Structure of the heterodimeric ecdysone receptor DNA-binding complex

Ecdysteroids initiate molting and metamorphosis in insects via a heterodimeric receptor consisting of the ecdysone receptor (EcR) and ultraspiracle (USP). The EcR–USP heterodimer preferentially mediates transcription through highly degenerate pseudo‐palindromic response elements, resembling inverted repeats of 5′‐AGGTCA‐3′ separated by 1 bp (IR‐1). The requirement for a heterodimeric arrangement of EcR–USP subunits to bind to a symmetric DNA is unusual within the nuclear receptor superfamily. We describe the 2.24 Å structure of the EcR–USP DNA‐binding domain (DBD) heterodimer bound to an idealized IR‐1 element. EcR and USP use similar surfaces, and rely on the deformed minor groove of the DNA to establish protein–protein contacts. As retinoid X receptor (RXR) is the mammalian homolog of USP, we also solved the 2.60 Å crystal structure of the EcR–RXR DBD heterodimer on IR‐1 and found the dimerization and DNA‐binding interfaces to be the same as in the EcR–USP complex. Sequence alignments indicate that the EcR–RXR heterodimer is an important model for understanding how the FXR–RXR heterodimer binds to IR‐1 sites.