The C2 domain protein Cts1 functions in the calcineurin signaling circuit during high-temperature stress responses in Cryptococcus neoformans

Eukaryot Cell. 2011 Dec;10(12):1714-23. doi: 10.1128/EC.05148-11. Epub 2011 Oct 14.

Abstract

Calcineurin is a conserved calcium/calmodulin-dependent serine/threonine-specific protein phosphatase that acts in cell stress responses. Calcineurin is essential for growth at 37°C and for virulence of the human fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans, but its substrates remain unknown. The C2 domain-containing, phospholipid-binding protein Cts1 was previously identified as a multicopy suppressor of a calcineurin mutation in C. neoformans. Here we further characterize the function of Cts1 and the links between Cts1 and calcineurin. GFP-Cts1 localizes to cytoplasmic puncta and colocalizes with the endosomal marker FM4-64. The cts1Δ mutant shows a distinct FM4-64 staining pattern, suggesting involvement of Cts1 in endocytic trafficking. In large budded cells, GFP-Cts1 localizes transiently at the mother bud neck, as a single ring that undergoes contraction. mCherry-Cts1 colocalizes with the GFP-tagged calcineurin catalytic subunit Cna1 at sites of mRNA processing at 37°C, suggesting that Cts1 and calcineurin function coordinately during thermal stress. GFP-Cts1 exhibits slower electrophoretic mobility for cells grown at 37°C than for cells grown at 24°C, and the shift to a higher molecular weight is more pronounced in the presence of the calcineurin inhibitor FK506. In vitro treatment with calf intestinal alkaline phosphatase (CIP) restores faster electrophoretic mobility to GFP-Cts1, suggesting that Cts1 is phosphorylated at 37°C and may be dephosphorylated in a calcineurin-dependent manner. mCherry-Cts1 also coimmunoprecipitates with GFP-Cna1, with greater complex formation at 37°C than at 24°C. Taken together, these findings support potential roles for Cts1 in endocytic trafficking, mRNA processing, and cytokinesis and suggest that Cts1 is a substrate of calcineurin during high-temperature stress responses.

Publication types

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

MeSH terms

  • Calcineurin / metabolism*
  • Calcineurin Inhibitors
  • Cryptococcus neoformans / growth & development
  • Cryptococcus neoformans / metabolism
  • Cryptococcus neoformans / physiology*
  • Cytokinesis
  • Cytoplasmic Granules / metabolism
  • Endocytosis
  • Endosomes / metabolism
  • Fungal Proteins / genetics
  • Fungal Proteins / metabolism*
  • Green Fluorescent Proteins / metabolism
  • Hot Temperature
  • Hyphae / growth & development
  • Hyphae / metabolism
  • Hyphae / physiology*
  • Phenotype
  • Phosphorylation
  • Protein Binding
  • Protein Structure, Tertiary
  • Protein Transport
  • RNA Processing, Post-Transcriptional
  • Recombinant Fusion Proteins / metabolism
  • Signal Transduction*
  • Stress, Physiological
  • Tacrolimus / pharmacology

Substances

  • Calcineurin Inhibitors
  • Fungal Proteins
  • Recombinant Fusion Proteins
  • Green Fluorescent Proteins
  • Calcineurin
  • Tacrolimus