PNNL

Abstract

Calcium-dependent domain movements of the nucleotide (N) and actuator (A) domains of the SERCA2a isoform of the Ca-ATPase were assessed using constructs containing engineered tetracysteine binding motifs, which were expressed in insect High-Five cells and subsequently labeled with the biarsenical fluorophore 4’,5’-bis(1,3,2-dithoarsolan-2-yl)fluorescein (FlAsH-EDT2). Maximum catalytic function is retained in microsomes isolated from High-Five cells and labeled with FlAsH-EDT2. Distance measurements using the nucleotide analog TNP-ATP, which acts as a fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) acceptor from FlAsH, identify a 2.4 Å increase in the spatial separation between the N- and A-domains induced by high-affinity calcium binding; this structural change is comparable to that observed in crystal structures. No significant distance changes occur across the N-domain between FlAsH and TNP-ATP, indicating that calcium activation induces rigid body domain movements rather than intradomain conformational changes. Calcium-dependent decreases in the fluorescence of FlAsH bound respectively to either the N- or A-domains indicate coordinated and noncooperative domain movements, where both N- and A-domains domains display virtually identical calcium dependencies (i.e., Kd = 4.8 ± 0.4 µM). We suggest that occupancy of a single high-affinity calcium binding site induces the rearrangement of the A- and N-domains of the Ca-ATPase to form an intermediate state, which facilitates ATP utilization upon occupancy of the second high-affinity calcium site to enhance transport efficiency.