Sticholysin I–II oligomerization in the absence of membranes

Sara García-Linares, Rafael Amigot-Sánchez, Carmen García-Montoya, Diego Heras-Márquez, Carlos Alfonso, Juan Román Luque-Ortega, José G. Gavilanes, Álvaro Martínez-del-Pozo, Juan Palacios-Ortega*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleScientificpeer-review

2 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Sticholysins are pore-forming toxins produced by the sea anemone Stichodactyla helianthus. When they encounter a sphingomyelin-containing membrane, these proteins bind to it and oligomerize, a process that ends in pore formation. Mounting evidence indicates that StnII can favour the activity of StnI. Previous results have shown that these two isotoxins can oligomerize together. Furthermore, StnII appeared to potentiate the activity of StnI through the membrane-binding step of the process. Hence, isotoxin interaction should occur prior to membrane encounter. Here, we have used analytical ultracentrifugation to investigate the oligomerization of Stns in solution, both separately and together. Our results indicate that while StnI seems to be more prone to oligomerize in water solution than StnII, a small percentage of StnII in StnI–StnII mixtures promotes oligomerization.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1029-1036
Number of pages8
JournalFEBS Letters
Volume596
Issue number8
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Apr 2022
MoE publication typeA1 Journal article-refereed

Keywords

  • actinoporins
  • analytical ultracentrifugation
  • pore-forming proteins
  • sedimentation velocity

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