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Title | Structural basis of urea transport by Arabidopsis thaliana DUR3. |
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Journal, issue, pages | Nat Commun, Vol. 16, Issue 1, Page 1782, Year 2025 |
Publish date | Feb 20, 2025 |
![]() | Weidong An / Yiwei Gao / Laihua Liu / Qinru Bai / Jun Zhao / Yan Zhao / Xuejun C Zhang / ![]() |
PubMed Abstract | Urea is a primary nitrogen source used as fertilizer in agricultural plant production and a crucial nitrogen metabolite in plants, playing an essential role in modern agriculture. In plants, DUR3 is ...Urea is a primary nitrogen source used as fertilizer in agricultural plant production and a crucial nitrogen metabolite in plants, playing an essential role in modern agriculture. In plants, DUR3 is a proton-driven high-affinity urea transporter located on the plasma membrane. It not only absorbs external low-concentration urea as a nutrient but also facilitates nitrogen transfer by recovering urea from senescent leaves. Despite its importance, the high-affinity urea transport mechanism in plants remains insufficiently understood. In this study, we determine the structures of Arabidopsis thaliana DUR3 in two different conformations: the inward-facing open state of the apo structure and the occluded urea-bound state, with overall resolutions of 2.8 Å and 3.0 Å, respectively. By comparing these structures and analyzing their functional characteristics, we elucidated how urea molecules are specifically recognized. In the urea-bound structure, we identified key titratable amino acid residues and proposed a model for proton involvement in urea transport based on structural and functional data. This study enhances our understanding of proton-driven urea transport mechanisms in DUR3. |
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Methods | EM (single particle) |
Resolution | 2.8 - 3.0 Å |
Structure data | EMDB-61201, PDB-9j7c: EMDB-61202, PDB-9j7d: |
Chemicals | ![]() ChemComp-Y01: ![]() ChemComp-URE: ![]() ChemComp-R16: ![]() ChemComp-C14: ![]() ChemComp-HOH: |
Source |
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![]() | MEMBRANE PROTEIN / DUR3 / high-affinity urea transporter / urea transporter |