Structure of the intracellular domain of the amyloid precursor protein in complex with Fe65-PTB2

Cleavage of the amyloid precursor protein (APP) is a crucial event in Alzheimer disease pathogenesis that creates the amyloid-β peptide (Aβ) and liberates the carboxy-terminal APP intracellular domain (AICD) into the cytosol. The interaction of the APP C terminus with the adaptor protein Fe65 mediates APP trafficking and signalling, and is thought to regulate APP processing and Aβ generation. We determined the crystal structure of the AICD in complex with the C-terminal phosphotyrosine-binding (PTB) domain of Fe65. The unique interface involves the NPxY PTB-binding motif and two α helices. The amino-terminal helix of the AICD is capped by threonine T⁶⁶⁸, an Alzheimer disease-relevant phosphorylation site involved in Fe65-binding regulation. The structure together with mutational studies, isothermal titration calorimetry and nuclear magnetic resonance experiments sets the stage for understanding T⁶⁶⁸ phosphorylation-dependent complex regulation at a molecular level. A molecular switch model is proposed.