1. Academic Validation
  2. Plasticity of the Cullin-RING Ligase Repertoire Shapes Sensitivity to Ligand-Induced Protein Degradation

Plasticity of the Cullin-RING Ligase Repertoire Shapes Sensitivity to Ligand-Induced Protein Degradation

  • Mol Cell. 2019 Aug 22;75(4):849-858.e8. doi: 10.1016/j.molcel.2019.07.013.
Cristina Mayor-Ruiz 1 Martin G Jaeger 2 Sophie Bauer 2 Matthias Brand 2 Celine Sin 2 Alexander Hanzl 2 André C Mueller 2 Jörg Menche 2 Georg E Winter 3
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 CeMM Research Center for Molecular Medicine of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, Lazarettgasse 14, AKH BT 25.3, 1090 Vienna, Austria. Electronic address: [email protected].
  • 2 CeMM Research Center for Molecular Medicine of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, Lazarettgasse 14, AKH BT 25.3, 1090 Vienna, Austria.
  • 3 CeMM Research Center for Molecular Medicine of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, Lazarettgasse 14, AKH BT 25.3, 1090 Vienna, Austria. Electronic address: [email protected].
Abstract

Inducing protein degradation via small molecules is a transformative therapeutic paradigm. Although structural requirements of target degradation are emerging, mechanisms determining the cellular response to small-molecule degraders remain poorly understood. To systematically delineate effectors required for targeted protein degradation, we applied genome-scale CRISPR/Cas9 screens for five drugs that hijack different substrate receptors (SRs) of cullin RING ligases (CRLs) to induce target proteolysis. We found that sensitivity to small-molecule degraders is dictated by shared and drug-specific modulator networks, including the COP9 signalosome and the SR exchange factor CAND1. Genetic or pharmacologic perturbation of these effectors impairs CRL plasticity and arrests a wide array of ligases in a constitutively active state. Resulting defects in CRL decommissioning prompt widespread CRL auto-degradation that confers resistance to multiple degraders. Collectively, our study informs on regulation and architecture of CRLs amenable for targeted protein degradation and outlines biomarkers and putative resistance mechanisms for upcoming clinical investigation.

Keywords

CAND1; CRISPR resistance screens; CSN; PROTACs; chemical biology; chemogenetics; molecular glues; targeted protein degradation.

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