Interaction of the tail domain of high molecular weight subunits of neurofilaments with the COOH-terminal region of tubulin and its regulation by tau protein kinase II.

We previously showed that neurofilaments interact with microtubules (MTs) via their high molecular weight subunits (NF-H) after alkaline phosphatase treatment. Here we studied the effects of phosphorylation of NF-H on this interaction. tau protein kinase II, Ser/Thr protein kinase, phosphorylated NF-H in the tail domain, decreased its electrophoretic mobility to a native level, and also restored its property to be less interactive with MTs. Phosphorylation by cAMP-dependent protein kinase caused no shift of electrophoretic mobility or dissociation from MTs. We conclude that the tail domain of NF-H directly interacts with the MT surface, and the interaction is regulated via phosphorylation of the tail domain of NF-H by Ser/Thr protein kinase like tau protein kinase II. To characterize the binding domain of NF-H on MTs, subtilisin digestion of MTs and competition analysis with the MT binding fragment of tau protein were performed. The dissociation constant of NF-H to subtilisin MTs was higher than that to intact MTs. The maximum binding of NF-H was reduced when tau fragments existed. These results revealed that the COOH-terminal region of tubulin is involved in the binding to NF-H, and the NF-H and microtubule-associated protein binding domains are closely apposed on the surface of MTs.