Probing a Plant Plasma Membrane Receptor Kinase's Three-Dimensional Structure Using Mass Spectrometry-Based Protein Footprinting

FERONIA (FER), one of the 17 malectin-like receptor-like kinases encoded in the Arabidopsis genome, acts as a receptor for a 5 kDa growth-inhibiting secreted protein hormone, rapid alkalinization factor 1 (RALF1). Upon binding the peptide ligand, FER is involved in a variety of signaling pathways eliciting ovule fertilization and vegetative root cell expansion. Here, we report the use of mass spectrometry-based, carbodiimide-mediated protein carboxyl group (aspartic and glutamic acid) footprinting to map solvent accessible amino acids of the ectodomain of FER (ectoFER), including those involved in RALF1 binding and/or allosteric changes. Aspartate and glutamate residues labeled in this procedure were located in various regions, including the N-terminus, malectin-like domains, and juxtamembrane region, and these correlated well with a three-dimensional structural model of ectoFER predicted from the crystal structure of a related receptor. Covalent cross-linking experiments also revealed the N-terminus of ectoFER linked to the highly conserved C-terminus of RALF1. RALF1 binding assays performed with truncation mutants of ectoFER further implicated the receptor N-terminal and juxtamembrane regions in the binding of RALF1. In conclusion, our results of mass spectrometry-based footprinting methods provide a framework for understanding ligand-induced changes in solvent accessibility and their positions within the three-dimensional structure of a plant receptor kinase.