The Notch intracellular domain is ubiquitinated and negatively regulated by the mammalian Sel-10 homolog

J Biol Chem. 2001 Sep 21;276(38):35847-53. doi: 10.1074/jbc.M103992200. Epub 2001 Jul 18.

Abstract

The Caenorhabditis elegans sel-10 protein is structurally similar to E3 ubiquitin ligases and is a negative regulator of Notch (lin-12) and presenilin signaling. In this report, we characterize the mammalian Sel-10 homolog (mSel-10) and analyze its effects on Notch signaling. We find that mSel-10 localizes to the cell nucleus, and that it physically interacts with the Notch 1 intracellular domain (IC) and reduces Notch 1 IC-mediated activation of the HES 1 promoter. Notch 1 IC is ubiquitinated by mSel-10, and ubiquitination requires the presence of the most carboxyl-terminal region of the Notch IC, including the PEST domain. In the presence of the proteasome inhibitor MG132, the amount of Notch 1 IC and its level of ubiquitination are increased. Interestingly, this accumulation of Notch 1 IC in the presence of MG132 is accompanied by decreased activation of the HES 1 promoter, suggesting that ubiquitinated Notch 1 IC is a less potent transactivator. Finally, we show that mSel-10 itself is ubiquitinated and degraded by the proteasome. In conclusion, these data reveal the importance of ubiquitination and proteasome-mediated degradation for the activity and turnover of Notch ICs, and demonstrate that mSel-10 plays a key role in this process.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Amino Acid Sequence
  • Animals
  • COS Cells
  • Caenorhabditis elegans / metabolism
  • Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins*
  • Cell Cycle Proteins / chemistry
  • Cell Cycle Proteins / metabolism*
  • Cell Nucleus / metabolism
  • DNA-Binding Proteins
  • Fungal Proteins / metabolism
  • Helminth Proteins / chemistry
  • Helminth Proteins / metabolism*
  • Membrane Proteins / chemistry
  • Membrane Proteins / metabolism*
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Promoter Regions, Genetic
  • Receptors, Notch
  • Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins*
  • Sequence Homology, Amino Acid
  • Transcription Factors / metabolism
  • Ubiquitins / metabolism*

Substances

  • Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins
  • Cell Cycle Proteins
  • DNA-Binding Proteins
  • Fungal Proteins
  • GAL4 protein, S cerevisiae
  • Helminth Proteins
  • Membrane Proteins
  • Receptors, Notch
  • SEL-10 protein, C elegans
  • Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins
  • Transcription Factors
  • Ubiquitins