives were expressed in HeLa cells in the absence of hormone and immunoprecipitated from lysates using the common HA-epitope resident on each protein (Fig. 2D). The immunoprecipitates were analyzed by immunoblotting with HA and the GR phospho-specific antisera. As expected, Ser(P)-203 antibody recognized the wild type GR but did not recognize the GR S203A/S211A mutant, despite the fact that the HA antibody immunoprecipitated an equivalent amount of GR from each derivative (Fig. 2D). The immunoprecipitation results confirm that the GR S203A/S211A mutation is characteristic of the non-phosphorylated form of the receptor.
TSG101 Overexpression Stabilizes the Hypophosphorylated Form of GRTSG101 represses the hormone-dependent GR transcriptional activity under conditions when GR is hyperphosphorylated (9, 15). Given that TSG101 is mainly localized in the cytoplasm (22) and appears to associate more avidly with the GR serine-to-alanine mutant that mimics the hypophosphorylated form of the receptor (Fig. 1), we hypothesized that TSG101 might also affect GR in the cytoplasm and regulate receptor steady state levels, as has been shown for other TSG101-interacting proteins such as MDM2 and p21 (25, 40).
GR has been previously shown to undergo ligand-dependent down-regulation to limit the hormone response (11). However, the mechanisms that preserve the level of the unliganded GR protein are not well understood. To assess the effect of TSG101 on GR protein levels, HeLa cells were transiently transfected with expression vectors for an HA-tagged wild type human GR (CMV-GR wt), or its phosphorylation-deficient or mimetic derivatives (CMV-GR S203A/S211A or CMV-GR S203E/S211E), along with either an untagged version of TSG101 or an empty expression vector. Cells also received a
-galactosidase expression vector (CMV-LacZ) as an internal control for transfection efficiency, to normalize GR protein levels to that of
-galactosidase. Cells were treated with vehicle or with 100 nM dexamethasone, and the steady state levels of GR and
-galactosidase were determined by immunoblot analysis. Both GR wild type (Fig. 3A, lanes 1 and 3) and GR S203E/S211E (Fig. 3A, lanes 9 and 11) protein levels are comparable in the absence or in the presence of TSG101 overexpression and display the characteristic GR down-regulation in the presence of dexamethasone. In contrast, GR S203A/S211A shows a significant increase in the steady state GR protein level when TSG101 is overexpressed, most notably in the absence of ligand (Fig. 3A, lanes 5 and 7).
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-galactosidase control in the absence of hormone from four independent experiments. Little change in protein levels is noted for the wild type GR, the double phospho-mimetic mutant GR S203E/S211E or the single GR S211A substitution regardless of TSG101 level, whereas a small increase in steady state level was observed for the GR S203A mutant in the presence of overexpressed TSG101 (Fig. 3B). Importantly, a significant 2.9 ± 0.5-fold increase in the steady state level of the GR S203A/S211A derivative in response to TSG101 was observed (Fig. 3B). We conclude that the increase in GR protein level most likely results from stabilization of the non-phosphorylated form of the receptor by TSG101.
To exclude the possibility that the lack of stabilization in wild type GR or certain phosphorylation site mutants results from differences in TSG101 expression, transfections were carried out as before but using a c-myc tagged form of TSG101 (25). This derivative is larger than the native TSG101 and therefore can be distinguished from the endogenous protein. Equal amounts of total protein were loaded on SDS-PAGE, and GR,
-galactosidase, and both endogenous and c-myc tagged forms of TSG101 were analyzed by immunoblotting (Fig. 3C). Similar levels of the myc-TSG101 protein were coexpressed with each GR derivative, and as before, only GR S203A/S211A protein levels were substantially increased in the presence of myc-TSG101 (Fig. 3C).
Cellular Depletion of TSG101 Protein Results in Decreased GR Protein LevelsHaving demonstrated that the overexpression of TSG101 increases GR stability, we next asked whether a decrease in TSG101 concentration would reduce GR stability. To this end, we depleted HeLa cells of endogenous TSG101 using siRNA and determined the level of GR protein in the absence of ligand. HeLa cells were cotransfected with either a specific TSG101 siRNA duplex or a nonspecific luciferase siRNA duplex, along with expression vectors for HA-tagged GR derivatives and
-galactosidase. As assessed by immunoblotting, a significant decrease in TSG101 protein level is observed in the presence of TSG101 siRNA (Fig. 4A, lanes 1 and 2). When TSG101 expression is reduced, steady state levels of wild type GR, GR S203A, GR S211A, and GR S203E/S211E are largely unaffected (Fig. 4A). Importantly, TSG101 siRNA results in a significant decrease in the steady state protein level of the non-phosphorylated GR S203A/S211A mutant (Fig. 4A, lanes 3 and 4). Quantitation of three independent experiments indicate that the wild type GR levels were reduced on average by 20%, whereas the non-phosphorylatable form of GR was consistently reduced by >90% when TSG101 was depleted. A slight reduction of endogenous GR is also observed when TSG101 is depleted (Fig. 4B, lanes 1114), and a small increase in endogenous GR is seen when TSG101 is overexpressed (Fig. 4B, lanes 14 and 15), consistent with a small fraction of non-phosphorylated GR in HeLa cells. Taken together, these results suggest that TSG101 preferentially stabilizes the non-phosphorylated form of the receptor in the absence of ligand.
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-galactosidase. Cells were then treated with either MG132 or the Me2SO vehicle for 4 h. TSG101 levels were reduced in the presence of the siRNA for TSG101 whether the cells are treated with MG132 or not (Fig. 5, second panel, lanes 1, 2, and 4). However, in the presence of MG132 the TSG101-dependent reduction in the steady state level GR was partially suppressed (Fig. 5, top panel, lanes 2 and 4). This effect is not a reflection of variation in transfection efficiency or loading as indicated by level of
-galactosidase and tubulin, respectively (Fig. 5, bottom two panels).
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TSG101 Overexpression Affects Receptor Half-lifeBecause TSG101 stabilizes the non-phosphorylated form of GR by preventing its proteasomal degradation, we next assessed whether the half-life of GR S203A/S211A was affected by TSG101. To evaluate the effect of TSG101 on receptor protein half-life, we determined the level of GR in cells treated with the protein synthesis inhibitor cycloheximide in the absence and presence of overexpressed TSG101 (Fig. 6A). As expected, we found an
3-fold increase in steady state levels of GR S203A/S211A in the presence of TSG101 prior to cycloheximide treatment. In the absence of overexpressed TSG101, the half-life of transfected GR was 2.5 h (Fig. 6B). When TSG101 was overexpressed, the GR half-life increased to 3.5 h (Fig. 6B), suggesting that TSG101 extends GR half-life, consistent with the protective effect of TSG101 that renders GR resistant to degradation.
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| DISCUSSION |
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Our findings may also be relevant to the repressive effect of TSG101 on GR transcriptional activity. TSG101 has been shown to interact with p300, which in principle could affect receptor transcriptional regulatory properties. Alternatively, changes in receptor ubiquitination status as a result of TSG101 binding might indirectly affect receptor transcriptional activity. Increasing evidence suggests a link between ubiquitination and transcriptional regulation. For example, inhibition of the proteasome affects transcriptional activation by androgen receptor (44), GR (11, 45), and estrogen receptor (46). Burgdorf et al. (47) recently reported that overexpression of TSG101 led to the accumulation of a transcriptionally active monoubiquitinated form of AR. They proposed that TSG101 binds the monoubiquitinated receptor and locks it in that state until transcription starts in the nucleus, or alternatively, that TSG101 binds the monoubiquitinated receptor in the cytoplasm and protects it from degradation. It is also possible that TSG101 would recognize the hypophosphorylated form of GR not engaged in transcription and would protect it from degradation. It will be interesting to determine the modifications that distinguish between such pools.
It is known that cellular sensitivity to glucocorticoids depends on the number of GRs in the cell (42, 4851). Although GR mRNA levels differ among tissues because of cell type-specific differences in promoter activity or mRNA stability, our findings demonstrate that steady state protein levels of the unliganded receptor can also be modulated post-transcriptionally by TSG101. This could provide an additional means of controlling receptor levels in vivo. It will be important to assess GR and TSG101 protein levels in normal tissues and during pathophysiological processes. For instance, GR protein levels are reduced in prostate cancer (52), and as GR activation is typically anti-proliferative, it has been proposed that the loss of GR would lift a restriction on cell growth and promote hyperplasia and oncogenesis. It is interesting to note that TSG101 transcripts also show frequent deletions within the coding regions in prostate cancer (19). This may contribute to a reduction of GR levels, a hypothesis we are currently testing.
In addition, given that that HIV binds TSG101 and utilizes it for viral budding, we would anticipate that the steady state GR levels would be reduced in HIV-infected macrophages or T-cells producing virus, by virtue of HIV sequestering TSG101 away from GR, thereby rendering TSG101 rate-limiting in the cell. Indeed, a chronically HIV-infected T-cell line contains fewer GRs and is resistant to glucocorticoid-induced cell death (53, 54). This may represent a strategy used by the virus to circumvent host defense mechanisms controlled by GR, such as expression of toll-like receptors (55). Whether this reduction in GR number is a function of TSG101 remains to be explored.
In summary, our results suggest that TSG101 associates with GR and stabilizes the unliganded hypophosphorylated receptor by impeding its degradation by the proteasome and prolonging its half-life. We conclude that it is the balance between TSG101 and GR phosphorylation that helps determine the intracellular concentration of GR.
| FOOTNOTES |
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The on-line version of this article (available at http://www.jbc.org) contains supplemental Fig. 1. ![]()
To whom correspondence should be addressed: Dept. of Microbiology, NYU School of Medicine, 550 First Ave., New York, NY 10016. Tel.: 212-263-7662; Fax: 212-263-8276; E-mail: garabm01{at}med.nyu.edu.
1 The abbreviations used are: GR, glucocorticoid receptor; hGR, human GR; AF, activation function; HA, hemagglutinin; Luc, luciferase; TSG101, tumor susceptibility gene 101; siRNA, small interfering RNA; E2, ubiquitin carrier protein; E3, ubiquitin-protein isopeptide ligase; HIV, human immunodeficiency virus; DMEM, Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium; FBS, fetal bovine serum. ![]()
2 Z. Wang and M. J. Garabedian, unpublished observation. ![]()
| ACKNOWLEDGMENTS |
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