Brr6 and Brl1 locate to nuclear pore complex assembly sites to promote their biogenesis

The paralogous Brr6 and Brl1 are conserved integral membrane proteins of the nuclear envelope (NE) with an unclear role in nuclear pore complex (NPC) biogenesis. Here, we analyzed double-degron mutants of Brr6/Brl1 to understand this function. Depletion of Brr6 and Brl1 caused defects in NPC biogenesis, whereas the already assembled NPCs remained unaffected. This NPC biogenesis defect was not accompanied by a change in lipid composition. However, Brl1 interacted with Ndc1 and Nup188 by immunoprecipitation, and with transmembrane and outer and inner ring NPC components by split yellow fluorescent protein analysis, indicating a direct role in NPC biogenesis. Consistently, we found that Brr6 and Brl1 associated with a subpopulation of NPCs and emerging NPC assembly sites. Moreover, BRL1 overexpression affected NE morphology without a change in lipid composition and completely suppressed the nuclear pore biogenesis defect of nup116Δ and gle2Δ cells. We propose that Brr6 and Brl1 transiently associate with NPC assembly sites where they promote NPC biogenesis.