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EMBO Press is an editorially independent publishing platform for the development of EMBO scientific publications.

Membrane contact sites between organelles are organized by protein bridges. Among the components of these contacts, the VAP family comprises ER–anchored proteins, such as MOSPD2, that function as major ER–organelle tethers. MOSPD2 distinguishes itself from the other members of the VAP family by the presence of a CRAL-TRIO domain. In this study, we show that MOSPD2 forms ER–lipid droplet (LD) contacts, thanks to its CRAL-TRIO domain. MOSPD2 ensures the attachment of the ER to LDs through a direct protein–membrane interaction. The attachment mechanism involves an amphipathic helix that has an affinity for lipid packing defects present at the surface of LDs. Remarkably, the absence of MOSPD2 markedly disturbs the assembly of lipid droplets. These data show that MOSPD2, in addition to being a general ER receptor for inter-organelle contacts, possesses an additional tethering activity and is specifically implicated in the biology of LDs via its CRAL-TRIO domain.

The mechanisms that regulate the spatial sorting of nonmuscle myosins-2 (NM2) isoforms and couple them mechanically to the plasma membrane are unclear. Here we show that the cytoplasmic junctional proteins cingulin (CGN) and paracingulin (CGNL1) interact directly with NM2s through their C-terminal coiled-coil sequences. CGN binds strongly to NM2B, and CGNL1 to NM2A and NM2B. Knockout (KO), exogenous expression, and rescue experiments with WT and mutant proteins show that the NM2-binding region of CGN is required for the junctional accumulation of NM2B, ZO-1, ZO-3, and phalloidin-labeled actin filaments, and for the maintenance of tight junction membrane tortuosity and apical membrane stiffness. CGNL1 expression promotes the junctional accumulation of both NM2A and NM2B and its KO results in myosin-dependent fragmentation of adherens junction complexes. These results reveal a mechanism for the junctional localization of NM2A and NM2B and indicate that, by binding to NM2s, CGN and CGNL1 mechanically couple the actomyosin cytoskeleton to junctional protein complexes to mechanoregulate the plasma membrane.

Intracellular cholesterol transport is a complex process involving specific carrier proteins. Cholesterol-binding proteins, such as the lipid transfer protein steroidogenic acute regulatory-related lipid transfer domain-3 (STARD3), are implicated in cholesterol movements between organelles. Indeed, STARD3 modulates intracellular cholesterol allocation by reducing it from the plasma membrane and favoring its passage from the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) to endosomes, where the protein is localized. STARD3 interacts with ER-anchored partners, notably vesicle-associated membrane protein-associated proteins (VAP-A and VAP-B) and motile sperm domain-containing 2 (MOSPD2), to create ER–endosome membrane contacts. Mechanistic studies showed that at ER–endosome contacts, STARD3 and VAP proteins build a molecular machine able to rapidly transfer cholesterol. This review presents the current knowledge on the molecular and cellular function of STARD3 in intracellular cholesterol traffic.