Background:Interacting partners and regulation of Rab geranylgeranyltransferase are poorly characterized. Mechanisms of GPCR maturation and anterograde trafficking are not fully understood. Results: RGGTA interacts with a dileucine motif in the  2 AR to regulate  2 AR maturation/anterograde trafficking and  2 ARmediated Rab geranylgeranylation. Conclusion: RGGTA and the  2 AR interact functionally. Significance: This is the first demonstration of a functional interaction between RGGTA and a transmembrane receptor.
Previous reports by us and others demonstrated that G protein-coupled receptors interact functionally with Rab GTPases.Here, we show that the  2 -adrenergic receptor ( 2 AR) interacts with the Rab geranylgeranyltransferase ␣-subunit (RGGTA). Confocal microscopy showed that  2 AR co-localizes with RGGTA in intracellular compartments and at the plasma membrane. Site-directed mutagenesis revealed that RGGTA binds to the L 339 L 340 motif in the  2 AR C terminus known to be involved in the transport of the receptor from the endoplasmic reticulum to the cell surface. Modulation of the cellular levels of RGGTA protein by overexpression or siRNA-mediated knockdown of the endogenous protein demonstrated that RGGTA has a positive role in the maturation and anterograde trafficking of the  2 AR, which requires the interaction of RGGTA with the  2 AR L 339 L 340 motif. Furthermore, the  2 AR modulates the geranylgeranylation of Rab6a, Rab8a, and Rab11a, but not of other Rab proteins tested in this study. Regulation of Rab geranylgeranylation by the  2 AR was dependent on the RGGTA-interacting L 339 L 340 motif. Interestingly, a RGGTA-Y107F mutant was unable to regulate Rab geranylgeranylation but still promoted  2 AR maturation, suggesting that RGGTA may have functions independent of Rab geranylgeranylation. We demonstrate for the first time an interaction between a transmembrane receptor and RGGTA which regulates the maturation and anterograde transport of the receptor, as well as geranylgeranylation of Rab GTPases.