Vyslouzil, D. | Search bioRxiv

bioRxiv2023

Tau-Tubulin Kinase 2 restrains microtubule-depolymerizer KIF2A to support primary cilia growth.

The initiation of assembly of primary cilia, organelles with crucial functions in development and disease, is under the control of Tau-Tubulin Kinase 2 (TTBK2). Recent work has implicated TTBK2 also in the regulation of primary cilia maintenance and function. However, the mechanisms underlying individual functions of TTBK2 in primary cilia are not fully understood. Here, to dissect the role of TTBK2 in primary cilia maintenance in human cells, we examined disease related TTBK2 truncations. We demonstrate that these truncated protein moieties show selective activity towards TTBK2 substrates. This creates a semi-permissive condition where partial TTBK2 activity suffices to support the initiation of ciliogenesis but fails to sustain primary cilia length. Subsequently, we show that the defects in primary cilia growth are linked to aberrant turnover of kinesin KIF2A at basal body. Furthermore, we demonstrate that TTBK2 regulates KIF2A by phosphorylation, which in turn restrains its levels at the ciliary base to promote primary cilia elongation and maintenance. Taken together, our data highlight the regulation of KIF2A by TTBK2 as an important mechanism governing primary cilia in human cells.

cell biology↗

bioRxiv2019

Phosphorylation of multiple proteins involved in ciliogenesis by Tau Tubulin kinase 2

Primary cilia (PC) are organelles necessary for proper implementation of developmental and homeostasis processes. To initiate their assembly, coordinated actions of multiple proteins are needed. Tau tubulin kinase 2 (TTBK2) is a key player in the cilium assembly pathway, controlling final step of cilia initiation. The function of TTBK2 in ciliogenesisis is critically dependent on its kinase activity, however, precise mechanism of TTBK2 action is so far incompletely understood, due to very limited information about its relevant substrates. In this study we identify CEP83, CEP89, CCDC92, Rabin8 and DVL3 as substrates of TTBK2 kinase activity. Further, we characterise a set of phosphosites of the newly identified substrates and CEP164, induced by TTBK2 in vitro and in vivo. Intriguingly, we further show that identified TTBK2 phosphosites and consensus sequence delineated from those are distinct from motifs previously assigned to TTBK2. Finally, we address functional relevance of selected phosphorylations of CEP164 and provide evidence that the examined TTBK2-induced phosphorylations of CEP164 are relevant for the process of cilia formation. In summary, our work provides important insight into substrates-TTBK2 kinase relationship and suggests that phosphorylation of substrates on multiple sites by TTBK2 is probably involved in the control of ciliogenesis in human cells.

cell biology↗