Our previous studies have demonstrated that alterations in the initial translocation of the Prion protein (PrP) into the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) can lead to the development of neurodegenerative disease. During the past year, my group has made significant progress towards not only providing a molecular description of PrP translocation, but demonstrating how key steps during this process can be modulated to influence the generation of potentially neurotoxic forms of PrP. In particular, we have discovered that the most important and tightly regulated step in PrP biogenesis is the interaction between its signal sequence and the protein translocon. This step was found to be critically dependent on a four protein complex of previously unknown function (termed the TRAP complex), in the absence of which PrP does not enter the ER. Our finding that not all signal sequences require TRAP suggests that different substrates are recognized differently by the translocon, an idea further supported by recent studies analyzing crosslinking between signal sequences and translocon components. More significantly, we have now shown that alterations in the nature of this signal-translocon interaction have substantial consequences for protein localization and function. In the case of PrP, the cellular burden of potentially cytotoxic forms can be reduced (or enhanced) to change the susceptibility of cells to otherwise harmful insults. In the case of another protein, Calreticulin, we find that signal-translocon interactions are critical in allowing this protein to exist in two compartments (the ER lumen and the cytosol), where it serves independent functions. Thus, advances during the past year are beginning to illuminate a novel site of potential cellular regulation, the entry of secretory and membrane protein substrates into the mammalian secretory pathway, that impacts both normal physiology and disease progression. In parallel collaborative studies, we are using both structural and pharmacological approaches to understand components of the protein translocation machinery at the mammalian ER. In the structural approach, we are applying cryo-electron microscopy to visualize intact ribosome-translocon complexes. By preparing and analyzing translocon complexes lacking or containing specific components such as the TRAP complex, we are able to determine the relative positions of the various proteins comprising the translocon. In the pharmacologic approach, we are utilizing novel assays for translocation to identify, characterize, and study small molecule inhibitors of protein translocation. The goal of these studies is to develop probes that facilitate the modulation of protein translocation in vivo to understand the role of this process in normal and pathological cellular physiology.
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