mTOR controls cell growth, in part by regulating p70 S6 kinase alpha (p70alpha) and eukaryotic initiation factor 4E binding protein 1 (4EBP1). Raptor is a 150 kDa mTOR binding protein that also binds 4EBP1 and p70alpha. The binding of raptor to mTOR is necessary for the mTOR-catalyzed phosphorylation of 4EBP1 in vitro, and it strongly enhances the mTOR kinase activity toward p70alpha. Rapamycin or amino acid withdrawal increases, whereas insulin strongly inhibits, the recovery of 4EBP1 and raptor on 7-methyl-GTP Sepharose. Partial inhibition of raptor expression by RNA interference (RNAi) reduces mTOR-catalyzed 4EBP1 phosphorylation in vitro. RNAi of C. elegans raptor yields an array of phenotypes that closely resemble those produced by inactivation of Ce-TOR. Thus, raptor is an essential scaffold for the mTOR-catalyzed phosphorylation of 4EBP1 and mediates TOR action in vivo.

The mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) controls multiple cellular functions in response to amino acids and growth factors, in part by regulating the phosphorylation of p70 S6 kinase (p70S6k) and eukaryotic initiation factor 4E-binding protein 1 (4E-BP1). Raptor (regulatory associated protein of mTOR) is a recently identified mTOR binding partner that also binds p70S6k and 4E-BP1 and is essential for TOR signaling in vivo. Herein we demonstrate that raptor binds to p70S6k and 4E-BP1 through their respective TOS (conserved TOR signaling) motifs to be required for amino acid-and mTOR-dependent regulation of these mTOR substrates in vivo. A point mutation of the TOS motif also eliminates all in vitro mTOR-catalyzed 4E-BP1 phosphorylation and abolishes the raptor-dependent component of mTOR-catalyzed p70S6k phosphorylation in vitro. Raptor appears to serve as an mTOR scaffold protein, the binding of which to the TOS motif of mTOR substrates is necessary for effective mTOR-catalyzed phosphorylation in vivo and perhaps for conferring their sensitivity to rapamycin and amino acid sufficiency.The target of rapamycin (TOR) 1 proteins are protein kinases that were first identified in Saccharomyces cerevisiae through mutants that confer resistance to growth inhibition induced by the immunosuppressive macrolide rapamycin (1). In mammalian cells, rapamycin blocks phosphorylation of eukaryotic initiation factor 4E-binding protein 1 (4E-BP1) (2, 3) and p70 S6 kinase (p70S6k) (4,5) by interfering with the function of mTOR (6, 7) (also known as FRAP, RAFT1, or RAPT). Although mTOR can phosphorylate both these targets directly in vitro (8 -10), the mechanism of mTOR regulation of these phosphorylations in vivo remains incompletely understood (11).The p70S6k is activated through a sequential multisite phosphorylation in response to insulin or mitogens in vivo (11). In addition, nutrients, especially amino acids, have been shown to regulate the phosphorylation of p70S6k and 4E-BP1 and to be necessary for insulin or mitogen regulation (12-17). The activity of p70S6k␣1 in vivo is most closely related to the phosphorylation at Thr-412, situated in a hydrophobic motif C-terminal to the canonical catalytic domain (18,19). The identity of the kinase(s) acting on this site in vivo is uncertain; however, this site can be phosphorylated directly by mTOR in vitro (9, 10). Recently, site-specific mutagenesis was employed to define a five-amino acid sequence called the TOS (TOR signaling) motif as the minimal functionally important region within this p70S6k noncatalytic N-terminal segment (21). As with N-terminal deletion, mutation of a single Phe within the TOS motif to Ala causes marked inhibition of activity of full-length p70S6k and a loss of sensitivity to rapamycin and amino acid withdrawal in the p70S6k-⌬CT104, lacking C-terminal noncatalytic tail, background. In addition, a TOS motif was identified in the 4E-BPs, wherein mutation of 4E-BP1 Phe-114 to Ala inhibits amino acid-and serum-induced 4E-BP1 phosphorylation.Raptor is a recently...

The mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) is a Ser/Thr protein kinase that plays a crucial role in a nutrient-sensitive signalling pathway that regulates cell growth. TOR signalling is potently inhibited by rapamycin, through the direct binding of a FK506-binding protein 12 (FKBP12)/ rapamycin complex to the TOR FRB domain, a segment amino terminal to the kinase catalytic domain. The molecular basis for the inhibitory action of FKBP12/rapamycin remains uncertain. Raptor (regulatory associated protein of mTOR) is a recently identified mTOR binding partner that is essential for mTOR signalling in vivo , and whose binding to mTOR is critical for mTORcatalysed substrate phosphorylation in vitro . Here we investigated the stability of endogenous mTOR/ raptor complex in response to rapamycin in vivo , and to the direct addition of a FKBP12/rapamycin complex in vitro . Rapamycin diminished the recovery of endogenous raptor with endogenous or recombinant mTOR in vivo ; this inhibition required the ability of mTOR to bind the FKBP12/ rapamycin complex, but was independent of mTOR kinase activity. Rapamycin, in the presence of FKBP12, inhibited the association of raptor with mTOR directly in vitro , and concomitantly reduced the mTOR-catalysed phosphorylation of raptor-dependent, but not raptor-independent substrates; mTOR autophosphorylation was unaltered. These observations indicate that rapamycin inhibits mTOR function, at least in part, by inhibiting the interaction of raptor with mTOR; this action uncouples mTOR from its substrates, and inhibits mTOR signalling without altering mTOR's intrinsic catalytic activity.

Background: The mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) belongs to the family of phosphoinositide (PI)-kinase-related kinases that includes the ataxiatelangiectasia gene product (ATM). mTOR plays a critical role in controlling translational effectors such as p70 S6 kinase a (p70a) and eukaryotic initiation factor 4E binding protein 1 (4EBP1).

The addition of leucine induced activation of p70 Tk in amino acid-depleted H4IIE cells. Whereas the activation of p70 Tk by leucine was transient, the complete amino acid stimulated p70 Tk more persistently. The effect of leucine on p70 Tk was sensitive to rapamycin, but less sensitive to wortmannin. Using various amino acids and derivatives of leucine, we found that the chirality, the structure of the four branched hydrocarbons, and the primary amine are required for the ability of leucine to stimulate p70 Tk , indicating that the structural requirement of leucine to induce p70 Tk activation is very strict and precise. In addition, some leucine derivatives exhibited the ability to stimulate p70 Tk and the other derivatives acted as inhibitors against the leucine-induced activation of p70 Tk .z 1999 Federation of European Biochemical Societies.