Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, Medical Primate Research Center, Neuroscience Center, Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, School of Basic Medicine Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China.
State Key Laboratory of Common Mechanism Research for Major Diseases, Beijing, China.
EMBO J. 2023 Nov 15;42(22):e113383. doi: 10.15252/embj.2022113383. Epub 2023 Oct 9.
Notch signaling pathway activity, particularly fluctuations in the biologically active effector fragment NICD, is required for rapid and efficient dynamic regulation of proper fate decisions in stem cells. In this study, we identified NEDD4-binding protein 1 (N4BP1), which is highly expressed in the developing mouse cerebral cortex, as a negative modulator of Notch signaling dynamics in neural progenitor cells. Intriguingly, N4BP1 regulated NICD stability specifically after Notch1 S3 cleavage through ubiquitin-mediated degradation that depended on its RAM domain, not its PEST domain, as had been extensively and previously described. The CoCUN domain in N4BP1, particularly the "Phe-Pro" motif (862/863 amino acid), was indispensable for mediating NICD degradation. The Ring family E3 ligase Trim21 was, in contrast to other NEDD4 family members, required for N4BP1-regulated NICD degradation. Overexpression of N4BP1 in cortical neural progenitors promoted neural stem cell differentiation, whereas neural progenitor cells lacking N4BP1 were sensitized to Notch signaling, resulting in the maintenance of stem-like properties in neural progenitor cells and lower production of cortical neurons.
Notch 信号通路活性,特别是生物活性效应片段 NICD 的波动,是干细胞中快速有效调节正确命运决定所必需的。在这项研究中,我们鉴定了 NEDD4 结合蛋白 1(N4BP1),它在发育中的小鼠大脑皮层中高度表达,是神经祖细胞中 Notch 信号动态的负调节剂。有趣的是,N4BP1 通过泛素介导的降解特异性调节 Notch1 S3 切割后的 NICD 稳定性,这依赖于其 RAM 结构域,而不是先前广泛描述的 PEST 结构域。N4BP1 中的 CoCUN 结构域,特别是“苯丙氨酸-脯氨酸”基序(862/863 个氨基酸),对于介导 NICD 降解是必不可少的。Ring 家族 E3 连接酶 Trim21 与其他 NEDD4 家族成员不同,需要其来调节 N4BP1 调控的 NICD 降解。在皮质神经祖细胞中过表达 N4BP1 促进了神经干细胞的分化,而缺乏 N4BP1 的神经祖细胞对 Notch 信号敏感,导致神经祖细胞中维持干细胞特性和皮质神经元产生减少。