The arrestin-domain containing protein AdcA is a response element to stress

BACKGROUND: Cell behaviour is tightly determined by sensing and integration of extracellular changes through membrane detectors such as receptors and transporters and activation of downstream signalling cascades. Arrestin proteins act as scaffolds at the plasma membrane and along the endocytic pathway, where they regulate the activity and the fate of some of these detectors. Members of the arrestin clan are widely present from unicellular to metazoa, with roles in signal transduction and metabolism. As a soil amoeba, Dictyostelium is frequently confronted with environmental changes likely to compromise survival. Here, we investigated whether the recently described arrestin-related protein AdcA is part of the cell response to stresses. RESULTS: Our data provide evidence that AdcA responds to a variety of stresses including hyperosmolarity by a transient phosphorylation. Analysis in different mutant backgrounds revealed that AdcA phosphorylation involves pathways other than the DokA and cGMP-dependent osmostress pathways, respectively known to regulate PKA and STATc, key actors in the cellular response to conditions of hyperosmolarity. Interestingly, however, both AdcA and STATc are sensitive to changes in the F-actin polymerization status, suggesting a common primary sensor/trigger and linking the stress-sensitive kinase responsive for AdcA phosphorylation to the actin cytoskeleton. We also show that STATc-dependent transcriptional activity is involved for the timely dephosphorylation of AdcA in cells under stress. CONCLUSION: Under osmotic stress, AdcA undergoes a phosphorylation-dephosphorylation cycle involving a stress-sensitive kinase and the transcription regulator STATc. This transient post-transcriptional modification may allow a regulation of AdcA function possibly to optimize the cellular stress response.