Accurate measurement of alpha proton chemical shifts of excited protein states by relaxation dispersion NMR spectroscopy

Probing microsecond time scale dynamics in proteins by methyl (1)H Carr-Purcell-Meiboom-Gill relaxation dispersion NMR measurements. Application to activation of the signaling protein NtrC(r)

To study microsecond processes by relaxation dispersion NMR spectroscopy, low power deposition and short pulses are crucial and encourage the development of experiments that employ (1)H Carr-Purcell-Meiboom-Gill (CPMG) pulse trains. Herein, a method is described for the comprehensive study of microsecond to millisecond time scale dynamics of methyl groups in proteins, exploiting their high abundance and favorable relaxation properties. In our approach, protein samples are produced using [(1)H, (13)C]-d-glucose in ∼100% D(2)O, which yields CHD(2) methyl groups for alanine, valine, threonine, isoleucine, leucine, and methionine residues with high abundance, in an otherwise largely deuterated background. Methyl groups in such samples can be sequence-specifically assigned to near completion, using (13)C TOCSY NMR spectroscopy, as was recently demonstrated (Otten, R.; et al. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2010, 132, 2952-2960). In this Article, NMR pulse schemes are presented to measure (1)H CPMG relaxation dispersion profiles for CHD(2) methyl groups, in a vein similar to that of backbone relaxation experiments. Because of the high deuteration level of methyl-bearing side chains, artifacts arising from proton scalar coupling during the CPMG pulse train are negligible, with the exception of Ile-δ1 and Thr-γ2 methyl groups, and a pulse scheme is described to remove the artifacts for those residues. Strong (13)C scalar coupling effects, observed for several leucine residues, are removed by alternative biochemical and NMR approaches. The methodology is applied to the transcriptional activator NtrC(r), for which an inactive/active state transition was previously measured and the motions in the microsecond time range were estimated through a combination of backbone (15)N CPMG dispersion NMR spectroscopy and a collection of experiments to determine the exchange-free component to the transverse relaxation rate. Exchange contributions to the (1)H line width were detected for 21 methyl groups, and these probes were found to collectively report on a local structural rearrangement around the phosphorylation site, with a rate constant of (15.5 ± 0.5) × 10(3) per second (i.e., τ(ex) = 64.7 ± 1.9 μs). The affected methyl groups indicate that, already before phosphorylation, a substantial, transient rearrangement takes place between helices 3 and 4 and strands 4 and 5. This conformational equilibrium allows the protein to gain access to the active, signaling state in the absence of covalent modification through a shift in a pre-existing dynamic equilibrium. Moreover, the conformational switching maps exactly to the regions that differ between the solution NMR structures of the fully inactive and active states. These results demonstrate that a cost-effective and quantitative study of protein methyl group dynamics by (1)H CPMG relaxation dispersion NMR spectroscopy is possible and can be applied to study functional motions on the microsecond time scale that cannot be accessed by backbone (15)N relaxation dispersion NMR. The use of methyl groups as dynamics probes extends such applications also to larger proteins.

A Transient and Low-Populated Protein-Folding Intermediate at Atomic Resolution

Proteins can sample conformational states that are critical for function but are seldom detected directly because of their low occupancies and short lifetimes. In this work, we used chemical shifts and bond-vector orientation constraints obtained from nuclear magnetic resonance relaxation dispersion spectroscopy, in concert with a chemical shift–based method for structure elucidation, to determine an atomic-resolution structure of an “invisible” folding intermediate of a small protein module: the FF domain. The structure reveals non-native elements preventing formation of the native conformation in the carboxyl-terminal part of the protein. This is consistent with the kinetics of folding in which a well-structured intermediate forms rapidly and then rearranges slowly to the native state. The approach introduces a general strategy for structure determination of low-populated and transiently formed protein states.

A simple method for measuring signs of (1)H (N) chemical shift differences between ground and excited protein states

NMR relaxation dispersion spectroscopy is a powerful method for studying protein conformational dynamics whereby visible, ground and invisible, excited conformers interconvert on the millisecond time-scale. In addition to providing kinetics and thermodynamics parameters of the exchange process, the CPMG dispersion experiment also allows extraction of the absolute values of the chemical shift differences between interconverting states, /Delta(omega)/, opening the way for structure determination of excited state conformers. Central to the goal of structural analysis is the availability of the chemical shifts of the excited state that can only be obtained once the signs of Delta(omega) are known. Herein we describe a very simple method for determining the signs of (1)H(N) Delta(omega) values based on a comparison of peak positions in the directly detected dimensions of a pair of (1)H(N)-(15)N correlation maps recorded at different static magnetic fields. The utility of the approach is demonstrated for three proteins that undergo millisecond time-scale conformational rearrangements. Although the method provides fewer signs than previously published techniques it does have a number of strengths: (1) Data sets needed for analysis are typically available from other experiments, such as those required for measuring signs of (15)N Delta(omega) values, thus requiring no additional experimental time, (2) acquisition times in the critical detection dimension can be as long as necessary and (3) the signs obtained can be used to cross-validate those from other approaches.

Measurement of signs of chemical shift differences between ground and excited protein states: a comparison between H(S/M)QC and R1rho methods

Carr-Purcell-Meiboom-Gill (CPMG) relaxation dispersion NMR spectroscopy has emerged as a powerful tool for quantifying the kinetics and thermodynamics of millisecond exchange processes between a major, populated ground state and one or more minor, low populated and often invisible 'excited' conformers. Analysis of CPMG data-sets also provides the magnitudes of the chemical shift difference(s) between exchanging states (|Deltavarpi|), that inform on the structural properties of the excited state(s). The sign of Deltavarpi is, however, not available from CPMG data. Here we present one-dimensional NMR experiments for measuring the signs of (1)H(N) and (13)C(alpha) Deltavarpi values using weak off-resonance R (1rho ) relaxation measurements, extending the spin-lock approach beyond previous applications focusing on the signs of (15)N and (1)H(alpha) shift differences. The accuracy of the method is established by using an exchanging system where the invisible, excited state can be converted to the visible, ground state by altering conditions so that the signs of Deltavarpi values obtained from the spin-lock approach can be validated with those measured directly. Further, the spin-lock experiments are compared with the established H(S/M)QC approach for measuring the signs of chemical shift differences. For the Abp1p and Fyn SH3 domains considered here it is found that while H(S/M)QC measurements provide signs for more residues than the spin-lock data, the two different methodologies are complementary, so that combining both approaches frequently produces signs for more residues than when the H(S/M)QC method is used alone.

Isotope labeling methods for studies of excited protein states by relaxation dispersion NMR spectroscopy

The utility of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy as a tool for the study of biomolecular structure and dynamics has benefited from the development of facile labeling methods that incorporate NMR active probes at key positions in the molecule. Here we describe a protocol for the labeling of proteins that facilitates their study using a technique that is sensitive to millisecond conformational exchange processes. The samples necessary for an analysis of exchange dynamics are discussed, using the Abp1p SH3 domain from Saccharomyces cerevisiae as an example. For this system, the time frame for production of each sample, including in vitro refolding, is about 80 h. The samples so produced facilitate the measurement of accurate chemical shifts of low populated, invisible conformers that are part of the exchange pathway. The accuracy of the methodology has been established experimentally and the chemical shifts that are obtained provide important restraints in structure calculations of the excited state.

An analysis of the effects of 1HN-(1)HN dipolar couplings on the measurement of amide bond vector orientations in invisible protein states by relaxation dispersion NMR

Marginally and transiently populated conformational states of biomolecules can play important functional roles in biochemical processes. It is of significant interest, therefore, to develop tools for characterizing the structural and dynamical properties of these excited states. One recent development has been the emergence of spin-state-selective relaxation dispersion methods for quantifying dipolar vector orientations in invisible excited-state conformers through measurement of residual dipolar couplings (RDCs). Particularly powerful are 1HN-(15)N RDCs that can be measured with high sensitivity on fractionally aligned, deuterated, uniformly 15N-labeled protein samples. Fractional alignment also produces nonzero 1HN-(1)HN dipolar couplings. These can be problematic for the extraction of robust 1HN-(15)N RDC values, and hence amide bond vector orientations, in cases where the amide proton of interest and a proximal amide proton have small chemical shift differences and a significant 1HN-(1)HN dipolar coupling. Here, we show that while this strong coupling effect leads to aberrant relaxation dispersion profiles, extracted excited-state 1HN-(15)N RDCs are for the most part only marginally affected. Experimental examples of such aberrant profiles are provided, as well as a theoretical consideration of the influence of this strong coupling effect and numerical simulations that assess its impact on extracted parameters.

CPMG relaxation dispersion NMR experiments measuring glycine 1H alpha and 13C alpha chemical shifts in the 'invisible' excited states of proteins

Carr-Purcell-Meiboom-Gill (CPMG) relaxation dispersion NMR experiments are extremely powerful for characterizing millisecond time-scale conformational exchange processes in biomolecules. A large number of such CPMG experiments have now emerged for measuring protein backbone chemical shifts of sparsely populated (>0.5%), excited state conformers that cannot be directly detected in NMR spectra and that are invisible to most other biophysical methods as well. A notable deficiency is, however, the absence of CPMG experiments for measurement of (1)H(alpha) and (13)C(alpha) chemical shifts of glycine residues in the excited state that reflects the fact that in this case the (1)H(alpha), (13)C(alpha) spins form a three-spin system that is more complex than the AX (1)H(alpha)-(13)C(alpha) spin systems in the other amino acids. Here pulse sequences for recording (1)H(alpha) and (13)C(alpha) CPMG relaxation dispersion profiles derived from glycine residues are presented that provide information from which (1)H(alpha), (13)C(alpha) chemical shifts can be obtained. The utility of these experiments is demonstrated by an application to a mutant of T4 lysozyme that undergoes a millisecond time-scale exchange process facilitating the binding of hydrophobic ligands to an internal cavity in the protein.

Measuring 13Cbeta chemical shifts of invisible excited states in proteins by relaxation dispersion NMR spectroscopy

A labeling scheme is introduced that facilitates the measurement of accurate (13)C(beta) chemical shifts of invisible, excited states of proteins by relaxation dispersion NMR spectroscopy. The approach makes use of protein over-expression in a strain of E. coli in which the TCA cycle enzyme succinate dehydrogenase is knocked out, leading to the production of samples with high levels of (13)C enrichment (30-40%) at C(beta) side-chain carbon positions for 15 of the amino acids with little (13)C label at positions one bond removed (approximately 5%). A pair of samples are produced using [1-(13)C]-glucose/NaH(12)CO(3) or [2-(13)C]-glucose as carbon sources with isolated and enriched (>30%) (13)C(beta) positions for 11 and 4 residues, respectively. The efficacy of the labeling procedure is established by NMR spectroscopy. The utility of such samples for measurement of (13)C(beta) chemical shifts of invisible, excited states in exchange with visible, ground conformations is confirmed by relaxation dispersion studies of a protein-ligand binding exchange reaction in which the extracted chemical shift differences from dispersion profiles compare favorably with those obtained directly from measurements on ligand free and fully bound protein samples.

Relaxation dispersion NMR spectroscopy as a tool for detailed studies of protein folding

Characterization of the mechanisms by which proteins fold into their native conformations is important not only for protein structure prediction and design but also because protein misfolding intermediates may play critical roles in fibril formation that are commonplace in neurodegenerative disorders. In practice, the study of folding pathways is complicated by the fact that for the most part intermediates are low-populated and short-lived so that biophysical studies are difficult. Due to recent methodological advances, relaxation dispersion NMR spectroscopy has emerged as a particularly powerful tool to obtain high-resolution structural information about protein folding events on the millisecond timescale. Applications of the methodology to study the folding of SH3 domains have shown that folding proceeds via previously undetected on-pathway intermediates, sometimes stabilized by nonnative long-range interactions. The relaxation dispersion approach provides a detailed kinetic and thermodynamic description of the folding process as well as the promise of obtaining an atomic level structural description of intermediate states. We review the concerted application of a variety of recently developed NMR relaxation dispersion experiments to obtain a "high-resolution" picture of the folding pathway of the A39V/N53P/V55L Fyn SH3 domain.