Open AccessFRQ-CK1 Interaction Underlies Temperature Compensation of the Neurospora Circadian Clock
Author(s) -
Yue Hu,
Xiaolan Liu,
Qiaojia Lu,
YuLin Yang,
Qun He,
Yi Liu,
Xiao Liu
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
mbio
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.562
H-Index - 121
eISSN - 2161-2129
pISSN - 2150-7511
DOI - 10.1128/mbio.01425-21
Subject(s) - circadian clock , neurospora , compensation (psychology) , circadian rhythm , biological clock , mechanism (biology) , constant (computer programming) , biology , microbiology and biotechnology , biophysics , chemistry , neurospora crassa , physics , neuroscience , computer science , genetics , psychology , gene , quantum mechanics , mutant , psychoanalysis , programming language
Temperature compensation is a fundamental property of all circadian clocks; temperature compensation results in a relatively constant period length at different physiological temperatures, but its mechanism is unclear. Formation of a stable complex between clock proteins and casein kinase 1 (CK1) is a conserved feature in eukaryotic circadian mechanisms. Here, we show that the FRQ-CK1 interaction and CK1-mediated FRQ phosphorylation, not FRQ stability, are main mechanisms responsible for the circadian temperature compensation phenotypes in Neurospora . Inhibition of CK1 kinase activity impaired the temperature compensation profile. Importantly, both the loss of temperature compensation and temperature overcompensation phenotypes of the wild-type and different clock mutant strains can be explained by temperature-dependent alterations of the FRQ-CK1 interaction. Furthermore, mutations that were designed to specifically affect the FRQ-CK1 interaction resulted in impaired temperature compensation of the clock. Together, these results reveal the temperature-compensated FRQ-CK1 interaction, which results in temperature-compensated CK1-mediated FRQ and WC phosphorylation, as a main biochemical process that underlies the mechanism of circadian temperature compensation in Neurospora .