Adenylyl cyclase G is activated by an intramolecular osmosensor

NOTE: THE SYMBOLS/SPECIAL CHARACTERS IN THIS ABSTRACT CANNOT BE DISPLAYED CORRECTLY ON THIS PAGE. PLEASE REFER TO THE ABSTRACT ON THE PUBLISHER’S WEBSITE FOR AN ACCURATE DISPLAY. Adenylyl cyclase G (ACG) is activated by high osmolality and mediates inhibition of spore germination by this stress factor. The catalytic domains of all eukaryote cyclases are active as dimers and dimerization often mediates activation. To investigate the role of dimerization in ACG activation, we coexpressed ACG with an ACG construct that lacked the catalytic domain (ACG cat) and was driven by a UV-inducible promoter. After UV induction of ACG cat, cAMP production by ACG was strongly inhibited, but osmostimulation was not reduced. Size fractionation of native ACG showed that dimers were formed between ACG molecules and between ACG and ACG cat. However, high osmolality did not alter the dimer/monomer ratio. This indicates that ACG activity requires dimerization via a region outside the catalytic domain but that dimer formation does not mediate activation by high osmolality. To establish whether ACG required auxiliary sensors for osmostimulation, we expressed ACG cDNA in a yeast adenylyl cyclase null mutant. In yeast, cAMP production by ACG was similarly activated by high osmolality as in Dictyostelium. This strongly suggests that the ACG osmosensor is intramolecular, which would define ACG as the first characterized primary osmosensor in eukaryotes.