High-throughput investigation of cyclin docking interactions reveals the complexity of motif binding determinants
Abstract Many regulatory protein-protein interactions depend on Short Linear Motifs (SLiMs). In the cell cycle, cyclin-CDKs recognize SLiMs to control substrate recruitment and phosphorylation timing. Here, we measure the relative binding strength of ~100,000 peptides to 11 human cyclins from five f...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Nature Portfolio
2025-08-01
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| Series: | Nature Communications |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-62765-z |
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| Summary: | Abstract Many regulatory protein-protein interactions depend on Short Linear Motifs (SLiMs). In the cell cycle, cyclin-CDKs recognize SLiMs to control substrate recruitment and phosphorylation timing. Here, we measure the relative binding strength of ~100,000 peptides to 11 human cyclins from five families (D, E, A, B, and F). Using a quantitative intracellular binding assay and large-scale tiled peptide screening, we identify multiple non-canonical binders unveiling a broader repertoire of cyclin docking motif types. Cryo-electron microscopy and saturation mutagenesis studies reveal distinct binding modes and sequence features governing motif recognition, binding strength, and cyclin preference. Docking motifs vary from highly selective to pan-cyclin, thereby fine-tuning the timing of CDK phosphorylation during cell cycle. Overall, these findings provide insights into the rules encoding specificity and affinity of SLiM-mediated interactions and offer a framework for understanding motif-driven protein networks across the proteome. |
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| ISSN: | 2041-1723 |