Figure 2.
Sequence and structure of the WH2 domain. (A) Alignments of the WH2 domains and WH2-related sequences of the proteins discussed here. Conservation scores for each amino acid were calculated based on a larger alignment of 100 representative sequences of WH2 domains from different proteins and species (not shown). Ten of the amino acids positions of the WH2 domain are conserved in more than 50% of the sequences (consensus 50%). The UniProt accession codes of the sequences shown are: human WASP, P42768; Drosophila melanogaster Spire, Q9U1K1-1; human Cobl, O75128-1; Vibrio parahaemolyticus VopL, Q87GE5; Rickettsia conorii Sca2, Q92JF7; human Lmod1, P29536; human Lmod2, Q6P5Q4-1; human N-WASP, O00401; human WAVE1, Q92558; human WAVE2, Q9Y6W5-1; human WHAMM, Q8TF30; Rickettsia conorii RickA, Q92H62; Saccharomyces cerevisiae LAS17, Q12446; human WIP, Q8TF74; human MIM, O43312; Dictyostelium discoideum actobindin, Q55DU1; Schizosaccharomyces pombe PAN1, Q10172; human Espin, B1AK53; human INF2, Q27J81-1; mouse mDia1, O08808; mouse FMNL3, Q6ZPF4; and human VASP, P50552. (B) Structure of the WH2 domain of WASP (the founding member of the WH2 domain family) bound to actin (PDB code: 2A3Z) [68]. The actin subdomains are labeled 1 to 4. (C) WH2 domain of human WASP, showing the side chains of the 10 residues that are conserved in more than 50% of the sequences, which most interact with actin.