Genuine La proteins contain two RNA binding motifs, a La motif (LAM) followed by a RNA recognition motif (RRM), arranged in a unique way to bind RNA. These proteins interact with an extensive variety of cellular RNAs and exhibit activities in two broad categories: i) to promote the metabolism of nascent pol III transcripts, including precursor-tRNAs, by binding to their common, UUU-3'OH containing ends, and ii) to modulate the translation of certain mRNAs involving an unknown binding mechanism. Characterization of several La-RNA crystal structures as well as biochemical studies reveal insight into their unique two-motif domain architecture and how the LAM recognizes UUU-3'OH while the RRM binds other parts of a pre-tRNA. Recent studies of members of distinct families of conserved La-related proteins (LARPs) indicate that some of these harbor activity related to genuine La proteins, suggesting that their UUU-3'OH binding mode has been appropriated for the assembly and regulation of a specific snRNP (e.g., 7SK snRNA assembly by hLARP7/PIP7S). Analyses of other LARP family members (i.e., hLARP4, hLARP6) suggest more diverged RNA binding modes and specialization for cytoplasmic mRNA-related functions. Thus it appears that while genuine La proteins exhibit broad general involvement in both snRNA-related and mRNA-related functions, different LARP families may have evolved specialized activities in either snRNA or mRNA related functions. In this review, we summarize recent progress that has led to greater understanding of the structure and function of La proteins and their roles in tRNA processing and RNP assembly dynamics, as well as progress on the different LARPs.La exhibits general and broad activity in both snRNA and mRNA-related functions La proteins are factors found in nearly all eukaryotes examined [1] and have important functions in RNA metabolism. Human La (hLa, also called Sjogren's Syndrome Antigen B, or SS-B) was first identified as an autoantigen in patients suffering from autoimmune disorders such as systemic lupus erythematosus, Sjogren's syndrome and neonatal lupus [2,3]. Although it remains unclear why La is targeted as an autoantigen in some persons, its

The conserved RNA binding protein La recognizes UUU-3OH on its small nuclear RNA ligands and stabilizes them against 3-end-mediated decay. We report that newly described La-related protein 4 (LARP4) is a factor that can bind poly(A) RNA and interact with poly(A) binding protein (PABP). Yeast two-hybrid analysis and reciprocal immunoprecipitations (IPs) from HeLa cells revealed that LARP4 interacts with RACK1, a 40S ribosome-and mRNA-associated protein. LARP4 cosediments with 40S ribosome subunits and polyribosomes, and its knockdown decreases translation. Mutagenesis of the RNA binding or PABP interaction motifs decrease LARP4 association with polysomes. Several translation and mRNA metabolism-related proteins use a PAM2 sequence containing a critical invariant phenylalanine to make direct contact with the MLLE domain of PABP, and their competition for the MLLE is thought to regulate mRNA homeostasis. Unlike all ϳ150 previously analyzed PAM2 sequences, LARP4 contains a variant PAM2 (PAM2w) with tryptophan in place of the phenylalanine. Binding and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) studies have shown that a peptide representing LARP4 PAM2w interacts with the MLLE of PABP within the affinity range measured for other PAM2 motif peptides. A cocrystal of PABC bound to LARP4 PAM2w shows tryptophan in the pocket in PABC-MLLE otherwise occupied by phenylalanine. We present evidence that LARP4 expression stimulates luciferase reporter activity by promoting mRNA stability, as shown by mRNA decay analysis of luciferase and cellular mRNAs. We propose that LARP4 activity is integrated with other PAM2 protein activities by PABP as part of mRNA homeostasis.The RNA binding domain of the conserved La protein consists of a La motif (LaM) and an RNA recognition motif (RRM) that work together to recognize UUU-3ЈOH on small nascent transcripts and to protect them from 3Ј exonucleases (7,45). In addition to this, La proteins can modulate mRNA translation (30,(63)(64)(65). The LaM-RRM arrangement has been found in La-related proteins 1 (LARP1), 1b, 4, 4b, 6, and 7, which have been separately conserved during evolution (8, 10) (LARP4b is also referred to as LARP5 in multiple databases and here will be designated LARP5/4b). LARP7 is specific for 7SK snRNA, which it recognizes in part via UUU-3ЈOH (29, 46). LARP6 binds to a stem-loop in the 5Ј untranslated regions (UTRs) of collagen mRNAs in a uracil-dependent manner (15), and LARP1 was shown to bind poly(U) and to a lesser extent poly(G), but not poly(A) or poly(C) (51). Consistent with these specificities, LARP1, -6, and -7 have conserved all of the amino acids involved in UUU-3ЈOH recognition in La-RNA crystals (37, 66), while LARP4 and -5/4b have diverged, suggesting alternative RNA binding (8). Moreover, an invariant divergence in all of the LARP4 and -5/4b sequences available occurs in a most critical residue involved in base-specific recognition seen in La-RNA crystals, corresponding to human La Q20, suggesting a conserved difference in RNA recognition (8). Although the LaM-RRM in ...

No abstract

Thioredoxin (TRX) is a key protein of the cellular redox metabolism, which expression is increased in several tumors especially gastric tumors. Even though ultraviolet (UV) and hypoxia specifically induce TRX, the mechanisms that lead to increased TRX levels are still ill defined. Here, we show that the heterogenous ribonucleoprotein A18 (hnRNP A18) RNA Binding Domain (RBD) and the arginine, glycine (RGG) rich domain can bind TRX 3′-untranslated region (3′-UTR) independently but both domains are required for maximal binding. Immunoprecipitation (IP) of hnRNP A18-mRNAs complexes and co-localization of hnRNP A18 and TRX transcripts on ribosomal fractions confirm the interaction of hnRNP A18 with TRX transcripts in cells. Moreover, down regulation of hnRNP A18 correlates with a significant reduction of TRX protein levels. In addition, hnRNP A18 increases TRX translation and interacts with the eukaryotic Initiation Factor 4G (eIF4G), a component of the general translational machinery. Furthermore, hnRNP A18 phosphorylation by the hypoxia inducible GSK3β increases hnRNP A18 RNA binding activity in vitro and in RKO cells in response to UV radiation. These data support a regulatory role for hnRNP A18 in TRX post-transcriptional expression possibly through a kissing loop model bridging TRX 3′- and 5′-UTRs through eIF4G.