DOE PAGES title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Structural insights into the formation of repulsive netrin guidance complexes

Journal Article · · Science Advances

Netrins dictate attractive and repulsive responses during axon growth and cell migration, where the presence of the receptor Uncoordinated-5 (UNC-5) on target cells results in repulsion. Here, we showed that UNC-5 is a heparin-binding protein, determined its structure bound to a heparin fragment, and could modulate UNC-5–heparin affinity using a directed evolution platform or structure-based rational design. We demonstrated that UNC-5 and UNC-6/netrin form a large, stable, and rigid complex in the presence of heparin, and heparin and UNC-5 exclude the attractive UNC-40/DCC receptor from binding to UNC-6/netrin to a large extent. Caenorhabditis elegans with a heparin-binding–deficient UNC-5 fail to establish proper gonad morphology due to abrogated cell migration, which relies on repulsive UNC-5 signaling in response to UNC-6. Combining UNC-5 mutations targeting heparin and UNC-6/netrin contacts results in complete cell migration and axon guidance defects. Our findings establish repulsive netrin responses to be mediated through a glycosaminoglycan-regulated macromolecular complex.

Research Organization:
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Advanced Light Source (ALS)
Sponsoring Organization:
H2020 European Research Council; National Cancer Institute; National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS); National Institutes of Health (NIH); National Science Foundation (NSF); USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES). Scientific User Facilities (SUF)
Grant/Contract Number:
AC02-05CH11231; AC02-06CH11357
OSTI ID:
2471051
Journal Information:
Science Advances, Journal Name: Science Advances Journal Issue: 7 Vol. 10; ISSN 2375-2548
Publisher:
AAASCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

References (80)

Comparative Protein Structure Modeling Using MODELLER journal June 2016
Structure and evolution of neuronal wiring receptors and ligands journal July 2022
Improvements to the APBS biomolecular solvation software suite: Improvements to the APBS Software Suite journal October 2017
SAXSMoW 2.0: Online calculator of the molecular weight of proteins in dilute solution from experimental SAXS data measured on a relative scale journal December 2018
Benchmarking AlphaFold for protein complex modeling reveals accuracy determinants journal July 2022
Glycosaminoglycan-Binding Properties and Secondary Structure of the C-Terminus of Netrin-1 journal May 2000
UNC-5 Function Requires Phosphorylation of Cytoplasmic Tyrosine 482, but Its UNC-40-Independent Functions also Require a Region between the ZU-5 and Death Domains journal November 2002
Structure of unliganded membrane-proximal domains FN4-FN5-FN6 of DCC journal June 2017
On the control of germ cell development in Caenorhabditis elegans journal January 1981
The netrins define a family of axon outgrowth-promoting proteins homologous to C. elegans UNC-6 journal August 1994
The unc-5, unc-6, and unc-40 genes guide circumferential migrations of pioneer axons and mesodermal cells on the epidermis in C. elegans journal January 1990
UNC-52/Perlecan affects gonadal leader cell migrations in c. elegans hermaphrodites through alterations in growth factor signaling journal April 2003
A Ligand-Gated Association between Cytoplasmic Domains of UNC5 and DCC Family Receptors Converts Netrin-Induced Growth Cone Attraction to Repulsion journal June 1999
Deleted in Colorectal Cancer (DCC) Encodes a Netrin Receptor journal October 1996
Neuroglia and Pioneer Neurons Express UNC-6 to Provide Global and Local Netrin Cues for Guiding Migrations in C. elegans journal January 1996
Machine Learning Methods for X-Ray Scattering Data Analysis from Biomacromolecular Solutions journal June 2018
Solution Structure of C. elegans UNC-6: A Nematode Paralogue of the Axon Guidance Protein Netrin-1 journal June 2019
Structural Decoding of the Netrin-1/UNC5 Interaction and its Therapeutical Implications in Cancers journal February 2016
Molecular topography of an entire nervous system journal August 2021
GPC3-Unc5 receptor complex structure and role in cell migration journal October 2022
A Floor-Plate Extracellular Protein-Protein Interaction Screen Identifies Draxin as a Secreted Netrin-1 Antagonist journal July 2015
Profiling the Sulfation Specificities of Glycosaminoglycan Interactions with Growth Factors and Chemotactic Proteins Using Microarrays journal February 2007
The Heparan Sulfate Proteoglycan Syndecan Is an In Vivo Ligand for the Drosophila LAR Receptor Tyrosine Phosphatase journal October 2005
Netrin-1 in the developing enteric nervous system and colorectal cancer journal September 2012
The HSPGs Syndecan and Dallylike Bind the Receptor Phosphatase LAR and Exert Distinct Effects on Synaptic Development journal February 2006
The Crystal Structure of Netrin-1 in Complex with DCC Reveals the Bifunctionality of Netrin-1 As a Guidance Cue journal August 2014
FLRT Structure: Balancing Repulsion and Cell Adhesion in Cortical and Vascular Development journal October 2014
Netrin1 Produced by Neural Progenitors, Not Floor Plate Cells, Is Required for Axon Guidance in the Spinal Cord journal May 2017
Structural Basis for Draxin-Modulated Axon Guidance and Fasciculation by Netrin-1 through DCC journal March 2018
Netrin Synergizes Signaling and Adhesion through DCC journal January 2020
Chondroitin acts in the guidance of gonadal distal tip cells in C. elegans journal December 2006
Domain Movements upon Activation of Phenylalanine Hydroxylase Characterized by Crystallography and Chromatography-Coupled Small-Angle X-ray Scattering journal May 2016
Expression of the UNC-5 guidance receptor in the touch neurons of C. elegans steers their axons dorsally journal July 1993
Vertebrate homologues of C. elegans UNC-5 are candidate netrin receptors journal April 1997
Accurate assessment of mass, models and resolution by small-angle scattering journal April 2013
Super-complexes of adhesion GPCRs and neural guidance receptors journal April 2016
Netrin-1 promotes adipose tissue macrophage retention and insulin resistance in obesity journal March 2014
Fiji: an open-source platform for biological-image analysis journal June 2012
Netrins guide Drosophila commissural axons at short range journal January 2006
Isolating and engineering human antibodies using yeast surface display journal July 2006
The dynamic nature of netrin-1 and the structural basis for glycosaminoglycan fragment-induced filament formation journal March 2023
ColabFold: making protein folding accessible to all journal May 2022
Heparan 2-O-sulfotransferase,hst-2, is essential for normal cell migration inCaenorhabditis elegans journal January 2005
Netrin Binds Discrete Subdomains of DCC and UNC5 and Mediates Interactions between DCC and Heparin journal June 2003
A Molecular Mechanism for the Heparan Sulfate Dependence of Slit-Robo Signaling journal October 2006
Structural and Functional Analysis of Slit and Heparin Binding to Immunoglobulin-like Domains 1 and 2 of Drosophila Robo journal March 2008
Repeated Evolution of Identical Domain Architecture in Metazoan Netrin Domain-Containing Proteins journal January 2012
THE GENETICS OF CAENORHABDITIS ELEGANS journal May 1974
AlphaFold Protein Structure Database: massively expanding the structural coverage of protein-sequence space with high-accuracy models journal November 2021
ConSurf 2016: an improved methodology to estimate and visualize evolutionary conservation in macromolecules journal May 2016
Roles of glycosaminoglycans as regulators of ligand/receptor complexes journal October 2018
Protein complex prediction with AlphaFold-Multimer preprint March 2022
Mechanisms and Molecules of Neuronal Wiring: A Primer journal December 2010
Large-scale screening for novel low-affinity extracellular protein interactions journal March 2008
Phaser crystallographic software journal July 2007
Determination of the regularization parameter in indirect-transform methods using perceptual criteria journal August 1992
MolProbity : all-atom structure validation for macromolecular crystallography journal December 2009
XDS journal January 2010
Features and development of Coot journal March 2010
Towards automated crystallographic structure refinement with phenix.refine journal March 2012
BioXTAS RAW : improvements to a free open-source program for small-angle X-ray scattering data reduction and analysis journal September 2017
ATSAS 3.0 : expanded functionality and new tools for small-angle scattering data analysis journal February 2021
Improved radiation dose efficiency in solution SAXS using a sheath flow sample environment journal November 2016
Macromolecular structure determination using X-rays, neutrons and electrons: recent developments in Phenix journal October 2019
Traction on Immobilized Netrin-1 Is Sufficient to Reorient Axons journal July 2009
Structures of netrin-1 bound to two receptors provide insight into its axon guidance mechanism journal May 2014
Genetics of cell and axon migrations in Caenorhabditis elegans journal July 1987
Glypican Is a Modulator of Netrin-Mediated Axon Guidance journal July 2015
A Network of HSPG Core Proteins and HS Modifying Enzymes Regulates Netrin-Dependent Guidance of D-Type Motor Neurons in Caenorhabditis elegans journal September 2013
Protein Identification and Analysis Tools on the ExPASy Server book January 2005
Netrin-1/DCC Signaling in Commissural Axon Guidance Requires Cell-Autonomous Expression of Heparan Sulfate journal April 2007
Netrin-1 Attracts Axons through FAK-Dependent Mechanotransduction journal August 2012
Netrin UNC-6 and the Regulation of Branching and Extension of Motoneuron Axons from the Ventral Nerve Cord of Caenorhabditis elegans journal August 1999
Identification of Domains of Netrin UNC-6 that Mediate Attractive and Repulsive Guidance and Responses from Cells and Growth Cones journal August 2002
Mapping Netrin Receptor Binding Reveals Domains of Unc5 Regulating Its Tyrosine Phosphorylation journal December 2004
Dependence receptors: new targets for cancer therapy journal September 2021
Robust Genome Editing with Short Single-Stranded and Long, Partially Single-Stranded DNA Donors in Caenorhabditis elegans journal September 2018
Revisiting Netrin-1: One Who Guides (Axons) journal July 2018
NOVA regulates Dcc alternative splicing during neuronal migration and axon guidance in the spinal cord journal May 2016
New tools for automated high-resolution cryo-EM structure determination in RELION-3 journal November 2018

Similar Records

Netrin-1 induces proliferation of Schwann cells through Unc5b receptor
Journal Article · 2007 · Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications · OSTI ID:21032956

Netrin-1 induces the migration of Schwann cells via p38 MAPK and PI3K-Akt signaling pathway mediated by the UNC5B receptor
Journal Article · 2015 · Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications · OSTI ID:22462186

Netrin-1 promotes metastasis of gastric cancer by regulating YAP activity
Journal Article · 2018 · Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications · OSTI ID:23127437