A. Sorkin et al., Interaction of EGF receptor and Grb2 in living cells visualized by fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) microscopy, CURR BIOL, 10(21), 2000, pp. 1395-1398
The interaction of activated epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) with t
he Src homology 2 (SH2) domain of the growth-factor-receptor binding protei
n Grb2 initiates signaling through Ras and mitogen-activated protein kinase
(MAP kinase) [1,2]. Activation of EGFRs by ligand also triggers rapid endo
cytosis of EGF-receptor complexes. To analyze the spatiotemporal regulation
of EGFR-Grb2 interactions in living cells, we have combined imaging micros
copy with a modified method of measuring fluorescence resonance energy tran
sfer (FRET) on a pixel-by-pixel basis using EGFR fused to cyan fluorescent
protein (CFP) and Grb2 fused to yellow fluorescent protein (YFP). Efficient
energy transfer between CFP and YFP should only occur if CFP and YFP are l
ess than 50 A apart, which requires direct interaction of the EGFR and Grb2
fused to these fluorescent moieties [3]. Stimulation by EGF resulted in th
e recruitment of Grb2-YFP to cellular compartments that contained EGFR-CFP
and a large increase in FRET signal amplitude. In particular, FRET measurem
ents indicated that activated EGFR-CFP interacted with Grb2-YFP in membrane
ruffles and endosomes, These results demonstrate that signaling via EGFRs
can occur in the endosomal compartment. The work also highlights the potent
ial of FRET microscopy in the study of subcellular compartmentalization of
protein-protein interactions in living cells.