Identification of tetratricopeptide repeat 1 as an adaptor protein that interacts with heterotrimeric G proteins and the small GTPase Ras

The biological functions of heterotrimeric G proteins and small GTPases are modulated by both extracellular stimuli and intracellular regulatory proteins. Using Saccharomyces cerevisiae two-hybrid screening, we identified tetratricopeptide repeat 1 (TPR1), a 292-amino-acid protein with three TPR motifs, as a Gα16-binding protein. The interaction was confirmed both in vitro and in transfected mammalian cells, where TPR1 also binds to several other Gα proteins. TPR1 was found to interact with Ha-Ras preferentially in its active form. Overexpression of TPR1 promotes accumulation of active Ras. TPRI was found to compete with the Ras-binding domain (RBD) of Raf-1 for binding to the active Ras, suggesting that it may also compete with Ras GTPase-activating protein, thus contributing to the accumulation of GTP-bound Ras. Expression of Gα16 strongly enhances the interaction between TPR1 and Ras. Removal of the TPR1 N-terminal 112 residues abolishes potentiation by Gα16 while maintaining the interaction with Gα16 and the ability to discriminate active Ras from wild-type Ras. We have also observed that LGN, a Gαi-interacting protein with seven TPR motifs, binds Ha-Ras. Thus, TPR1 is a novel adaptor protein for Ras and selected Gα proteins that may be involved in protein-protein interaction relating to G-protein signaling.