BRAG2a, a Guanine Nucleotide Exchange Factor for Arf6, Is a Component of the Dystrophin-Associated Glycoprotein Complex at the Photoreceptor Terminal.

Mutations in genes encoding the dystrophin-associated glycoprotein complex (DGC) can cause muscular dystrophy and disturb synaptic transmission in the photoreceptor ribbon synapse. However, the molecular composition and specific functions of the photoreceptor DGC remain unknown. Brefeldin A-resistant Arf-GEF 2 (BRAG2), also known as IQSEC1, is a guanine nucleotide exchange factor for ADP-ribosylation factor 6 (Arf6), a critical GTPase that regulates endosomal trafficking and actin cytoskeleton remodeling. In the present study, we characterized the expression of BRAG2a, an alternative splicing isoform of BRAG2, in the adult mouse photoreceptor.

Immunofluorescence and immunoelectron microscopic analyses of adult mouse retinas were performed using a novel anti-BRAG2a antibody. Pull-down, immunoprecipitation, and in situ proximity ligation assays were performed to examine the interaction between BRAG2a and the DGC in vivo.

Immunofluorescence demonstrated punctate colocalization of BRAG2a with β-dystroglycan in the outer plexiform layer. Immunoelectron microscopy revealed the localization of BRAG2a at the plasma membrane of lateral walls and processes of photoreceptor terminals within the synaptic cavity. Pull-down and immunoprecipitation assays using retinal lysates demonstrated the protein complex formation between BRAG2a with the DGC. In situ proximity ligation assays further detected a close spatial relationship between BRAG2a and β-dystroglycan in the outer plexiform layer.

The present study provided evidence that BRAG2a is a novel component of the photoreceptor DGC, suggesting functional involvement of the BRAG2a-Arf6 pathway downstream of the DGC.