Conserved motif examples: LxxLxL, LxxLxLxxN/CxL
CAUTION: This Pfam may not find all Leucine Rich Repeats in a protein. Leucine Rich Repeats are short sequence motifs present in a number of proteins with diverse functions and cellular locations. These repeats are usually involved in protein-protein interactions. Each Leucine Rich Repeat is composed of a beta-alpha unit. These units form elongated non-globular structures. Leucine Rich Repeats are often flanked by cysteine rich domains.
Description
Leucine-rich repeats (LRRs) are 20-29-residue sequence motifs present in tandem arrays a number of proteins with diverse functions, such as hormone receptor interactions, enzyme inhibition, cell adhesion and cellular trafficking. A number of recent studies revealed the involvement of LRR proteins in early mammalian development, neural development, cell polarization, regulation of gene expression and apoptosis signalling. It was shown that LRRs may be critical to the morphology and dynamics of cytoskeleton. The primary function of these motifs appears to be to provide a versatile structural framework for the formation of protein-protein interactions.
Sequence analyses of LRR proteins suggested the existence of several different subfamilies of LRRs. The significance of this classification is that repeats from different subfamilies never occur simultaneously and have most probably evolved independently. It is, however, now clear that all major classes of LRR have curved horseshoe structures with a parallel beta sheet on the concave side and mostly helical elements on the convex side. At least six families of LRR proteins, characterized by different lengths and consensus sequences of the repeats, have been identified. Eleven-residue segments of the LRRs (LxxLxLxxN/CxL), corresponding to the §-strand and adjacent loop regions, are conserved in LRR proteins, whereas the remaining parts of the repeats (herein termed variable) may be very different. Despite the differences, each of the variable parts contains two half-turns at both ends and a "linear" segment (as the chain follows a linear path overall), usually formed by a helix, in the middle. The concave face and the adjacent loops are the most common protein interaction surfaces on LRR proteins. 3D structure of some LRR proteins-ligand complexes show that the concave surface of LRR domain is ideal for interaction with alpha-helix, thus supporting earlier conclusions that the elongated and curved LRR structure provides an outstanding framework for achieving diverse protein-protein interactions . Molecular modeling suggests that the conserved pattern LxxLxL, which is shorter than the previously proposed LxxLxLxxN/CxL is sufficient to impart the characteristic horseshoe curvature to proteins with 20- to 30-residue repeats.
Description text from InterPro entry IPR001611