Additional evidence for an eight-transmembrane-domain topology for Caenorhabditis elegans and human presenilins

X Li, I Greenwald - Proceedings of the National Academy of …, 1998 - National Acad Sciences
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 1998National Acad Sciences
Presenilins have been implicated in the genesis of Alzheimer's disease and in facilitating
LIN-12/Notch activity during development. All presenilins have multiple hydrophobic regions
that could theoretically span a membrane, and a description of the membrane topology is a
crucial step toward deducing the mechanism of presenilin function. Previously, we proposed
an eight-transmembrane-domain model for presenilin, based on studies of the
Caenorhabditis elegans SEL-12 presenilin. Here, we describe experiments that support the …
Presenilins have been implicated in the genesis of Alzheimer’s disease and in facilitating LIN-12/Notch activity during development. All presenilins have multiple hydrophobic regions that could theoretically span a membrane, and a description of the membrane topology is a crucial step toward deducing the mechanism of presenilin function. Previously, we proposed an eight-transmembrane-domain model for presenilin, based on studies of the Caenorhabditis elegans SEL-12 presenilin. Here, we describe experiments that support the view that two of the hydrophobic regions of SEL-12 function as the seventh and eighth transmembrane domains. Furthermore, we have shown that human presenilin 1 behaves like SEL-12 presenilin when analyzed by our methods. Our results provide additional experimental support for the eight-transmembrane-domain model of presenilin topology.
National Acad Sciences