Nonconserved Ca(2+)/calmodulin binding sites in Munc13s differentially control synaptic short-term plasticity

Mol Cell Biol. 2012 Nov;32(22):4628-41. doi: 10.1128/MCB.00933-12. Epub 2012 Sep 10.

Abstract

Munc13s are presynaptic proteins that mediate synaptic vesicle priming and thereby control the size of the readily releasable pool of vesicles. During high synaptic activity, Munc13-1 and its closely related homolog, ubMunc13-2, bind Ca(2+)/calmodulin, resulting in enhanced priming activity and in changes of short-term synaptic plasticity characteristics. Here, we studied whether bMunc13-2 and Munc13-3, two remote isoforms of Munc13-1 with a neuronal subtype-specific expression pattern, mediate synaptic vesicle priming and regulate short-term synaptic plasticity in a Ca(2+)/calmodulin-dependent manner. We identified a single functional Ca(2+)/calmodulin binding site in these isoforms and provide structural evidence that all Munc13s employ a common mode of interaction with calmodulin despite the lack of sequence homology between their Ca(2+)/calmodulin binding sites. Electrophysiological analysis showed that, during high-frequency activity, Ca(2+)/calmodulin binding positively regulates the priming activity of bMunc13-2 and Munc13-3, resulting in an increase in the size of the readily releasable pool of vesicles and subsequently in strong short-term synaptic enhancement of neurotransmission. We conclude that Ca(2+)/calmodulin-dependent regulation of priming activity is structurally and functionally conserved in all Munc13 proteins, and that the composition of Munc13 isoforms in a neuron differentially controls its short-term synaptic plasticity characteristics.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Amino Acid Sequence
  • Animals
  • Binding Sites
  • Calcium / metabolism*
  • Calmodulin / genetics
  • Calmodulin / metabolism*
  • Gene Expression
  • Hippocampus / physiology
  • Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins / genetics
  • Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins / metabolism*
  • Mice
  • Mice, Knockout
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Mutation
  • Nerve Tissue Proteins / genetics
  • Nerve Tissue Proteins / metabolism*
  • Neuronal Plasticity / genetics*
  • Neurons / cytology
  • Neurons / metabolism*
  • Patch-Clamp Techniques
  • Plasmids
  • Primary Cell Culture
  • Protein Binding
  • Protein Isoforms / genetics
  • Protein Isoforms / metabolism
  • Recombinant Proteins / genetics
  • Recombinant Proteins / metabolism
  • Synaptic Transmission / physiology
  • Transfection

Substances

  • Calmodulin
  • Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins
  • Nerve Tissue Proteins
  • Protein Isoforms
  • Recombinant Proteins
  • Unc13b protein, mouse
  • Unc13c protein, mouse
  • Calcium