Coiled coil control of growth factor and inhibitor-dependent EGFR trafficking and degradation

EGFR exhibits biased signaling, whereby growth factor or mutation-dependent changes in receptor conformation and/or dynamics elicit distinct intracellular outcomes. We report that many outcomes associated with activated EGFR are controlled by a two-state coiled coil switch located within the juxtamembrane segment (JM), an essential component of the cytosolic dimer interface. The position of this switch defines the path of endocytic trafficking and whether or not EGFR is degraded within lysosomes. JM coiled coil identity also predicts kinase-independent effects of oncogenic EGFR mutations and clinically relevant tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) that promote efficient, lysosome-based EGFR degradation. These findings provide a model for biased EGFR signaling, insights into kinase-independent activities of EGFR and clinically relevant TKIs, and identify new strategies for modulating protein lifetime.