AUTHOR=Delgado Jary Y. 

TITLE=An Alternative Pin1 Binding and Isomerization Site in the N-Terminus Domain of PSD-95

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Molecular Neuroscience

VOLUME=13

YEAR=2020

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/molecular-neuroscience/articles/10.3389/fnmol.2020.00031

DOI=10.3389/fnmol.2020.00031

ISSN=1662-5099

ABSTRACT=<p>Phosphorylation-dependent peptidyl-prolyl <italic>cis-trans</italic> isomerization plays key roles in cell cycle progression, the pathogenesis of cancer, and age-related neurodegeneration. Most of our knowledge about the role of phosphorylation-dependent peptidyl-prolyl <italic>cis-trans</italic> isomerization and the enzyme catalyzing this reaction, the peptidyl-prolyl isomerase (Pin1), is largely limited to proteins not present in neurons. Only a handful of examples have shown that phosphorylation-dependent peptidyl-prolyl <italic>cis-trans</italic> isomerization, Pin1 binding, or Pin1-mediated peptidyl-prolyl <italic>cis-trans</italic> isomerization regulate proteins present at excitatory synapses. In this work, I confirm previous findings showing that Pin1 binds postsynaptic density protein-95 (PSD-95) and identify an alternative binding site in the phosphorylated N-terminus of the PSD-95. Pin1 associates <italic>via</italic> its WW domain with phosphorylated threonine (T19) and serine (S25) in the N-terminus domain of PSD-95 and this association alters the local conformation of PSD-95. Most importantly, I show that proline-directed phosphorylation of the N-terminus domain of PSD-95 alters the local conformation of this region. Therefore, proline-directed phosphorylation of the N-terminus of PSD-95, Pin1 association, and peptidyl-prolyl <italic>cis-trans</italic> isomerization may all play a role in excitatory synaptic function and synapse development.</p>