Abstract:
Mutations in anion exchanger 1 (AE1) gene may lead to defects in kAE1 protein that
result in autosomal dominant (AD) and autosomal recessive (AR) distal renal tubular
acidosis (dRTA), a kidney disease characterized by a defect in acid secretion of α-
intercalated cells located in the distal renal tubular region. The recessive AE1 G701D
mutation is frequently observed in Thai and Southeast Asian populations in homozygous
condition (G701D/G701D), and also found in the form of compound heterozygote with
Southeast Asian ovalocytosis (SAO) mutation (SAO/G701D), which was first identified in
Thailand. The defects of kAE1 SAO and kAE1 G701D mutants have been shown to be
different. The erythroid isoform of AE1 (eAE1) SAO shows an impaired anion transport
activity in red cells and Xenopus oocytes, although it can be inserted into the plasma
membrane. eAE1 G701D exhibits normal transport function in the red cells whereas eAE1
and kAE1 G701D lack transport activity and cell surface expression in oocytes, which can
be corrected and rescued by co-expression with glycophorin A (GPA). In cultured
mammalian cells, individually expressed kAE1 SAO and kAE1 G701D are retained
intracellularly, showing trafficking defect. Although expression and trafficking of kAE1
SAO and G701D have been individually studied in cultured mammalian cells, no data
exists on the study of co-expression between kAE1 SAO and G701D. To understand the
situation that mimics compound heterozygous AE1 SAO/G701D condition resulting in AR
dRTA, this study examined the trafficking and subcellular localization of the expressed and
co-expressed versions kAE1, of wild-type kAE1, kAE1 SAO and G701D, and also studied
the interactions between wild-type kAE1 and kAE1 SAO, wild-type kAE1 and kAE1
G701D, and kAE1 SAO and kAE1 G701D in transiently transfected human embryonic
kidney 293 (HEK 293) cells. Plasmids containing either wild-type or mutant kAE1 genes
all fused with the sequence of either six-histidine (6xHis), hemagglutinin (HA) or Myc
epitope tag were constructed to be used in experiments. The wild-type and mutant kAE1
proteins fused with the epitope tags were expressed in HEK 293 cells, as detected by
Western-blot method. When they were individually expressed, the wild-type kAE1 was
localized at the cell surface, while the mutant kAE1 SAO and kAE1 G701D were
intracellularly retained. Co-expressions of wild-type kAE1 with either kAE1 SAO or
G701D demonstrated that they could interact to form heterodimers, and that the wild-type
kAE1 could rescue the two mutant kAE1 to be expressed on the cell surface. The coexpression
of kAE1 SAO and G701D showed that they could also interact but were
intracellularly retained. This would most likely be a molecular mechanism of AR dRTA,
associated with compound heterozygous AE1 SAO/G701D mutation in the patients,
especially in the Southeast Asian populations