The formation of clathrin-coated vesicles is essential for intracellular membrane trafficking between subcellular compartments and is triggered by the ARF family of small GTPases. We previously identified SMAP1 as an ARF6 GTPase-activating protein that functions in clathrin-dependent endocytosis. Because abnormalities in clathrin-dependent trafficking are often associated with oncogenesis, we targeted Smap1 in mice to examine its physiological and pathological significance. Smap1-deficent mice exhibited healthy growth, but their erythroblasts showed enhanced transferrin endocytosis. In mast cells cultured in SCF, Smap1 deficiency did not affect the internalization of c-KIT but impaired the sorting of internalized c-KIT from multivesicular bodies to lysosomes, resulting in intracellular accumulation of undegraded c-KIT that was accompanied by enhanced activation of ERK and increased cell growth. Interestingly, approximately 50% of aged Smap1-deficient mice developed anemia associated with morphologically dysplastic cells of erythroid-myeloid lineage, which are hematological abnormalities similar to myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) in humans. Furthermore, some Smap1-deficient mice developed acute myeloid leukemia (AML) of various subtypes. Collectively, to our knowledge these results provide the first evidence in a mouse model that the deregulation of clathrin-dependent membrane trafficking may be involved in the development of MDS and subsequent AML.
IntroductionIntracellular and extracellular homeostasis is maintained by a vesicle transport system that mediates the trafficking of membrane proteins to appropriate organelles. Clathrin-coated vesicles are formed at donor membrane sites in a highly ordered manner, and a number of molecules are involved in this process. Among them, small GTPases of the ARF family play a central role in vesicle formation. An ARF molecule cycles between two conformations, an active GTP-bound form and an inactive GDP-bound form. This cycling is mediated by a guanine nucleotide exchange factor that replaces GDP with GTP and a GTPase-activating protein (GAP) that hydrolyzes GTP to GDP and converts ARF into its inactive form. There are 6 ARFs (ARF1-ARF6) and several ARF-related proteins in mammals (1, 2). ARF6 is an isoform that localizes mainly to the plasma membrane and functions in the endocytosis and recycling of vesicles as well as in actin rearrangement and lipid metabolism (3,4).We previously demonstrated that small ARF GAP1 (referred to as SMAP1) is a regulator of clathrin-dependent endocytosis, based on a series of observations (5, 6). First, SMAP1 exhibits GAP activity against ARF6, as assessed by an in vitro GAP assay. Second, SMAP1 localizes to juxta-plasma membrane regions in which ARF6 also exists. Third, SMAP1 binds to the clathrin heavy chain directly via its clathrin-binding box. Fourth, overexpression of SMAP1 abrogates clathrin-dependent internalization of the transferrin receptor and E-cadherin.