Structural basis for autoinhibition and its relief of MOB1 in the Hippo pathway

MOB1 protein is a key regulator of large tumor suppressor 1/2 (LATS1/2) kinases in the Hippo pathway. MOB1 is present in an autoinhibited form and is activated by MST1/2-mediated phosphorylation, although the precise mechanisms responsible for autoinhibition and activation are unknown due to lack of an autoinhibited MOB1 structure. Here, we report on the crystal structure of full-length MOB1B in the autoinhibited form and a complex between the MOB1B core domain and the N-terminal regulation (NTR) domain of LATS1. The structure of full-length MOB1B shows that the N-terminal extension forms a short β-strand, the S N strand, followed by a long conformationally flexible positively-charged linker and α-helix, the Switch helix, which blocks the LATS1 binding surface of MOB1B. The Switch helix is stabilized by β-sheet formation of the S N strand with the S2 strand of the MOB1 core domain. Phosphorylation of Thr12 and Thr35 residues structurally accelerates dissociation of the Switch helix from the LATS1-binding surface by the “pull-the-string” mechanism, thereby enabling LATS1 binding.