1MG7

Crystal Structure of xol-1

Summary for 1MG7

• Entry DOI: 10.2210/pdb1mg7/pdb
• Descriptor: early switch protein xol-1 2.2k splice form (2 entities in total)
• Functional Keywords: alpha-beta, gene regulation
• Biological source: Caenorhabditis elegans
• Cellular location: Nucleus : Q23229
• Total number of polymer chains: 2
• Total formula weight: 94427.26

Authors

Luz, J.G.,Hassig, C.A.,Godzik, A.,Meyer, B.J.,Wilson, I.A. (deposition date: 2002-08-14, release date: 2003-04-22, Last modification date: 2024-02-14)

Primary citation

Luz, J.G.,Hassig, C.A.,Pickle, C.,Godzik, A.,Meyer, B.J.,Wilson, I.A.
XOL-1, primary determinant of sexual fate in C. elegans, is a GHMP kinase family member and a structural prototype for a class of developmental regulators
Genes Dev., 17:977-990, 2003

PubMed Abstract: In Caenorhabditis elegans, an X chromosome-counting mechanism specifies sexual fate. Specific genes termed X-signal elements, which are present on the X chromosome, act in a concerted dose-dependent fashion to regulate levels of the developmental switch gene xol-1. In turn, xol-1 levels determine sexual fate and the activation state of the dosage compensation mechanism. The crystal structure of the XOL-1 protein at 1.55 A resolution unexpectedly reveals that xol-1 encodes a GHMP kinase family member, despite sequence identity of 10% or less. Because GHMP kinases, thus far, have only been characterized as small molecule kinases involved in metabolic pathways, for example, amino acid and cholesterol synthesis, XOL-1 is the first member that controls nonmetabolic processes. Biochemical investigations demonstrated that XOL-1 does not bind ATP under standard conditions, suggesting that XOL-1 acts by a mechanism distinct from that of other GHMP kinases. In addition, we have cloned a XOL-1 ortholog from Caenorhabditis briggsae, a related nematode that diverged from C. elegans approximately 50-100 million years ago. These findings demonstrate an unanticipated role for GHMP kinase family members as mediators of sexual differentiation and dosage compensation and, possibly, other aspects of differentiation and development.

PubMed: 12672694
DOI: 10.1101/gad.1082303

Experimental method

X-RAY DIFFRACTION (1.55 Å)