SNAP-25, a t-SNARE which binds to both syntaxin and synaptobrevin via domains that may form coiled coils

The membrane proteins SNAP-25, syntaxin, and synaptobrevin (vesicle-associated membrane protein) have recently been implicated as central elements of an exocytotic membrane fusion complex in neurons. Here we report that SNAP-25 binds directly to both syntaxin and synaptobrevin. The SNAP-25-binding domain of syntaxin lies between residues 199 and 243, within the region previously shown to mediate synaptobrevin binding (Calakos, N., Bennett, M. K., Peterson, K. E., and Scheller, R. H. (1994) Science 263, 1146-1149). The syntaxin-binding domain of SNAP-25 encompasses most of the amino-terminal half of SNAP-25, including its putative palmitoylation sites. Truncation of the carboxyl-terminal 9 residues of SNAP-25, which yields a fragment corresponding to that generated by botulinum neurotoxin A, diminishes the interaction of SNAP-25 with synaptobrevin, but not with syntaxin. Sequence analysis revealed that the regions that mediate the interaction between SNAP-25 and syntaxin contain heptad repeats characteristic of certain classes of alpha-helices. Similar repeats are also present at the carboxyl terminus of SNAP-25 and in synaptobrevin. These domains have a moderate to high probability of forming coiled coils. We conclude that SNAP-25 can interact with both syntaxin and synaptobrevin and that binding may be mediated by alpha-helical domains that form intermolecular coiled-coil structures.