Structural and functional versatility of NFAT

描述（由申请人提供）：拟议研究的长期目标是了解活化T细胞核因子（NFAT）传递常见钙信号以引发多种转录反应的分子机制。 为了解决这个问题，将结合结构，生物化学和细胞为基础的研究来分析NFAT和不同的转录因子合作伙伴之间的相互作用。 对于充分表征的NFAT复合物，将开发小肽抑制剂以进一步分析这些复合物在体内的功能。目标1的主要目标是建立NFAT/加塔相互作用的高分辨率结构模型。这种相互作用涉及许多重要的生理过程，如心脏肥大，IGF诱导的心肌细胞肥大和T细胞发育。这些结构信息将为进一步分析NFAT/加塔协同作用的机制和功能提供基础。目的2的重点是表征NFAT和MEF 2之间详细的蛋白质-蛋白质相互作用，以努力理解NFAT/MEF 2协同作用在各种钙介导的生物反应中的机制和功能，例如心肌肥大，骨骼肌纤维转换T细胞分化和增殖。 这些研究还将使我们能够表征NFAT 1在DNA结合结构域之外的结构和功能。 最后，目标3的目标是开发小分子抑制剂来破坏NFAT和Fos-Jun之间的蛋白质-蛋白质相互作用。这些研究将测试相对小的分子是否可以有效地抑制NFAT和Fos-Jun之间的大蛋白质界面。这些肽将是有用的工具，用于分析NFAT/Fos-Jun相互作用在细胞内的功能。总的来说，这三个具体目标从不同的角度解决了NFAT的结构和功能的多功能性。这些研究将建立一个完整的分子模型，以了解钙调磷酸酶/NFAT通路如何从钙调磷酸酶节点下游分支，以及特定的分支是否可以被突变或肽抑制剂选择性靶向。 这些研究将进一步剖析钙调磷酸酶/NFAT通路的功能，并作为开发用于治疗应用的化合物的基础。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The long-term goal of the proposed research is to understand the molecular mechanisms by which the nuclear factor of activated T cells (NFAT) transmits the common calcium signal to elicit diverse transcriptional responses. To address this question, a combination of structural, biochemical and cell-based studies will be used to analyze the interactions between NFAT and distinct transcription factor partners. For well-characterized NFAT complexes, small peptide inhibitors will be developed to further analyze the functions of these complexes in vivo. The main goal of Aim 1 is to establish the high-resolution structural model of the NFAT/GATA interaction. This interaction has been implicated in many important physiological processes, such as heart hypertrophy, IGF-induced myocyte hypertrophy and T cell development. This structural information will provide a foundation for further analyzing the mechanism and function of NFAT/GATA synergy in vivo. The focus of Aim 2 is to characterize the detailed protein-protein interactions between NFAT and MEF2 in an effort to understand the mechanism and functions of NFAT/MEF2 synergy in a variety of calcium-mediated biological responses, such as cardiac hypertrophy, skeletal muscle fiber switching T cell differentiation and proliferation. These studies will also allow us to characterize the structure and function of NFAT1 beyond the DNA binding domain. Finally, the goal of Aim 3 will be to develop small molecule inhibitors to disrupt the protein-protein interactions between NFAT and Fos-Jun. These studies will test whether relatively small molecules can effectively inhibit the large protein interface between NFAT and Fos-Jun. These peptides will be useful tools for analyzing the function of the NFAT/Fos-Jun interaction inside cells. Overall, the three Specific Aims address the structural and functional versatility of NFAT from different perspectives. These studies will establish an integrated molecular model for understanding how the calcineurin/NFAT pathway branches downstream from the calcineurin nodal point and whether a specific branch can be selectively targeted by mutations or peptide inhibitors. These studies will further dissect the function of the calcineurin/NFAT pathway and serve as a basis for developing compounds for therapeutic applications.