Ubiquitin ligase LNX1 is a major regulator of glycine recapture by the presynaptic transporter GlyT2

The neuronal glycine transporter GlyT2 is an essential regulator of glycinergic neurotransmission that recaptures glycine in presynaptic terminals to facilitate quantal transmitter packaging in synaptic vesicles. Alterations in GlyT2 expression or activity result in lower cytosolic glycine levels, emptying glycinergic synaptic vesicles and impairing neurotransmission. Lack of glycinergic neurotransmission caused by GlyT2 loss-of-function mutations results in Hyperekplexia, a rare neurological disease characterized by generalized stiffness and motor alterations that may result in sudden infant death. Although the importance of GlyT2 in pathology is known, how this transporter is regulated at the molecular level is poorly understood, limiting current therapeutic strategies. Guided by an unbiased screening, we discovered that the E3 ubiquitin ligase Ligand of Numb protein X1 (LNX1) modulates the ubiquitination status of GlyT2. LNX1 ubiquitinates a cytoplasmic C-terminal lysine cluster in GlyT2 (K751, K773, K787 and K791) through its N-terminus RING-finger domain, and this process regulates the expression levels and transport activity of GlyT2 in neurons. These experiments reveal for the first time the identity of an E3 ubiquitin-ligase acting on GlyT2 and identify a novel regulatory mechanism by which neurons regulate GlyT2 expression and activity.