1
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Pietrangeli P, Marcocci L, Pennacchietti V, Diop A, Di Felice M, Pagano L, Malagrinò F, Toto A, Brunori M, Gianni S. The Mechanism of Folding of Human Frataxin in Comparison to the Yeast Homologue - Broad Energy Barriers and the General Properties of the Transition State. J Mol Biol 2024; 436:168555. [PMID: 38552947 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2024.168555] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2024] [Revised: 03/25/2024] [Accepted: 03/25/2024] [Indexed: 04/09/2024]
Abstract
The funneled energy landscape theory suggests that the folding pathway of homologous proteins should converge at the late stages of folding. In this respect, proteins displaying a broad energy landscape for folding are particularly instructive, allowing inferring both the early, intermediate and late stages of folding. In this paper we explore the folding mechanisms of human frataxin, an essential mitochondrial protein linked to the neurodegenerative disorder Friedreich's ataxia. Building upon previous studies on the yeast homologue, the folding pathway of human frataxin is thoroughly examined, revealing a mechanism implying the presence of a broad energy barrier, reminiscent of the yeast counterpart. Through an extensive site-directed mutagenesis, we employed a Φ -value analysis to map native-like contacts in the folding transition state. The presence of a broad energy barrier facilitated the exploration of such contacts in both early and late folding events. We compared results from yeast and human frataxin providing insights into the impact of native topology on the folding mechanism and elucidating the properties of the underlying free energy landscape. The findings are discussed in the context of the funneled energy landscape theory of protein folding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paola Pietrangeli
- Dipartimento di Scienze Biochimiche "A. Rossi Fanelli", Sapienza Università di Roma, Laboratory Affiliated to Istituto Pasteur Italia - Fondazione Cenci Bolognetti, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Lucia Marcocci
- Dipartimento di Scienze Biochimiche "A. Rossi Fanelli", Sapienza Università di Roma, Laboratory Affiliated to Istituto Pasteur Italia - Fondazione Cenci Bolognetti, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Valeria Pennacchietti
- Dipartimento di Scienze Biochimiche "A. Rossi Fanelli", Sapienza Università di Roma, Laboratory Affiliated to Istituto Pasteur Italia - Fondazione Cenci Bolognetti, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Awa Diop
- Dipartimento di Scienze Biochimiche "A. Rossi Fanelli", Sapienza Università di Roma, Laboratory Affiliated to Istituto Pasteur Italia - Fondazione Cenci Bolognetti, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Mariana Di Felice
- Dipartimento di Scienze Biochimiche "A. Rossi Fanelli", Sapienza Università di Roma, Laboratory Affiliated to Istituto Pasteur Italia - Fondazione Cenci Bolognetti, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Livia Pagano
- Dipartimento di Scienze Biochimiche "A. Rossi Fanelli", Sapienza Università di Roma, Laboratory Affiliated to Istituto Pasteur Italia - Fondazione Cenci Bolognetti, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Francesca Malagrinò
- Dipartimento di Medicina Clinica, Sanità Pubblica, Scienze Della Vita e Dell'ambiente, Università dell'Aquila, Piazzale Salvatore Tommasi 1, 67010 L'Aquila - Coppito, Italy
| | - Angelo Toto
- Dipartimento di Scienze Biochimiche "A. Rossi Fanelli", Sapienza Università di Roma, Laboratory Affiliated to Istituto Pasteur Italia - Fondazione Cenci Bolognetti, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Maurizio Brunori
- Dipartimento di Scienze Biochimiche "A. Rossi Fanelli", Sapienza Università di Roma, Laboratory Affiliated to Istituto Pasteur Italia - Fondazione Cenci Bolognetti, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Stefano Gianni
- Dipartimento di Scienze Biochimiche "A. Rossi Fanelli", Sapienza Università di Roma, Laboratory Affiliated to Istituto Pasteur Italia - Fondazione Cenci Bolognetti, 00185 Rome, Italy.
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2
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Wang G. Cold unfolding of heat-responsive TRPV3. RESEARCH SQUARE 2024:rs.3.rs-4285061. [PMID: 38746116 PMCID: PMC11092857 DOI: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-4285061/v1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/16/2024]
Abstract
The homotetrameric thermosensitive transient receptor potential vanilloid 1-4 (TRPV1-4) channels in sensory neurons are strongly responsive to heat stimuli. However, their cold activations have not been reported in line with the nonzero heat capacity difference during heat or cold unfolding transitions. Here, along with the experimental examinations of the predicted ring size changes in different domains against the central pore during channel gating at various temperatures, the K169A mutant of reduced human TRPV3 was first found to be activated and inactivated by cold below 42°C. Further thermoring analyses revealed distinct heat and cold unfolding pathways, which resulted in different protein thermostabilities. Thus, both cold and heat unfolding transitions of thermosensitive TRPV1-4 channels may exist once a mutation destabilizes the closed state.
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3
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Helmick H, Tonner T, Hauersperger D, Okos M, Kokini JL. Comparison of the specific mechanical energy, specific thermal energy, and functional properties of cold and hot extruded pea protein isolate. Food Res Int 2023; 174:113603. [PMID: 37986466 DOI: 10.1016/j.foodres.2023.113603] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2023] [Revised: 10/13/2023] [Accepted: 10/14/2023] [Indexed: 11/22/2023]
Abstract
Pea protein is a popular source of plant-based protein, though its application in meat and dairy analog products is still lacking. This is particularly true in the development of products with fatty and creamy textures. Cold denaturation may be a way to induce these types of textures in food since this is a universal phenomenon in protein that occurs due to a weakening of hydrophobic interactions at cold temperatures. This work utilizes a single screw extruder to systematically study the impacts of moisture content (50-65 %) and pH (2,4.5,8) on the outlet temperatures, specific mechanical energy, specific thermal energy, and texture of cold-extruded pea protein. It was found that at pH 2 and moistures of 60 % and greater, the temperature of the product exiting the extruder is <5.5 °C, and also produced 13.7 %-36.5 % more specific thermal energy, indicating the occurrence of cold denaturation in these products. Based on these findings, a comparison of hot and cold extrusion was conducted as a function of pH and oil content. It was found that cold extrusion imparts 43.0 %-56.2 % more mechanical energy into the protein than hot extrusion, and the cold extruded protein had higher values of Young's modulus and breaking stress. The protein extruded at low temperatures was also able to bind 32.93 % more oil than hot extruded proteins when extruded with 10 % added oil, which may aid in the formation of protein-based fat memetics for the food industry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Harrison Helmick
- Department of Food Science, Purdue University, 745 Agriculture Mall Dr, West Lafayette, IN 47907, United States
| | - Troy Tonner
- Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Purdue University, 225 South University Street, West Lafayette, IN 47907, United States
| | - Daniel Hauersperger
- Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Purdue University, 225 South University Street, West Lafayette, IN 47907, United States
| | - Martin Okos
- Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Purdue University, 225 South University Street, West Lafayette, IN 47907, United States
| | - Jozef L Kokini
- Department of Food Science, Purdue University, 745 Agriculture Mall Dr, West Lafayette, IN 47907, United States.
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4
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Helmick H, Tonner T, Hauersperger D, Ettestad S, Hartanto C, Okos M, Liceaga A, Bhunia AK, Kokini JL. Physicochemical characterization of changes in pea protein as the result of cold extrusion. Food Chem 2023; 423:136240. [PMID: 37163915 DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2023.136240] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2022] [Revised: 04/12/2023] [Accepted: 04/24/2023] [Indexed: 05/12/2023]
Abstract
Pea protein is a popular plant-based protein for mimicking textures in meat and dairy analogues which are more sustainable than their animal-based counterparts. However, precise mechanisms for generating specific textures through different processing methods are still being evaluated. This work utilizes a novel low-temperature extrusion process to selectively alter the chemical structure of pea protein. Changes in secondary structure, surface hydrophobicity, electrostatic interactions, and disulfide bonding are characterized through FTIR, ANS- probes, zeta potential, and SDS-PAGE. Extrudates are further characterized using texture parameter analysis. It was found that a linear combination of physicochemical data, generated with multiple linear regression modelling, led to reasonable estimates of the specific mechanical energy and textural properties. This work offers a new method of reactive extrusion to selectively modify interactions in pea protein using low temperature extrusion, and applications may include fatty textures, since the extrudates are found to be largely stabilized through hydrophobic interactions evaluated with surface hydrophobicity measurements.
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Affiliation(s)
- Harrison Helmick
- Department of Food Science, Purdue University, 745 Agriculture Mall Dr., West Lafayette, IN 47907, United States
| | - Troy Tonner
- Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Purdue University, 225 South University Street, West Lafayette, IN 47907, United States
| | - Daniel Hauersperger
- Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Purdue University, 225 South University Street, West Lafayette, IN 47907, United States
| | - Sarah Ettestad
- Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Purdue University, 225 South University Street, West Lafayette, IN 47907, United States
| | - Christabel Hartanto
- Department of Food Science, Purdue University, 745 Agriculture Mall Dr., West Lafayette, IN 47907, United States
| | - Martin Okos
- Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Purdue University, 225 South University Street, West Lafayette, IN 47907, United States
| | - Andrea Liceaga
- Department of Food Science, Purdue University, 745 Agriculture Mall Dr., West Lafayette, IN 47907, United States
| | - Arun K Bhunia
- Department of Food Science, Purdue University, 745 Agriculture Mall Dr., West Lafayette, IN 47907, United States
| | - Jozef L Kokini
- Department of Food Science, Purdue University, 745 Agriculture Mall Dr., West Lafayette, IN 47907, United States.
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5
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Seelig J, Seelig A. Protein Stability─Analysis of Heat and Cold Denaturation without and with Unfolding Models. J Phys Chem B 2023; 127:3352-3363. [PMID: 37040567 PMCID: PMC10123674 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.3c00882] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/13/2023]
Abstract
Protein stability is important in many areas of life sciences. Thermal protein unfolding is investigated extensively with various spectroscopic techniques. The extraction of thermodynamic properties from these measurements requires the application of models. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) is less common, but is unique as it measures directly a thermodynamic property, that is, the heat capacity Cp(T). The analysis of Cp(T) is usually performed with the chemical equilibrium two-state model. This is not necessary and leads to incorrect thermodynamic consequences. Here we demonstrate a straightforward model-independent evaluation of heat capacity experiments in terms of protein unfolding enthalpy ΔH(T), entropy ΔS(T), and free energy ΔG(T)). This now allows the comparison of the experimental thermodynamic data with the predictions of different models. We critically examined the standard chemical equilibrium two-state model, which predicts a positive free energy for the native protein, and diverges distinctly from the experimental temperature profiles. We propose two new models which are equally applicable to spectroscopy and calorimetry. The ΘU(T)-weighted chemical equilibrium model and the statistical-mechanical two-state model provide excellent fits of the experimental data. They predict sigmoidal temperature profiles for enthalpy and entropy, and a trapezoidal temperature profile for the free energy. This is illustrated with experimental examples for heat and cold denaturation of lysozyme and β-lactoglobulin. We then show that the free energy is not a good criterion to judge protein stability. More useful parameters are discussed, including protein cooperativity. The new parameters are embedded in a well-defined thermodynamic context and are amenable to molecular dynamics calculations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joachim Seelig
- Biozentrum, University of Basel, Spitalstrasse 41, CH-4056 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Anna Seelig
- Biozentrum, University of Basel, Spitalstrasse 41, CH-4056 Basel, Switzerland
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6
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Félix SS, Laurents DV, Oroz J, Cabrita EJ. Fused in sarcoma undergoes cold denaturation: Implications for phase separation. Protein Sci 2023; 32:e4521. [PMID: 36453011 PMCID: PMC9793971 DOI: 10.1002/pro.4521] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2022] [Revised: 11/18/2022] [Accepted: 11/21/2022] [Indexed: 12/04/2022]
Abstract
The mediation of liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS) for fused in sarcoma (FUS) protein is generally attributed to the low-complexity, disordered domains and is enhanced at low temperature. The role of FUS folded domains on the LLPS process remains relatively unknown since most studies are mainly based on fragmented FUS domains. Here, we investigate the effect of metabolites on full-length (FL) FUS LLPS using turbidity assays and differential interference contrast (DIC) microscopy, and explore the behavior of the folded domains by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. FL FUS LLPS is maximal at low concentrations of glucose and glutamate, moderate concentrations of NaCl, Zn2+ , and Ca2+ and at the isoelectric pH. The FUS RNA recognition motif (RRM) and zinc-finger (ZnF) domains are found to undergo cold denaturation above 0°C at a temperature that is determined by the conformational stability of the ZnF domain. Cold unfolding exposes buried nonpolar residues that can participate in LLPS-promoting hydrophobic interactions. Therefore, these findings constitute the first evidence that FUS globular domains may have an active role in LLPS under cold stress conditions and in the assembly of stress granules, providing further insight into the environmental regulation of LLPS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara S. Félix
- UCIBIO, Department of ChemistryNOVA School of Science and Technology, Universidade NOVA de LisboaCaparicaPortugal,Associate Laboratory i4HB – Institute for Health and Bioeconomy, NOVA School of Science and Technology, Universidade NOVA de LisboaCaparicaPortugal,Instituto de Química Física Rocasolano (IQFR), CSICMadridSpain
| | | | - Javier Oroz
- Instituto de Química Física Rocasolano (IQFR), CSICMadridSpain
| | - Eurico J. Cabrita
- UCIBIO, Department of ChemistryNOVA School of Science and Technology, Universidade NOVA de LisboaCaparicaPortugal,Associate Laboratory i4HB – Institute for Health and Bioeconomy, NOVA School of Science and Technology, Universidade NOVA de LisboaCaparicaPortugal
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7
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Smith MA, Graether SP. The Effect of Positive Charge Distribution on the Cryoprotective Activity of Dehydrins. Biomolecules 2022; 12:1510. [PMID: 36291719 PMCID: PMC9599493 DOI: 10.3390/biom12101510] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2022] [Revised: 10/14/2022] [Accepted: 10/16/2022] [Indexed: 07/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Dehydrins are intrinsically disordered proteins expressed ubiquitously throughout the plant kingdom in response to desiccation. Dehydrins have been found to have a cryoprotective effect on lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) in vitro, which is in large part influenced by their hydrodynamic radius rather than the order of the amino acids within the sequence (alternatively, this may be a sequence specific effect). However, it seems that a different mechanism may underpin the cryoprotection that they confer to the cold-labile yeast frataxin homolog-1 (Yfh1). Circular dichroism spectroscopy (CD) was used to assess the degree of helicity of Yfh1 at 1 °C, both alone and in the presence of several dehydrin constructs. Three constructs were compared to the wild type: YSK2-K→R (lysine residues substituted with arginine), YSK2-Neutral (locally neutralized charge), and YSK2-SpaceK (evenly distributed positive charge). The results show that sequence rearrangements and minor substitutions have little impact on the ability of the dehydrin to preserve LDH activity. However, when the positive charge of the dehydrin is locally neutralized or evenly distributed, the dehydrin becomes less efficient at promoting structure in Yfh1 at low temperatures. This suggests that a stabilizing, charge-based interaction occurs between dehydrins and Yfh1. Dehydrins are intrinsically disordered proteins, expressed by certain organisms to improve desiccation tolerance. These proteins are thought to serve many cellular roles, such as the stabilization of membranes, DNA, and proteins. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying the function of dehydrins are not well understood. Here, we examine the importance of positive charges in dehydrin sequences by making substitutions and comparing their effects in the cryoprotection of two different proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Margaret A. Smith
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, Canada
| | - Steffen P. Graether
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, Canada
- Graduate Program in Bioinformatics, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, Canada
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8
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Passantino R, Mangione MR, Ortore MG, Costa MA, Provenzano A, Amenitsch H, Sabbatella R, Alfano C, Martorana V, Vilasi S. Investigation on a MMACHC mutant from cblC disease: The c.394C>T variant. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA. PROTEINS AND PROTEOMICS 2022; 1870:140793. [PMID: 35618206 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbapap.2022.140793] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2021] [Revised: 05/17/2022] [Accepted: 05/19/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
The cblC disease is an inborn disorder of the vitamin B12 (cobalamin, Cbl) metabolism characterized by methylmalonic aciduria and homocystinuria. The clinical consequences of this disease are devastating and, even when early treated with current therapies, the affected children manifest symptoms involving vision, growth, and learning. The illness is caused by mutations in the gene codifying for MMACHC, a 282aa protein that transports and transforms the different Cbl forms. Here we present data on the structural properties of the truncated protein p.R132X resulting from the c.394C > T mutation that, along with c.271dupA and c.331C > T, is among the most common mutations in cblC. Although missing part of the Cbl binding domain, p.R132X is associated to late-onset symptoms and, therefore, it is supposed to retain residual function. However, to our knowledge structural-functional studies on c.394C > T mutant aimed at verifying this hypothesis are still lacking. By using a biophysical approach including Circular Dichroism, fluorescence, Small Angle X-ray Scattering, and Molecular Dynamics, we show that the mutant protein MMACHC-R132X retains secondary structure elements and remains compact in solution, partly preserving its binding affinity for Cbl. Insights on the fragile stability of MMACHC-R132X-Cbl are provided.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rosa Passantino
- Biophysics Institute, National Research Council, Palermo 90143, Italy
| | | | - Maria Grazia Ortore
- Dept. Life and Environmental Sciences, Marche Polytechnic University, Ancona 60131, Italy
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Silvia Vilasi
- Biophysics Institute, National Research Council, Palermo 90143, Italy.
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9
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Puglisi R, Cioni P, Gabellieri E, Presciuttini G, Pastore A, Temussi PA. Heat and cold denaturation of yeast frataxin: The effect of pressure. Biophys J 2022; 121:1502-1511. [PMID: 35278425 PMCID: PMC9072581 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpj.2022.03.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2022] [Revised: 02/14/2022] [Accepted: 03/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Yfh1 is a yeast protein with the peculiar characteristic to undergo, in the absence of salt, cold denaturation at temperatures above the water freezing point. This feature makes the protein particularly interesting for studies aiming at understanding the rules that determine protein fold stability. Here, we present the phase diagram of Yfh1 unfolding as a function of pressure (0.1-500 MPa) and temperature 278-313 K (5-40°C) both in the absence and in the presence of stabilizers using Trp fluorescence as a monitor. The protein showed a remarkable sensitivity to pressure: at 293 K, pressures around 10 MPa are sufficient to cause 50% of unfolding. Higher pressures were required for the unfolding of the protein in the presence of stabilizers. The phase diagram on the pressure-temperature plane together with a critical comparison between our results and those found in the literature allowed us to draw conclusions on the mechanism of the unfolding process under different environmental conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rita Puglisi
- UK-DRI at King's College London, The Wohl Institute, London, (UK)
| | | | | | | | - Annalisa Pastore
- UK-DRI at King's College London, The Wohl Institute, London, (UK); European Synchrotron Radiation Facility, Grenoble, (France).
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10
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Bitonti A, Puglisi R, Meli M, Martin SR, Colombo G, Temussi PA, Pastore A. Recipes for Inducing Cold Denaturation in an Otherwise Stable Protein. J Am Chem Soc 2022; 144:7198-7207. [PMID: 35427450 PMCID: PMC9052743 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.1c13355] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
![]()
Although cold denaturation
is a fundamental phenomenon common to
all proteins, it can only be observed in a handful of cases where
it occurs at temperatures above the freezing point of water. Understanding
the mechanisms that determine cold denaturation and the rules that
permit its observation is an important challenge. A way to approach
them is to be able to induce cold denaturation in an otherwise stable
protein by means of mutations. Here, we studied CyaY, a relatively
stable bacterial protein with no detectable cold denaturation and
a high melting temperature of 54 °C. We have characterized for
years the yeast orthologue of CyaY, Yfh1, a protein that undergoes
cold and heat denaturation at 5 and 35 °C, respectively. We demonstrate
that, by transferring to CyaY the lessons learnt from Yfh1, we can
induce cold denaturation by introducing a restricted number of carefully
designed mutations aimed at destabilizing the overall fold and inducing
electrostatic frustration. We used molecular dynamics simulations
to rationalize our findings and demonstrate the individual effects
observed experimentally with the various mutants. Our results constitute
the first example of rationally designed cold denaturation and demonstrate
the importance of electrostatic frustration on the mechanism of cold
denaturation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Angela Bitonti
- Department of Molecular Medicine, University of Pavia, Via C Forlanini 6, 27100 Pavia, Italy
| | - Rita Puglisi
- UK Dementia Research Institute at the Maurice Wohl Institute of King’s College London, London SE5 9RT, United Kingdom
| | - Massimiliano Meli
- Istituto di Scienze e Tecnologie Chimiche “Giulio Natta” (SCITEC), CNR, Via Mario Bianco 9, 20131 Milano, Italy
| | - Stephen R. Martin
- Structural Biology Technology Platform, The Francis Crick Institute, 1 Midland Rd, London NW1 1AT, United Kingdom
| | - Giorgio Colombo
- Department of Chemistry, University of Pavia, Via Torquato Taramelli, 12, Pavia 27100, Italy
| | - Piero Andrea Temussi
- UK Dementia Research Institute at the Maurice Wohl Institute of King’s College London, London SE5 9RT, United Kingdom
| | - Annalisa Pastore
- UK Dementia Research Institute at the Maurice Wohl Institute of King’s College London, London SE5 9RT, United Kingdom
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11
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Pulavarti SVSRK, Maguire JB, Yuen S, Harrison JS, Griffin J, Premkumar L, Esposito EA, Makhatadze GI, Garcia AE, Weiss TM, Snell EH, Kuhlman B, Szyperski T. From Protein Design to the Energy Landscape of a Cold Unfolding Protein. J Phys Chem B 2022; 126:1212-1231. [PMID: 35128921 PMCID: PMC9281400 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.1c10750] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Understanding protein folding is crucial for protein sciences. The conformational spaces and energy landscapes of cold (unfolded) protein states, as well as the associated transitions, are hardly explored. Furthermore, it is not known how structure relates to the cooperativity of cold transitions, if cold and heat unfolded states are thermodynamically similar, and if cold states play important roles for protein function. We created the cold unfolding 4-helix bundle DCUB1 with a de novo designed bipartite hydrophilic/hydrophobic core featuring a hydrogen bond network which extends across the bundle in order to study the relative importance of hydrophobic versus hydrophilic protein-water interactions for cold unfolding. Structural and thermodynamic characterization resulted in the discovery of a complex energy landscape for cold transitions, while the heat unfolded state is a random coil. Below ∼0 °C, the core of DCUB1 disintegrates in a largely cooperative manner, while a near-native helical content is retained. The resulting cold core-unfolded state is compact and features extensive internal dynamics. Below -5 °C, two additional cold transitions are seen, that is, (i) the formation of a water-mediated, compact, and highly dynamic dimer, and (ii) the onset of cold helix unfolding decoupled from cold core unfolding. Our results suggest that cold unfolding is initiated by the intrusion of water into the hydrophilic core network and that cooperativity can be tuned by varying the number of core hydrogen bond networks. Protein design has proven to be invaluable to explore the energy landscapes of cold states and to robustly test related theories.
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Affiliation(s)
- Surya V S R K Pulavarti
- Department of Chemistry, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, Buffalo, New York 14260, United States
| | - Jack B Maguire
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599, United States
| | - Shirley Yuen
- Department of Chemistry, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, Buffalo, New York 14260, United States
| | - Joseph S Harrison
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599, United States
| | - Jermel Griffin
- Department of Chemistry, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, Buffalo, New York 14260, United States
| | - Lakshmanane Premkumar
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599, United States
| | - Edward A Esposito
- Malvern Panalytical Inc, Northhampton, Massachsetts 01060, United States
| | - George I Makhatadze
- Department of Biological Sciences, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York 08544, United States
| | - Angel E Garcia
- Center for Non Linear Studies, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico 87545, United States
| | - Thomas M Weiss
- Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource, Stanford Linear Accelerator Center, Stanford University, Menlo Park, California 94025, United States
| | - Edward H Snell
- Hauptman-Woodward Medical Research Institute, 700 Ellicott Street, Buffalo, New York 14203, United States.,Department of Materials Design and Innovation, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, Buffalo, New York 14260, United States
| | - Brian Kuhlman
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599, United States
| | - Thomas Szyperski
- Department of Chemistry, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, Buffalo, New York 14260, United States
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12
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Helmick H, Nanda G, Ettestad S, Liceaga A, Kokini JL. Applying text mining to identify relevant literature in food science: Cold denaturation as a case study. J Food Sci 2021; 86:4851-4864. [PMID: 34653257 DOI: 10.1111/1750-3841.15940] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2021] [Revised: 09/03/2021] [Accepted: 09/13/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
In a research environment characterized by the five V's of big data, volume, velocity, variety, value, and veracity, the need to develop tools that quickly screen a large number of publications into relevant work is an increasing area of concern, and the data-rich food industry is no exception. Here, a combination of latent Dirichlet allocation and food keyword searches were employed to analyze and filter a dataset of 6102 publications about cold denaturation. After using the Python toolkit generated in this work, the approach yielded 22 topics that provide background and insight on the direction of research in this field, as well as identified the publications in this dataset which are most pertinent to the food industry with precision and recall of 0.419 and 0.949, respectively. Precision is related to the relevance of a paper in the filtered dataset and the recall represents papers which were not identified in the screening method. Lastly, gaps in the literature based on keyword trends are identified to improve the knowledge base of cold denaturation as it relates to the food industry. This approach is generalizable to any similarly organized dataset, and the code is available upon request. Practical Application: A common problem in research is that when you are an expert in one field, learning about another field is difficult, because you may lack the vocabulary and background needed to read cutting edge literature from a new discipline. The Python toolkit developed in this research can be applied by any researcher that is new to a field to identify what the key literature is, what topics they should familiarize themselves with, and what the current trends are in the field. Using this structure, researchers can greatly speed up how they identify new areas to research and find new projects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Harrison Helmick
- Purdue University Food Science Department, West Lafayette, Indiana, USA
| | - Gaurav Nanda
- Purdue University Food Science Department, West Lafayette, Indiana, USA
| | - Sarah Ettestad
- Purdue University Food Science Department, West Lafayette, Indiana, USA
| | - Andrea Liceaga
- Purdue University Food Science Department, West Lafayette, Indiana, USA
| | - Jozef L Kokini
- Purdue University Food Science Department, West Lafayette, Indiana, USA
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13
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Politou AS, Pastore A, Temussi PA. An "Onion-like" Model of Protein Unfolding: Collective versus Site Specific Approaches. Chemphyschem 2021; 23:e202100520. [PMID: 34549492 DOI: 10.1002/cphc.202100520] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2021] [Revised: 09/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
Approximating protein unfolding by an all-or-none cooperative event is a convenient assumption that can provide precious global information on protein stability. It is however quickly emerging that the scenario is far more complex and that global denaturation curves often hide a rich heterogeneity of states that are largely probe dependent. In this review, we revisit the importance of gaining site-specific information on the unfolding process. We focus on nuclear magnetic resonance, as this is the main technique able to provide site-specific information. We review historical and most modern approaches that have allowed an appreciable advancement of the field of protein folding. We also demonstrate how unfolding is a reporter dependent event, suggesting the outmost importance of selecting the reporter carefully.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anastasia S Politou
- Faculty of Medicine, University of Ioannina.,Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology-FORTH, Ioannina, Greece
| | - Annalisa Pastore
- UK Dementia Research Institute at the, Maurice Wohl Institute of King's College London, 5 Cutcombe Rd, London, SE5 9RT, United Kingdom
| | - Piero Andrea Temussi
- UK Dementia Research Institute at the, Maurice Wohl Institute of King's College London, 5 Cutcombe Rd, London, SE5 9RT, United Kingdom
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14
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Puglisi R, Karunanithy G, Hansen DF, Pastore A, Temussi PA. The anatomy of unfolding of Yfh1 is revealed by site-specific fold stability analysis measured by 2D NMR spectroscopy. Commun Chem 2021; 4:127. [PMID: 35243007 PMCID: PMC7612453 DOI: 10.1038/s42004-021-00566-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Most techniques allow detection of protein unfolding either by following the behaviour of single reporters or as an averaged all-or-none process. We recently added 2D NMR spectroscopy to the well-established techniques able to obtain information on the process of unfolding using resonances of residues in the hydrophobic core of a protein. Here, we questioned whether an analysis of the individual stability curves from each resonance could provide additional site-specific information. We used the Yfh1 protein that has the unique feature to undergo both cold and heat denaturation at temperatures above water freezing at low ionic strength. We show that stability curves inconsistent with the average NMR curve from hydrophobic core residues mainly comprise exposed outliers that do nevertheless provide precious information. By monitoring both cold and heat denaturation of individual residues we gain knowledge on the process of cold denaturation and convincingly demonstrate that the two unfolding processes are intrinsically different.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rita Puglisi
- grid.511435.7UK-DRI at King’s College London, The Wohl Institute, London, UK
| | - Gogulan Karunanithy
- grid.83440.3b0000000121901201Department of Structural Biology, Division of Biosciences, University College London, London, UK
| | - D. Flemming Hansen
- grid.83440.3b0000000121901201Department of Structural Biology, Division of Biosciences, University College London, London, UK
| | - Annalisa Pastore
- grid.511435.7UK-DRI at King’s College London, The Wohl Institute, London, UK ,grid.5398.70000 0004 0641 6373European Synchrotron Radiation Facility, Grenoble, France
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15
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Helmick H, Turasan H, Yildirim M, Bhunia A, Liceaga A, Kokini JL. Cold Denaturation of Proteins: Where Bioinformatics Meets Thermodynamics to Offer a Mechanistic Understanding: Pea Protein As a Case Study. JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURAL AND FOOD CHEMISTRY 2021; 69:6339-6350. [PMID: 34029090 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jafc.0c06558] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Protein structure can be altered with heat, but models which predict denaturation show that globular proteins also spontaneously unfold at low temperatures through cold denaturation. By an analysis of the primary structure of pea protein using bioinformatic modeling, a mechanism of pea protein cold denaturation is proposed. Pea protein is then fractionated into partially purified legumin and vicilin components, suspended in ethanol, and subjected to low temperatures (-10 to -20 °C). The structural characterizations of the purified fractions are conducted through FTIR, ζ potential, dynamic light scattering, and oil binding, and these are compared to the results of commercial protein isolates. The observed structural changes suggest that pea protein undergoes changes in structure as the result of low-temperature treatments, which could lead to innovative industrial processing techniques for functionalization by low-temperature processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Harrison Helmick
- Purdue University Food Science Department, 745 Agriculture Mall Drive West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, United States
| | - Hazal Turasan
- Purdue University Food Science Department, 745 Agriculture Mall Drive West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, United States
| | - Merve Yildirim
- Purdue University Food Science Department, 745 Agriculture Mall Drive West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, United States
| | - Arun Bhunia
- Purdue University Food Science Department, 745 Agriculture Mall Drive West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, United States
| | - Andrea Liceaga
- Purdue University Food Science Department, 745 Agriculture Mall Drive West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, United States
| | - Jozef L Kokini
- Purdue University Food Science Department, 745 Agriculture Mall Drive West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, United States
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16
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McCabe JW, Shirzadeh M, Walker TE, Lin CW, Jones BJ, Wysocki VH, Barondeau DP, Clemmer DE, Laganowsky A, Russell DH. Variable-Temperature Electrospray Ionization for Temperature-Dependent Folding/Refolding Reactions of Proteins and Ligand Binding. Anal Chem 2021; 93:6924-6931. [PMID: 33904705 DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.1c00870] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
Stabilities and structure(s) of proteins are directly coupled to their local environment or Gibbs free energy landscape as defined by solvent, temperature, pressure, and concentration. Solution pH, ionic strength, cofactors, chemical chaperones, and osmolytes perturb the chemical potential and induce further changes in structure, stability, and function. At present, no single analytical technique can monitor these effects in a single measurement. Mass spectrometry and ion mobility-mass spectrometry play increasingly essential roles in studies of proteins, protein complexes, and even membrane protein complexes; however, with few exceptions, the effects of the solution temperature on the stability and structure(s) of analytes have not been thoroughly investigated. Here, we describe a new variable-temperature electrospray ionization (vT-ESI) source that utilizes a thermoelectric chip to cool and heat the solution contained within the static ESI emitter. This design allows for solution temperatures to be varied from ∼5 to 98 °C with short equilibration times (<2 min) between precisely controlled temperature changes. The performance of the apparatus for vT-ESI-mass spectrometry and vT-ESI-ion mobility-mass spectrometry studies of cold- and heat-folding reactions is demonstrated using ubiquitin and frataxin. Instrument performance for studies on temperature-dependent ligand binding is shown using the chaperonin GroEL.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacob W McCabe
- Department of Chemistry, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843, United States
| | - Mehdi Shirzadeh
- Department of Chemistry, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843, United States
| | - Thomas E Walker
- Department of Chemistry, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843, United States
| | - Cheng-Wei Lin
- Department of Chemistry, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843, United States
| | - Benjamin J Jones
- Department of Chemistry, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio 43210, United States
| | - Vicki H Wysocki
- Department of Chemistry, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio 43210, United States
| | - David P Barondeau
- Department of Chemistry, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843, United States
| | - David E Clemmer
- Department of Chemistry, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana 47405, United States
| | - Arthur Laganowsky
- Department of Chemistry, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843, United States
| | - David H Russell
- Department of Chemistry, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843, United States
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17
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Evans JC, Tweten RK. How protein engineering has revealed the molecular mechanisms of pore-forming toxins. Methods Enzymol 2021; 649:47-70. [PMID: 33712197 DOI: 10.1016/bs.mie.2021.01.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Abstract
Pore-forming proteins are found in prokaryotes, vertebrates, and invertebrates, and when involved in pathogenic processes they are classified as pore-forming toxins (PFTs). The use of gene engineering methods in combination with the information provided by the high-resolution crystal structures of the PFTs have allowed investigators to gain a deep understanding of their pore-forming mechanisms. In this chapter, we discuss how protein engineering has helped us and others to reveal the molecular mechanisms of pore formation by prokaryotic PFTs with an emphasis on our experiences with the cholesterol-dependent cytolysins (CDCs).
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Affiliation(s)
- Jordan C Evans
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, The University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, United States
| | - Rodney K Tweten
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, The University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, United States.
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18
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Computational Analysis of Thermal Adaptation in Extremophilic Chitinases: The Achilles' Heel in Protein Structure and Industrial Utilization. Molecules 2021; 26:molecules26030707. [PMID: 33572971 PMCID: PMC7866400 DOI: 10.3390/molecules26030707] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2020] [Revised: 01/24/2021] [Accepted: 01/24/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Understanding protein stability is critical for the application of enzymes in biotechnological processes. The structural basis for the stability of thermally adapted chitinases has not yet been examined. In this study, the amino acid sequences and X-ray structures of psychrophilic, mesophilic, and hyperthermophilic chitinases were analyzed using computational and molecular dynamics (MD) simulation methods. From the findings, the key features associated with higher stability in mesophilic and thermophilic chitinases were fewer and/or shorter loops, oligomerization, and less flexible surface regions. No consistent trends were observed between stability and amino acid composition, structural features, or electrostatic interactions. Instead, unique elements affecting stability were identified in different chitinases. Notably, hyperthermostable chitinase had a much shorter surface loop compared to psychrophilic and mesophilic homologs, implying that the extended floppy surface region in cold-adapted and mesophilic chitinases may have acted as a “weak link” from where unfolding was initiated. MD simulations confirmed that the prevalence and flexibility of the loops adjacent to the active site were greater in low-temperature-adapted chitinases and may have led to the occlusion of the active site at higher temperatures compared to their thermostable homologs. Following this, loop “hot spots” for stabilizing and destabilizing mutations were also identified. This information is not only useful for the elucidation of the structure–stability relationship, but will be crucial for designing and engineering chitinases to have enhanced thermoactivity and to withstand harsh industrial processing conditions
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19
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Miotto M, Olimpieri PP, Di Rienzo L, Ambrosetti F, Corsi P, Lepore R, Tartaglia GG, Milanetti E. Insights on protein thermal stability: a graph representation of molecular interactions. Bioinformatics 2020; 35:2569-2577. [PMID: 30535291 PMCID: PMC6662296 DOI: 10.1093/bioinformatics/bty1011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2018] [Revised: 10/29/2018] [Accepted: 12/07/2018] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Motivation Understanding the molecular mechanisms of thermal stability is a challenge in protein biology. Indeed, knowing the temperature at which proteins are stable has important theoretical implications, which are intimately linked with properties of the native fold, and a wide range of potential applications from drug design to the optimization of enzyme activity. Results Here, we present a novel graph-theoretical framework to assess thermal stability based on the structure without any a priori information. In this approach we describe proteins as energy-weighted graphs and compare them using ensembles of interaction networks. Investigating the position of specific interactions within the 3D native structure, we developed a parameter-free network descriptor that permits to distinguish thermostable and mesostable proteins with an accuracy of 76% and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 78%. Availability and implementation Code is available upon request to edoardo.milanetti@uniroma1.it Supplementary information Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mattia Miotto
- Department of Physics, Sapienza University, Piazzale Aldo Moro 5, Rome, Italy.,Center for Life Nano Science@Sapienza, Instituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Viale Regina Elena, 291 Roma (RM), Italy.,Soft and Living Matter Laboratory, Institute of Nanotechnology, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Rome, Italy
| | | | - Lorenzo Di Rienzo
- Department of Physics, Sapienza University, Piazzale Aldo Moro 5, Rome, Italy
| | - Francesco Ambrosetti
- Department of Physics, Sapienza University, Piazzale Aldo Moro 5, Rome, Italy.,Bijvoet Center for Biomolecular Research, Faculty of Science - Chemistry, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Pietro Corsi
- Department of Science, Università degli Studi "Roma Tre", via della Vasca Navale 84, Rome, Italy
| | - Rosalba Lepore
- Biozentrum, University of Basel, Klingelbergstrasse 50-70, CH-4056 Basel, Switzerland.,SIB Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, Biozentrum, University of Basel, Klingelbergstrasse 50-70, CH-4056 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Gian Gaetano Tartaglia
- Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG), The Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, Dr. Aiguader St. 88, Barcelona, Spain.,Institucio' Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avancats (ICREA), 23 Passeig Lluìs Companys, Barcelona, Spain.,Department of Biology and Biotechnology, Sapienza University of Rome, Piazzale Aldo Moro 5, Rome, Italy
| | - Edoardo Milanetti
- Department of Physics, Sapienza University, Piazzale Aldo Moro 5, Rome, Italy.,Center for Life Nano Science@Sapienza, Instituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Viale Regina Elena, 291 Roma (RM), Italy
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20
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Abstract
The cholesterol-dependent cytolysin (CDC) genes are present in bacterial species that span terrestrial, vertebrate, and invertebrate niches, which suggests that they have evolved to function under widely different environmental conditions. Using a combination of biophysical and crystallographic approaches, we reveal that the relative stability of an intramolecular interface in the archetype CDC perfringolysin O (PFO) plays a central role in regulating its pore-forming properties. The disruption of this interface allows the formation of the membrane spanning β-barrel pore in all CDCs. We show here that the relative strength of the stabilizing forces at this interface directly impacts the energy barrier posed by the transition state for pore formation, as reflected in the Arrhenius activation energy (Ea) for pore formation. This change directly impacts the kinetics and temperature dependence of pore formation. We further show that the interface structure in a CDC from a terrestrial species enables it to function efficiently across a wide range of temperatures by minimizing changes in the strength of the transition state barrier to pore formation. These studies establish a paradigm that CDCs, and possibly other β-barrel pore-forming proteins/toxins, can evolve significantly different pore-forming properties by altering the stability of this transitional interface, which impacts the kinetic parameters and temperature dependence of pore formation.IMPORTANCE The cholesterol-dependent cytolysins (CDCs) are the archetype for the superfamily of oligomeric pore-forming proteins that includes the membrane attack complex/perforin (MACPF) family of immune defense proteins and the stonefish venom toxins (SNTX). The CDC/MACPF/SNTX family exhibits a common protein fold, which forms a membrane-spanning β-barrel pore. We show that changing the relative stability of an extensive intramolecular interface within this fold, which is necessarily disrupted to form the large β-barrel pore, dramatically alters the kinetic and temperature-dependent properties of CDC pore formation. These studies show that the CDCs and other members of the CDC/MACPF/SNTX superfamily have the capacity to significantly alter their pore-forming properties to function under widely different environmental conditions encountered by these species.
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21
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Olajos G, Hetényi A, Wéber E, Szögi T, Fülöp L, Martinek TA. Peripheral cyclic β-amino acids balance the stability and edge-protection of β-sandwiches. Org Biomol Chem 2019; 16:5492-5499. [PMID: 30024580 DOI: 10.1039/c8ob01322e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Engineering water-soluble stand-alone β-sandwich mimetics is a current challenge because of the difficulties associated with tailoring long-range interactions. In this work, single cis-(1R,2S)-2-aminocyclohexanecarboxylic acid mutations were introduced into the edge strands of the eight-stranded β-sandwich mimetic structures from the betabellin family. Temperature-dependent NMR and CD measurements, together with thermodynamic analyses, demonstrated that the modified peripheral strands exhibited an irregular and partially disordered structure but were able to exert sufficient shielding on the hydrophobic core to retain the predominantly β-sandwich structure. Although the frustrated interactions decreased the free energy of unfolding, the temperature of the maximum stabilities increased to or remained at physiologically relevant temperatures. We found that the irregular peripheral strands were able to prevent edge-to-edge association and fibril formation in the aggregation-prone model. These findings establish a β-sandwich stabilization and aggregation inhibition approach, which does not interfere with the pillars of the peptide bond or change the net charge of the peptide.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gábor Olajos
- Institute of Pharmaceutical Analysis, SZTE-MTA Lendület Foldamer Research Group, University of Szeged, Somogyi u. 4., H-6720 Szeged, Hungary. and MTA-SZTE Biomimetic Systems Research Group, University of Szeged, Dóm ter 8., H-6720 Szeged, Hungary
| | - Anasztázia Hetényi
- Department of Medical Chemistry, University of Szeged, Dóm ter 8., H-6720 Szeged, Hungary
| | - Edit Wéber
- Institute of Pharmaceutical Analysis, SZTE-MTA Lendület Foldamer Research Group, University of Szeged, Somogyi u. 4., H-6720 Szeged, Hungary.
| | - Titanilla Szögi
- Department of Medical Chemistry, University of Szeged, Dóm ter 8., H-6720 Szeged, Hungary
| | - Lívia Fülöp
- Department of Medical Chemistry, University of Szeged, Dóm ter 8., H-6720 Szeged, Hungary
| | - Tamás A Martinek
- Institute of Pharmaceutical Analysis, SZTE-MTA Lendület Foldamer Research Group, University of Szeged, Somogyi u. 4., H-6720 Szeged, Hungary. and MTA-SZTE Biomimetic Systems Research Group, University of Szeged, Dóm ter 8., H-6720 Szeged, Hungary
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22
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Taricska N, Bokor M, Menyhárd DK, Tompa K, Perczel A. Hydration shell differentiates folded and disordered states of a Trp-cage miniprotein, allowing characterization of structural heterogeneity by wide-line NMR measurements. Sci Rep 2019; 9:2947. [PMID: 30814556 PMCID: PMC6393587 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-39121-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2018] [Accepted: 12/10/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Hydration properties of folded and unfolded/disordered miniproteins were monitored in frozen solutions by wide-line 1H-NMR. The amount of mobile water as function of T (-80 °C < T < 0 °C) was found characteristically different for folded (TC5b), semi-folded (pH < 3, TCb5(H+)) and disordered (TC5b_N1R) variants. Comparing results of wide-line 1H-NMR and molecular dynamics simulations we found that both the amount of mobile water surrounding proteins in ice, as well as their thaw profiles differs significantly as function of the compactness and conformational heterogeneity of their structure. We found that (i) at around -50 °C ~50 H2Os/protein melt (ii) if the protein is well-folded then this amount of mobile water remains quasi-constant up to -20 °C, (iii) if disordered then the quantity of the lubricating mobile water increases with T in a constant manner up to ~200 H2Os/protein by reaching -20 °C. Especially in the -55 °C ↔ -15 °C temperature range, wide-line 1H-NMR detects the heterogeneity of protein fold, providing the size of the hydration shell surrounding the accessible conformers at a given temperature. Results indicate that freezing of protein solutions proceeds by the gradual selection of the enthalpically most favored states that also minimize the number of bridging waters.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nóra Taricska
- Laboratory of Structural Chemistry and Biology, Institute of Chemistry, Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, 1117, Hungary
| | - Mónika Bokor
- Institute for Solid State Physics and Optics, Wigner RCP of the HAS, 1121, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Dóra K Menyhárd
- MTA-ELTE Protein Modelling Research Group, Pázmány Péter st. 1A, 1117, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Kálmán Tompa
- Institute for Solid State Physics and Optics, Wigner RCP of the HAS, 1121, Budapest, Hungary
| | - András Perczel
- Laboratory of Structural Chemistry and Biology, Institute of Chemistry, Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, 1117, Hungary.
- MTA-ELTE Protein Modelling Research Group, Pázmány Péter st. 1A, 1117, Budapest, Hungary.
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23
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Dubey V, Daschakraborty S. Influence of glycerol on the cooling effect of pair hydrophobicity in water: relevance to proteins’ stabilization at low temperature. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2019; 21:800-812. [DOI: 10.1039/c8cp06513f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Glycerol reduces the cooling effect of pair hydrophobicity (reduction of hydrophobicity with decreasing temperature) in water.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vikas Dubey
- Department of Chemistry
- Indian Institute of Technology Patna
- Bihar 801106
- India
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24
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Bierma JC, Roskamp KW, Ledray AP, Kiss AJ, Cheng CHC, Martin RW. Controlling Liquid-Liquid Phase Separation of Cold-Adapted Crystallin Proteins from the Antarctic Toothfish. J Mol Biol 2018; 430:5151-5168. [PMID: 30414964 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2018.10.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2018] [Revised: 10/30/2018] [Accepted: 10/31/2018] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS) of proteins is important to a variety of biological processes both functional and deleterious, including the formation of membraneless organelles, molecular condensations that sequester or release molecules in response to stimuli, and the early stages of disease-related protein aggregation. In the protein-rich, crowded environment of the eye lens, LLPS manifests as cold cataract. We characterize the LLPS behavior of six structural γ-crystallins from the eye lens of the Antarctic toothfish Dissostichus mawsoni, whose intact lenses resist cold cataract in subzero waters. Phase separation of these proteins is not strongly correlated with thermal stability, aggregation propensity, or cross-species chaperone protection from heat denaturation. Instead, LLPS is driven by protein-protein interactions involving charged residues. The critical temperature of the phase transition can be tuned over a wide temperature range by selective substitution of surface residues, suggesting general principles for controlling this phenomenon, even in compactly folded proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jan C Bierma
- Department of Molecular Biology & Biochemistry, University of California, Irvine, CA 92697, USA
| | - Kyle W Roskamp
- Department of Chemistry, University of California, Irvine, CA 92697, USA
| | - Aaron P Ledray
- Department of Molecular Biology & Biochemistry, University of California, Irvine, CA 92697, USA
| | - Andor J Kiss
- Center for Bioinformatics and Functional Genomics, Miami University, Oxford, OH 45056,USA.
| | - C-H Christina Cheng
- Department of Animal Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801,USA
| | - Rachel W Martin
- Department of Molecular Biology & Biochemistry, University of California, Irvine, CA 92697, USA; Department of Chemistry, University of California, Irvine, CA 92697, USA.
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25
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26
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Daschakraborty S. How do glycerol and dimethyl sulphoxide affect local tetrahedral structure of water around a nonpolar solute at low temperature? Importance of preferential interaction. J Chem Phys 2018; 148:134501. [PMID: 29626866 DOI: 10.1063/1.5019239] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Glycerol and dimethyl sulphoxide (DMSO) have vital roles in cryoprotection of living cells, tissues, etc. The above action has been directly linked with disruption of hydrogen (H-) bond structure and dynamics of water by these cosolvents at bulk region and around various complex units, such as peptide, amino acid, protein, and lipid membrane. However, the disruption of the local structure of the water solvent around a purely hydrophobic solute is still not studied extensively. The latter is also important in the context of stabilization of protein from cold denaturation. Through all-atom molecular dynamics simulation, we have investigated the comparative effect of glycerol and DMSO on the orientational order of water around a nonpolar solute at -5 °C. A steady reduction of the tetrahedral order of water is observed at bulk (>10 Å distance from the solute) and solute interface (<5.5 Å distance from the solute) with increasing the cosolvent concentration. Contrasting roles of glycerol and DMSO have been evidenced. While DMSO affects the H-bond structure of the interfacial water more than that of the bulk water, glycerol affects the water structure almost uniformly at all regions around the solute. Furthermore, while glycerol helps to retain water molecules at the interface, DMSO significantly reduces the water content in that region. We have put forward a plausible mechanism for these contrasting roles of these cosolvents. The solute-cosolvent hydrophobic-interaction-induced orientational alignment of an interfacial cosolvent molecule determines whether the involvement of the cosolvent molecules in H-bonding with solvent water in the interface is akin to the bulk region or not.
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Abstract
Proteins undergo both cold and heat denaturation, but often cold denaturation cannot be detected because it occurs at temperatures below water freezing. Proteins undergoing detectable cold as well as heat denaturation yield a reliable curve of protein stability. Here we use bacterial IscU, an essential and ancient protein involved in iron cluster biogenesis, to show an important example of unbiased cold denaturation, based on electrostatic frustration caused by a dualism between iron–sulfur cluster binding and the presence of a functionally essential electrostatic gate. We explore the structural determinants and the universals that determine cold denaturation with the aid of a coarse grain model. Our results set a firm point in our understanding of cold denaturation and give us general rules to induce and predict protein cold denaturation. The conflict between ligand binding and stability hints at the importance of the structure–function dualism in protein evolution.
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Kim SB, Palmer JC, Debenedetti PG. Computational investigation of cold denaturation in the Trp-cage miniprotein. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2016; 113:8991-6. [PMID: 27457961 PMCID: PMC4987839 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1607500113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
The functional native states of globular proteins become unstable at low temperatures, resulting in cold unfolding and impairment of normal biological function. Fundamental understanding of this phenomenon is essential to rationalizing the evolution of freeze-tolerant organisms and developing improved strategies for long-term preservation of biological materials. We present fully atomistic simulations of cold denaturation of an α-helical protein, the widely studied Trp-cage miniprotein. In contrast to the significant destabilization of the folded structure at high temperatures, Trp-cage cold denatures at 210 K into a compact, partially folded state; major elements of the secondary structure, including the α-helix, are conserved, but the salt bridge between aspartic acid and arginine is lost. The stability of Trp-cage's α-helix at low temperatures suggests a possible evolutionary explanation for the prevalence of such structures in antifreeze peptides produced by cold-weather species, such as Arctic char. Although the 310-helix is observed at cold conditions, its position is shifted toward Trp-cage's C-terminus. This shift is accompanied by intrusion of water into Trp-cage's interior and the hydration of buried hydrophobic residues. However, our calculations also show that the dominant contribution to the favorable energetics of low-temperature unfolding of Trp-cage comes from the hydration of hydrophilic residues.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sang Beom Kim
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544
| | - Jeremy C Palmer
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Houston, Houston, TX 77204
| | - Pablo G Debenedetti
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544;
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Camilloni C, Bonetti D, Morrone A, Giri R, Dobson CM, Brunori M, Gianni S, Vendruscolo M. Towards a structural biology of the hydrophobic effect in protein folding. Sci Rep 2016; 6:28285. [PMID: 27461719 PMCID: PMC4962056 DOI: 10.1038/srep28285] [Citation(s) in RCA: 73] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2016] [Accepted: 05/03/2016] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
The hydrophobic effect is a major driving force in protein folding. A complete understanding of this effect requires the description of the conformational states of water and protein molecules at different temperatures. Towards this goal, we characterise the cold and hot denatured states of a protein by modelling NMR chemical shifts using restrained molecular dynamics simulations. A detailed analysis of the resulting structures reveals that water molecules in the bulk and at the protein interface form on average the same number of hydrogen bonds. Thus, even if proteins are 'large' particles (in terms of the hydrophobic effect, i.e. larger than 1 nm), because of the presence of complex surface patterns of polar and non-polar residues their behaviour can be compared to that of 'small' particles (i.e. smaller than 1 nm). We thus find that the hot denatured state is more compact and richer in secondary structure than the cold denatured state, since water at lower temperatures can form more hydrogen bonds than at high temperatures. Then, using Φ-value analysis we show that the structural differences between the hot and cold denatured states result in two alternative folding mechanisms. These findings thus illustrate how the analysis of water-protein hydrogen bonds can reveal the molecular origins of protein behaviours associated with the hydrophobic effect.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carlo Camilloni
- Department of Chemistry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 1EW, UK
| | - Daniela Bonetti
- Istituto Pasteur - Fondazione Cenci Bolognetti and Istituto di Biologia e Patologia Molecolari del CNR, Dipartimento di Scienze Biochimiche "A. Rossi Fanelli" Università di Roma "La Sapienza", 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Angela Morrone
- Istituto Pasteur - Fondazione Cenci Bolognetti and Istituto di Biologia e Patologia Molecolari del CNR, Dipartimento di Scienze Biochimiche "A. Rossi Fanelli" Università di Roma "La Sapienza", 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Rajanish Giri
- Istituto Pasteur - Fondazione Cenci Bolognetti and Istituto di Biologia e Patologia Molecolari del CNR, Dipartimento di Scienze Biochimiche "A. Rossi Fanelli" Università di Roma "La Sapienza", 00185 Rome, Italy
| | | | - Maurizio Brunori
- Istituto Pasteur - Fondazione Cenci Bolognetti and Istituto di Biologia e Patologia Molecolari del CNR, Dipartimento di Scienze Biochimiche "A. Rossi Fanelli" Università di Roma "La Sapienza", 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Stefano Gianni
- Istituto Pasteur - Fondazione Cenci Bolognetti and Istituto di Biologia e Patologia Molecolari del CNR, Dipartimento di Scienze Biochimiche "A. Rossi Fanelli" Università di Roma "La Sapienza", 00185 Rome, Italy
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