Selectivity of mTOR-Phosphatidic Acid Interactions Is Driven by Acyl Chain Structure and Cholesterol

The need to gain insights into the molecular details of peripheral membrane proteins’ specificity towards phosphatidic acid (PA) is undeniable. The variety of PA species classified in terms of acyl chain length and saturation translates into a complicated, enigmatic network of functional effects that exert a critical influence on cell physiology. As a consequence, numerous studies on the importance of phosphatidic acid in human diseases have been conducted in recent years. One of the key proteins in this context is mTOR, considered to be the most important cellular sensor of essential nutrients while regulating cell proliferation, and which also appears to require PA to build stable and active complexes. Here, we investigated the specific recognition of three physiologically important PA species by the mTOR FRB domain in the presence or absence of cholesterol in targeted membranes. Using a broad range of methods based on model lipid membrane systems, we elucidated how the length and saturation of PA acyl chains influence specific binding of the mTOR FRB domain to the membrane. We also discovered that cholesterol exerts a strong modulatory effect on PA-FRB recognition. Our data provide insight into the molecular details of some physiological effects reported previously and reveal novel mechanisms of fine-tuning the signaling cascades dependent on PA.