Prion-like domains in RNA binding proteins are essential for building subnuclear paraspeckles (#228)
Prion-like
domains (PLDs) are low complexity sequences found in RNA-binding proteins
associated with the neurodegenerative disorder amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
Recently, PLDs have been implicated in mediating gene regulation via
liquid-phase transitions that drive RNA/protein granule assembly. Here we report enrichment of PLDs in proteins
associated with paraspeckles, nuclear organelles that form around long
non-coding RNA. We mapped the interactome network of paraspeckle proteins,
identifying hubs with PLDs. We show that
one protein, RBM14, connects key paraspeckle subcomplexes, and confirm these
interactions are mediated via its PLD.
We further show that this domain is required to rescue paraspeckle
formation in RBM14-depeleted cells.
Similar to another essential paraspeckle protein, FUS, the RBM14 PLD forms
hydrogels with amyloid-like properties. These
results not only suggest a role for PLD-mediated liquid-phase transitions in
paraspeckle formation, but also highlight this nuclear body as an excellent
model system for understanding the perturbation of such processes in
neurodegeneration.