n Unc45b and other cytosolic components, including Hsp90. Immunoprecipitation of the endogenous Unc45b from the C2C12 lysate with the anti-Unc45b antibody demonstrates that it is indeed a complex with Hsp90 and at least one other,120 kDa protein. These results establish that the endogenous Unc45b in the muscle cytosol exists as a soluble complex with Hsp90 and perhaps one other unidentified protein. However, excess Unc45b was used in these assays to maximize binding of the Gynostemma Extract myosin subfragments. To look at the apparent stoichiometry of the interaction we titrated Unc45bFlag into the assay and measured Hsp90 and MD::GFP binding. 24172903 The amount of Hsp90 that is pulled-down with Unc45b increases 11904527 linearly with the amount of Unc45b added. However, motor domain pull-down fits a hyperbolic binding curve. This suggests that the Unc45b/Hsp90 complex is indeed binding the MD::GFP. Formation of this complex is independent of Hsp90 ATPase activity because Unc45b binds Hsp90 and MD::GFP in the presence of the Hsp90 ATPase inhibitor 
geldanamycin. Furthermore, we have been unsuccessful in developing a pull-down assay for the binding of the motor domain by Hsp90 in the absence of Unc45b, suggesting that Hsp90 alone binds motor domain weakly. Unc45b does not bind the native conformation of the myosin motor domain The native HMM subfragment of skeletal muscle myosin that has actin-activated ATPase activity and supports sliding movement of actin filaments is not bound by Unc45bFlag alone or the Unc45bFlag/Hsp90 complex. To assess binding to the native conformation, conditions that readily denature myosin, e.g. dilute protein concentrations at elevated temperatures, were avoided. Under these native conditions Hsp90 is readily bound by Unc45b, but there is no detectable binding of the HMM subfragment to Unc45bFlag/Hsp90. Thus, binding of the myosin motor domain by Unc45bFlag/Hsp90 complex is limited to nonnative conformations of the motor domain, characteristic of a chaperone activity. Unc45b/Hsp90 complex enhances the folding of the myosin motor domain Binding of Unc45b to non-native myosin motor domain is one measure of chaperone activity. However, a better measure is the demonstration of direct participation in motor domain folding. We have demonstrated the utility of the rabbit reticulocyte lysate for analysis of the coupled synthesis and folding of the striated myosin motor domain. The system provides a means to investigate the effect of added factors on folding. Smooth and non-muscle myosins have been successfully expressed in non-muscle expression systems, and might be expected to fold to a considerable extent in the reticulocyte lysate as well. We developed a vector for in vitro expression of a smooth muscle MD::GFP chimera identical to the striated muscle chimera. The synthesis and folding of this MD::GFP chimera in a reticulocyte lysate was monitored by native gel electrophoresis. Only a small fraction of the smooth muscle MD::GFP chimera is properly folded in the untreated reticulocyte lysate. The native MD::GFP conformation in this gel system appears as a discrete, faster migrating band. Much of the nascent and unfolded protein is distributed in diffuse, slowly migrating bands. Addition of purified bacteria expressed Unc45bFlag or the myotube expressed Unc45bFlag/Hsp90 complex dramatically enhances the extent of MD::GFP folding that is apparent as a shift of radioactivity to the faster migrating band characteristic of the native conformation. This shi