Phase separation of the nuclear pore complex facilitates selective nuclear transport to regulate plant defense against pathogen and pest invasion

The nuclear pore complex(NPC),the sole exchange channel between the nucleus and cytoplasm,is composed of several subcomplexes,among which the central barrier determines the permeability/selectivity of the NPC to dominate the nucleocytoplasmic trafficking essential for many important signaling events in yeast and mammals.How plant NPC central barrier controls selective transport is a crucial question remaining to be elucidated.In this study,we uncovered that phase separation of the central barrier is critical for the permeability and selectivity of plant NPC in the regulation of various biotic stresses.Phenotypic assays of nup62 mutants and complementary lines showed that NUP62 positively regulates plant defense against Botrytis cinerea,one of the world’s most disastrous plant pathogens.Furthermore,in vivo imaging and in vitro biochemical evidence revealed that plant NPC central barrier undergoes phase separation to regulate selective nucleocytoplasmic transport of immune regulators,as exemplified by MPK3,essential for plant resistance to B.cinerea.Moreover,genetic analysis demonstrated that NPC phase separation plays an important role in plant defense against fungal and bacterial infection as well as insect attack.These findings reveal that phase separation of the NPC central barrier serves as an important mechanism to mediate nucleocytoplasmic transport of immune regulators and activate plant defense against a broad range of biotic stresses.

The Nucleocytoplasmic Transport of Viral Proteins

Molecules can enter the nucleus by passive diffusion or active transport mechanisms, depending on their size. Small molecules up to size of 50-60 kDa or less than 10 nm in diameter can diffuse passively through the nuclear pore complex （NPC）, while most proteins are transported by energy driven transport mechanisms Active transport of viral proteins is mediated by nuclear localization signals （NLS）, which were first identified in Simian Virus 40 large T antigen and had subsequently been identified in a large number of viral they contain short stretches of lysine or arginine residues. These signals are recognized proteins. Usually by the importin super-family （importin α and β） proteins that mediate the transport across the nuclear envelope through Ran-GTP In contrast, only one class of the leucine-rich nuclear export signal （NES） on viral proteins is known at present. Chromosome region maintenance 1 （CRM1） protein mediates nuclear export of hundreds of viral proteins through the recognition of the leucine-rich NES.

Post-translational O-GlcNAcylation is essential for nuclear pore integrity and maintenance of the pore selectivity filter

O-glycosylation of the nuclear pore complex(NPC)by O-linked N-acetylglucosamine(O-GlcNAc)is conserved within metazoans.Many nucleoporins(Nups)comprising the NPC are constitutively O-GlcNAcylated,but the functional role of this modification remains enigmatic.Weshowthat loss ofO-GlcNAc,induced by either inhibition ofO-GlcNAc transferase(OGT)or deletion of the gene encoding OGT,leads to decreased cellular levels of a number of natively O-GlcNAcylated Nups.Loss of O-GlcNAc enables increased ubiquitination of these Nups and their increased proteasomal degradation.The decreased half-life of these deglycosylated Nups manifests in their gradual loss from the NPC and a downstream malfunction of the nuclear pore selective permeability barrier in both dividing and post-mitotic cells.These findings define a critical role of O-GlcNAc modification of the NPC in maintaining its composition and the function of the selectivity filter.The results implicate NPC glycosylation as a regulator of NPC function and reveal the role of conserved glycosylation of the NPC among metazoans.

8 Å structure of the outer rings of the Xenopus laevis nuclear pore complex obtained by cryo-EM and AI

The nuclear pore complex(NPC),one of the largest protein complexes in eukaryotes,serves as a physical gate to regulate nucleocytoplasmic transport.Here,we determined the 8Åresolution cryo-electron microscopic(cryo-EM)structure of the outer rings containing nuclear ring(NR)and cytoplasmic ring(CR)from the Xenopus laevis NPC,with local resolutions reaching 4.9Å.With the aid of AlphaFold2,we managed to build a pseudoatomic model of the outer rings,including the Y complexes and flanking components.In this most comprehensive and accurate model of outer rings to date,the almost complete Y complex structure exhibits much tighter interaction in the hub region.In addition to two copies of Y complexes,each asymmetric subunit in CR contains five copies of Nup358,two copies of the Nup214 complex,two copies of Nup205 and one copy of newly identified Nup93,while that in NR contains one copy of Nup205,one copy of ELYS and one copy of Nup93.These in-depth structural features represent a great advance in understanding the assembly of NPCs.

DNA plasticity and damage in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

The pathophysiology of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis （ALS） is particularly challenging due to the heteroge- neity of its clinical presentation and the diversity of cellular, molecular and genetic peculiarities involved. Molecular insights unveiled several novel genetic factors to be inherent in both familial and sporadic dis- ease entities, whose characterizations in terms of phenotype prediction, pathophysiological impact and putative prognostic value are a topic of current researches. However, apart from genetically well-defined high-confidence and other susceptibility loci, the role of DNA damage and repair strategies of the genome as a whole, either elicited as a direct consequence of the underlying genetic mutation or seen as an autono- mous parameter, in the initiation and progression of ALS, and the different cues involved in either process are still incompletely understood. This mini review summarizes current knowledge on DNA alterations and counteracting DNA repair strategies in ALS pathology and discusses the putative role of unconventional DNA entities including transposable elements and extrachromosomal circular DNA in the disease process. Focus is set on SODl-related pathophysiology, with extension to FUS, TDP-43 and C90RF72 mutations. Advancing our knowledge in the field will contribute to an improved understanding of this relentless dis- ease, for which therapeutic options others than symptomatic approaches are almost unavailable.

Transport receptor occupancy in nuclear pore complex mimics

Nuclear pore complexes(NPCs)regulate all molecular transport between the nucleus and the cytoplasm in eukaryotic cells.Intrinsically disordered Phe-Gly nucleoporins(FG-Nups)line the central conduit of NPCs to impart a selective barrier where large proteins are excluded unless bound to a transport receptor(karyopherin;Kap).Here,we assess“Kap-centric”NPC models,which postulate that Kaps participate in establishing the selective barrier.We combine biomimetic nanopores,formed by tethering Nsp1 to the inner wall of a solid-state nanopore,with coarse-grained modeling to show that yeast Kap95 exhibits two populations in Nsp1-coated pores:one population that is transported across the pore in milliseconds,and a second population that is stably assembled within the FG mesh of the pore.Ionic current measurements show a conductance decrease for increasing Kap concentrations and noise data indicate an increase in rigidity of the FG-mesh.Modeling reveals an accumulation of Kap95 near the pore wall,yielding a conductance decrease.We find that Kaps only mildly affect the conformation of the Nsp1 mesh and that,even at high concentrations,Kaps only bind at most 8%of the FG-motifs in the nanopore,indicating that Kap95 occupancy is limited by steric constraints rather than by depletion of available FG-motifs.Our data provide an alternative explanation of the origin of bimodal NPC binding of Kaps,where a stable population of Kaps binds avidly to the NPC periphery,while fast transport proceeds via a central FG-rich channel through lower affinity interactions between Kaps and the cohesive domains of Nsp1.

Drug Transport Microdevice Mimicking an Idealized Nanoscale Bio-molecular Motor

Molecular motors are nature＇s nano-devices and the essential agents of movement that are an integral part of many living organisms. The supramolecular motor, called Nuclear Pore Complex （NPC）, controls the transport of all cellular material be- tween the cytoplasm and the nucleus that occurs naturally in biological cells of many organisms. In order to understand the design characteristics of the NPC, we developed a microdevice for drug/fluidic transport mimicking the coarse-grained repre- sentation of the NPC geometry through computational fluid dynamic analysis and optimization. Specifically, the role of the central plug in active fluidic/particle transport and passive transport （without central plug） was investigated. Results of flow rate, pressure and velocity profiles obtained from the models indicate that the central plug plays a major role in transport through this biomolecular machine. The results ofthis investigation show that fluidic transport and flow passages are important factors in designing NPC based nano- and micro-devices for drug delivery.

Nucleoporin 160 Regulates Flowering through Anchoring HOS1 for Destabilizing CO in Arabidopsis

Nuclear pore complexes(NPCs),which comprise multiple copies of nucleoporins(Nups),are large protein assemblies embedded in the nuclear envelope connecting the nucleus and cytoplasm.Although it has been known that Nups affect flowering in Arabidopsis,the underlying mechanisms are poorly understood.Here,we show that loss of function of Nucleoporin 160(Nup160)leads to increased abundance of CONSTANS(CO)protein and the resulting upregulation of FLOWERING LOCUS T(FT)specifically in the morning.We demonstrate that Nup160 regulates CO protein stability through affecting NPC localization of an E3-ubiquitin ligase,HIGH EXPRESSION OF OSMOTICALLY RESPONSIVE GENES1(HOS1),which destabilizes CO protein in the morning period.Taken together,these results provide a mechanistic understanding of Nup function in the transition from vegetative to reproductive growth,suggesting that deposition of HOS1 at NPCs by Nup160 is essential for preventing precocious flowering in response to photoperiod in Arabidopsis.

Nucleo-cytoplasmic transport defects and protein aggregates in neurodegeneration

In the ongoing process of uncovering molecular abnormalities in neurodegenerative diseases characterized by toxic protein aggregates,nucleo-cytoplasmic transport defects have an emerging role.Several pieces of evidence suggest a link between neuronal protein inclusions and nuclear pore complex(NPC)damage.These processes lead to oxidative stress,inefficient transcription,and aberrant DNAVRNA maintenance.The clinical and neuropathological spectrum of NPC defects is broad,ranging from physiological aging to a suite of neurodegenerative diseases.A better understanding of the shared pathways among these conditions may represent a significant step toward dissecting their underlying molecular mechanisms,opening the way to a real possibility of identifying common therapeutic targets.

Calcium regulation of nucleocytoplasmic transport

Bidirectional trafficking of macromolecules between the cytoplasm and the nucleus is mediated by the nuclear pore complexes(NPCs)embedded in the nuclear envelope(NE)of eukaryotic cell.The NPC functions as the sole pathway to allow for the passive diffusion of small molecules and the facilitated translocation of larger molecules.Evidence shows that these two transport modes and the conformation of NPC can be regulated by calcium stored in the lumen of nuclear envelope and endoplasmic reticulum.However,the mechanism of calcium regulation remains poorly understood.In this review,we integrate data on the observations of calciumregulated structure and function of the NPC over the past years.Furthermore,we highlight challenges in the measurements of dynamic conformational changes and transient transport kinetics in the NPC.Finally,an innovative imaging approach,single-molecule superresolution fluorescence microscopy,is introduced and expected to provide more insights into the mechanism of calcium-regulated nucleocytoplasmic transport.

Nucleoporin 35 regulates cardiomyocyte pH homeostasis by controlling Na^(+)-H^(+)exchanger-1 expression

The mammalian nuclear pore complex is comprised of∼30 different nucleoporins(Nups).It governs the nuclear import of gene expression modulators and the export of mRNAs.In cardiomyocytes,Na1-H1 exchanger-1(NHE1)is an integral membrane protein that exclusively regulates intracellular pH(pHi)by exchanging one intracellular H1 for one extracellular Na1.However,the role of Nups in cardiac NHE1 expression remains unknown.We herein report that Nup35 regulates cardiomyocyte NHE1 expression by controlling the nucleo-cytoplasmic trafficking of nhe1 mRNA.The N-terminal domain of Nup35 determines nhe1 mRNA nuclear export by targeting the 5′-UTR(2412 to2213 nt)of nhe1mRNA.Nup35 ablationweakensthe resistance of cardiomyocytes to an acid challenge by depressingNHE1 expression.Moreover,we identify thatNup35 andNHE1 are simultaneously downregulated in ischemic cardiomyocytes both in vivo and in vitro.Enforced expression of Nup35 effectively counteracts the anoxia-induced intracellular acidification.We conclude that Nup35 selectively regulates cardiomyocyte pHi homeostasis by posttranscriptionally controlling NHE1 expression.This finding reveals a novel regulatory mechanism of cardiomyocyte pHi,and may provide insight into the therapeutic strategy for ischemic cardiac diseases.