- Thomsen, Alex RB;
- Plouffe, Bianca;
- Cahill, Thomas J;
- Shukla, Arun K;
- Tarrasch, Jeffrey T;
- Dosey, Annie M;
- Kahsai, Alem W;
- Strachan, Ryan T;
- Pani, Biswaranjan;
- Mahoney, Jacob P;
- Huang, Liyin;
- Breton, Billy;
- Heydenreich, Franziska M;
- Sunahara, Roger K;
- Skiniotis, Georgios;
- Bouvier, Michel;
- Lefkowitz, Robert J
Classically, G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) stimulation promotes G protein signaling at the plasma membrane, followed by rapid β-arrestin-mediated desensitization and receptor internalization into endosomes. However, it has been demonstrated that some GPCRs activate G proteins from within internalized cellular compartments, resulting in sustained signaling. We have used a variety of biochemical, biophysical, and cell-based methods to demonstrate the existence, functionality, and architecture of internalized receptor complexes composed of a single GPCR, β-arrestin, and G protein. These super-complexes or "megaplexes" more readily form at receptors that interact strongly with β-arrestins via a C-terminal tail containing clusters of serine/threonine phosphorylation sites. Single-particle electron microscopy analysis of negative-stained purified megaplexes reveals that a single receptor simultaneously binds through its core region with G protein and through its phosphorylated C-terminal tail with β-arrestin. The formation of such megaplexes provides a potential physical basis for the newly appreciated sustained G protein signaling from internalized GPCRs.