Potassium-chloride cotransporter 3 interacts with Vav2 to synchronize the cell volume decrease response with cell protrusion dynamics

PLoS One. 2013 May 28;8(5):e65294. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0065294. Print 2013.

Abstract

Loss-of-function of the potassium-chloride cotransporter 3 (KCC3) causes hereditary motor and sensory neuropathy with agenesis of the corpus callosum (HMSN/ACC), a severe neurodegenerative disease associated with defective midline crossing of commissural axons in the brain. Conversely, KCC3 over-expression in breast, ovarian and cervical cancer is associated with enhanced tumor cell malignancy and invasiveness. We identified a highly conserved proline-rich sequence within the C-terminus of the cotransporter which when mutated leads to loss of the KCC3-dependent regulatory volume decrease (RVD) response in Xenopus Laevis oocytes. Using SH3 domain arrays, we found that this poly-proline motif is a binding site for SH3-domain containing proteins in vitro. This approach identified the guanine nucleotide exchange factor (GEF) Vav2 as a candidate partner for KCC3. KCC3/Vav2 physical interaction was confirmed using GST-pull down assays and immuno-based experiments. In cultured cervical cancer cells, KCC3 co-localized with the active form of Vav2 in swelling-induced actin-rich protruding sites and within lamellipodia of spreading and migrating cells. These data provide evidence of a molecular and functional link between the potassium-chloride co-transporters and the Rho GTPase-dependent actin remodeling machinery in RVD, cell spreading and cell protrusion dynamics, thus providing new insights into KCC3's involvement in cancer cell malignancy and in corpus callosum agenesis in HMSN/ACC.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Actins / metabolism
  • Amino Acid Motifs
  • Amino Acid Sequence
  • Animals
  • Cell Size* / drug effects
  • Cell Surface Extensions / drug effects
  • Cell Surface Extensions / metabolism*
  • Conserved Sequence
  • HeLa Cells
  • Humans
  • Hypotonic Solutions / pharmacology
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Mutant Proteins / metabolism
  • Oocytes / cytology*
  • Oocytes / drug effects
  • Oocytes / metabolism
  • Protein Binding / drug effects
  • Protein Structure, Tertiary
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-vav / metabolism*
  • Symporters / chemistry
  • Symporters / metabolism*
  • Xenopus laevis

Substances

  • Actins
  • Hypotonic Solutions
  • Mutant Proteins
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-vav
  • Symporters
  • VAV2 protein, human