International Union of Crystallography, Acta Crystallographica Section F: Structural Biology and Crystallization Communications, 11(67), p. 1310-1315, 2011
DOI: 10.1107/s1744309111029368
Full text: Download
Fis1 mediates mitochondrial and peroxisomal fission. It is tail-anchored to these organelles by a transmembrane domain, exposing a soluble cytoplasmic domain. Previous studies suggested that Fis1 is autoinhibited by its N-terminal region. Here, a 1.75 Å resolution crystal structure of the Fis1 cytoplasmic domain from Saccharomyces cerevisiae is reported which adopts a tetratricopeptide-repeat fold. It is observed that this fold creates a concave surface important for fission, but is sterically occluded by its N-terminal region. Thus, this structure provides a physical basis for autoinhibition and allows a detailed examination of the interactions that stabilize the inhibited state of this molecule.