[PDF][PDF] TDP-43 condensation properties specify its RNA-binding and regulatory repertoire

M Hallegger, AM Chakrabarti, FCY Lee, BL Lee… - Cell, 2021 - cell.com
M Hallegger, AM Chakrabarti, FCY Lee, BL Lee, AG Amalietti, HM Odeh, KE Copley…
Cell, 2021cell.com
Mutations causing amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) often affect the condensation
properties of RNA-binding proteins (RBPs). However, the role of RBP condensation in the
specificity and function of protein-RNA complexes remains unclear. We created a series of
TDP-43 C-terminal domain (CTD) variants that exhibited a gradient of low to high
condensation propensity, as observed in vitro and by nuclear mobility and foci formation.
Notably, a capacity for condensation was required for efficient TDP-43 assembly on subsets …
Summary
Mutations causing amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) often affect the condensation properties of RNA-binding proteins (RBPs). However, the role of RBP condensation in the specificity and function of protein-RNA complexes remains unclear. We created a series of TDP-43 C-terminal domain (CTD) variants that exhibited a gradient of low to high condensation propensity, as observed in vitro and by nuclear mobility and foci formation. Notably, a capacity for condensation was required for efficient TDP-43 assembly on subsets of RNA-binding regions, which contain unusually long clusters of motifs of characteristic types and density. These "binding-region condensates" are promoted by homomeric CTD-driven interactions and required for efficient regulation of a subset of bound transcripts, including autoregulation of TDP-43 mRNA. We establish that RBP condensation can occur in a binding-region-specific manner to selectively modulate transcriptome-wide RNA regulation, which has implications for remodeling RNA networks in the context of signaling, disease, and evolution.
cell.com