Issue 11, 2024

Native mass spectrometry of complexes formed by molecular glues reveals stoichiometric rearrangement of E3 ligases

Abstract

In this application of native mass spectrometry (nMS) to investigate complexes formed by molecular glues (MGs), we have demonstrated its efficiency in delineating stoichiometric rearrangements of E3 ligases that occur during targeted protein degradation (TPD). MGs stabilise interactions between an E3 ligase and a protein of interest (POI) targeted for degradation, and these ternary interactions are challenging to characterise. We have shown that nMS can unambiguously identify complexes formed between the CRBN : DDB1 E3 ligase and the POI GSPT1 upon the addition of lenalidomide, pomalidomide or thalidomide. Ternary complex formation was also identified involving the DCAF15 : DDA1 : DDB1 E3 ligase in the presence of MG (E7820 or indisulam) and POI RBM39. Moreover, we uncovered that the DCAF15 : DDA1 : DDB1 E3 ligase self-associates into dimers and trimers when analysed alone at low salt concentrations (100 mM ammonium acetate) which dissociate into single copies of the complex at higher salt concentrations (500 mM ammonium acetate), or upon the addition of MG and POI, forming a 1 : 1 : 1 ternary complex. This work demonstrates the strength of nMS in TPD research, reveals novel binding mechanisms of the DCAF15 E3 ligase, and its self-association into dimers and trimers at reduced salt concentration during structural analysis.

Graphical abstract: Native mass spectrometry of complexes formed by molecular glues reveals stoichiometric rearrangement of E3 ligases

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
22 Jan 2024
Accepted
15 Apr 2024
First published
16 Apr 2024
This article is Open Access
Creative Commons BY license

Analyst, 2024,149, 3178-3185

Native mass spectrometry of complexes formed by molecular glues reveals stoichiometric rearrangement of E3 ligases

C. Jackson and R. Beveridge, Analyst, 2024, 149, 3178 DOI: 10.1039/D4AN00110A

This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported Licence. You can use material from this article in other publications without requesting further permissions from the RSC, provided that the correct acknowledgement is given.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements