Two-Ligand Priming Mechanism for Potentiated Phosphoinositide Synthesis Is an Evolutionarily Conserved Feature of Sec14-Like Phosphatidylinositol and Phosphatidylcholine Exchange Proteins
May 2016
in “
Molecular biology of the cell
”
Studysummary This study found that the AtSfh1 protein in Arabidopsis is essential for phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate signaling crucial to polarized root hair growth, utilizing both phosphatidylinositol and phosphatidylcholine-binding activities.
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The study demonstrated that the two-ligand priming mechanism for potentiated phosphoinositide synthesis was evolutionarily conserved in Sec14-like phosphatidylinositol and phosphatidylcholine exchange proteins, including those in higher plants like Arabidopsis. This mechanism required both phosphatidylinositol (PtdIns) and phosphatidylcholine (PtdCho) binding to stimulate phosphoinositide synthesis, which was essential for processes such as polarized root hair growth. Mutant proteins with defects in either binding activity showed significant functional impairments, underscoring the necessity of both lipid-binding activities. The findings suggested that this mechanism played a crucial role in lipid signaling and membrane trafficking across different species, possibly due to convergent evolution or lateral gene transfer.
