Effects of Membrane Charge and Order on Membrane Binding of the Retroviral Structural Protein Gag

Unlabelled: The retroviral structural protein Gag binds to the inner leaflet of the plasma membrane (PM), and many cellular proteins do so as well. We used Rous sarcoma virus (RSV) Gag together with membrane sensors to study the principles governing peripheral protein membrane binding, including electrostatics, specific recognition of phospholipid headgroups, sensitivity to phospholipid acyl chain compositions, preference for membrane order, and protein multimerization. We used an in vitro liposome-pelleting assay to test protein membrane binding properties of Gag, the well-characterized MARCKS peptide, a series of fluorescent electrostatic sensor proteins (mNG-KRn), and the specific phosphatidylserine (PS) binding protein Evectin2. RSV Gag and mNG-KRn bound well to membranes with saturated and unsaturated acyl chains, whereas the MARCKS peptide and Evectin2 preferentially bound to membranes with unsaturated acyl chains. To further discriminate whether the primary driving force for Gag membrane binding is electrostatic interactions or preference for membrane order, we measured protein binding to giant unilamellar vesicles (GUVs) containing the same PS concentration in both disordered (Ld) and ordered (Lo) phases. RSV Gag and mNG-KRn membrane association followed membrane charge, independent of membrane order. Consistent with pelleting data, the MARCKS peptide showed preference for the Ld domain. Surprisingly, the PS sensor Evectin2 bound to the PS-rich Ld domain with 10-fold greater affinity than to the PS-rich Lo domain. In summary, we found that RSV Gag shows no preference for membrane order, while proteins with reported membrane-penetrating domains show preference for disordered membranes.

Importance: Retroviral particles assemble on the PM and bud from infected cells. Our understanding of how Gag interacts with the PM and how different membrane properties contribute to overall Gag assembly is incomplete. This study examined how membrane charge and membrane order influence Gag membrane association. Consistent with previous work on RSV Gag, we report here that electrostatic interactions provide the primary driving force for RSV Gag membrane association. Using phase-separated GUVs with known lipid composition of the Ld and Lo phases, we demonstrate for the first time that RSV Gag is sensitive to membrane charge but not membrane order. In contrast, the cellular protein domain MARCKS and the PS sensor Evectin2 show preference for disordered membranes. We also demonstrate how to define GUV phase composition, which could serve as a tool in future studies of protein membrane interactions.