1
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Becht DC, Leavens MJ, Zeng B, Rothfuss MT, Briknarová K, Bowler BE. Residual Structure in the Denatured State of the Fast-Folding UBA(1) Domain from the Human DNA Excision Repair Protein HHR23A. Biochemistry 2022; 61:767-784. [PMID: 35430812 PMCID: PMC9150713 DOI: 10.1021/acs.biochem.2c00011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
The structure of the first ubiquitin-associated domain from HHR23A, UBA(1), was determined by X-ray crystallography at a 1.60 Å resolution, and its stability, folding kinetics, and residual structure under denaturing conditions have been investigated. The concentration dependence of thermal denaturation and size-exclusion chromatography indicate that UBA(1) is monomeric. Guanidine hydrochloride (GdnHCl) denaturation experiments reveal that the unfolding free energy, ΔGu°'(H2O), of UBA(1) is 2.4 kcal mol-1. Stopped-flow folding kinetics indicates sub-millisecond folding with only proline isomerization phases detectable at 25 °C. The full folding kinetics are observable at 4 °C, yielding a folding rate constant, kf, in the absence of a denaturant of 13,000 s-1 and a Tanford β-value of 0.80, consistent with a compact transition state. Evaluation of the secondary structure via circular dichroism shows that the residual helical structure in the denatured state is replaced by polyproline II structure as the GdnHCl concentration increases. Analysis of NMR secondary chemical shifts for backbone 15NH, 13CO, and 13Cα atoms between 4 and 7 M GdnHCl shows three islands of residual helical secondary structure that align in sequence with the three native-state helices. Extrapolation of the NMR data to 0 M GdnHCl demonstrates that helical structure would populate to 17-33% in the denatured state under folding conditions. Comparison with NMR data for a peptide corresponding to helix 1 indicates that this helix is stabilized by transient tertiary interactions in the denatured state of UBA(1). The high helical content in the denatured state, which is enhanced by transient tertiary interactions, suggests a diffusion-collision folding mechanism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dustin C. Becht
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana 59812, United States
- Center for Biomolecular Structure & Dynamics, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana 59812, United States
| | - Moses J. Leavens
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana 59812, United States
- Center for Biomolecular Structure & Dynamics, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana 59812, United States
| | - Baisen Zeng
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana 59812, United States
- Center for Biomolecular Structure & Dynamics, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana 59812, United States
| | - Michael T. Rothfuss
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana 59812, United States
- Center for Biomolecular Structure & Dynamics, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana 59812, United States
| | - Klára Briknarová
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana 59812, United States
- Center for Biomolecular Structure & Dynamics, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana 59812, United States
| | - Bruce E. Bowler
- Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana 59812, United States
- Center for Biomolecular Structure & Dynamics, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana 59812, United States
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2
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Zou J, Li Z, Liu S, Peng C, Fang D, Wan X, Lin Z, Lee TS, Raleigh DP, Yang M, Simmerling C. Scaffold Hopping Transformations Using Auxiliary Restraints for Calculating Accurate Relative Binding Free Energies. J Chem Theory Comput 2021; 17:3710-3726. [PMID: 34029468 PMCID: PMC8215533 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jctc.1c00214] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
In silico screening of drug-target interactions is a key part of the drug discovery process. Changes in the drug scaffold via contraction or expansion of rings, the breaking of rings, and the introduction of cyclic structures from acyclic structures are commonly applied by medicinal chemists to improve binding affinity and enhance favorable properties of candidate compounds. These processes, commonly referred to as scaffold hopping, are challenging to model computationally. Although relative binding free energy (RBFE) calculations have shown success in predicting binding affinity changes caused by perturbing R-groups attached to a common scaffold, applications of RBFE calculations to modeling scaffold hopping are relatively limited. Scaffold hopping inevitably involves breaking and forming bond interactions of quadratic functional forms, which is highly challenging. A novel method for handling ring opening/closure/contraction/expansion and linker contraction/expansion is presented here. To the best of our knowledge, RBFE calculations on linker contraction/expansion have not been previously reported. The method uses auxiliary restraints to hold the atoms at the ends of a bond in place during the breaking and forming of the bonds. The broad applicability of the method was demonstrated by examining perturbations involving small-molecule macrocycles and mutations of proline in proteins. High accuracy was obtained using the method for most of the perturbations studied. The rigor of the method was isolated from the force field by validating the method using relative and absolute hydration free energy calculations compared to standard simulation results. Unlike other methods that rely on λ-dependent functional forms for bond interactions, the method presented here can be employed using modern molecular dynamics software without modification of codes or force field functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junjie Zou
- Shenzhen Jingtai Technology Co., Ltd. (XtalPi), Floor 3, Sf Industrial Plant, No. 2 Hongliu Road, Fubao Community, Fubao Street, Futian District, Shenzhen 518045, China
- Department of Chemistry, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York 11794-3400, United States
- Laufer Center for Physical and Quantitative Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York 11794-3400, United States
| | - Zhipeng Li
- Shenzhen Jingtai Technology Co., Ltd. (XtalPi), Floor 3, Sf Industrial Plant, No. 2 Hongliu Road, Fubao Community, Fubao Street, Futian District, Shenzhen 518045, China
| | - Shuai Liu
- XtalPi Inc., 245 Main St, 11th Floor, Cambridge, MA 02142, United States
| | - Chunwang Peng
- Shenzhen Jingtai Technology Co., Ltd. (XtalPi), Floor 3, Sf Industrial Plant, No. 2 Hongliu Road, Fubao Community, Fubao Street, Futian District, Shenzhen 518045, China
| | - Dong Fang
- Shenzhen Jingtai Technology Co., Ltd. (XtalPi), Floor 3, Sf Industrial Plant, No. 2 Hongliu Road, Fubao Community, Fubao Street, Futian District, Shenzhen 518045, China
| | - Xiao Wan
- Shenzhen Jingtai Technology Co., Ltd. (XtalPi), Floor 3, Sf Industrial Plant, No. 2 Hongliu Road, Fubao Community, Fubao Street, Futian District, Shenzhen 518045, China
| | - Zhixiong Lin
- Shenzhen Jingtai Technology Co., Ltd. (XtalPi), Floor 3, Sf Industrial Plant, No. 2 Hongliu Road, Fubao Community, Fubao Street, Futian District, Shenzhen 518045, China
| | - Tai-Sung Lee
- Laboratory for Biomolecular Simulation Research, Center for Integrative Proteomics Research, Rutgers University, Piscataway, New Jersey, 08854-8076, United States
| | - Daniel P. Raleigh
- Department of Chemistry, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York 11794-3400, United States
- Laufer Center for Physical and Quantitative Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York 11794-3400, United States
| | - Mingjun Yang
- Shenzhen Jingtai Technology Co., Ltd. (XtalPi), Floor 3, Sf Industrial Plant, No. 2 Hongliu Road, Fubao Community, Fubao Street, Futian District, Shenzhen 518045, China
| | - Carlos Simmerling
- Department of Chemistry, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York 11794-3400, United States
- Laufer Center for Physical and Quantitative Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York 11794-3400, United States
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3
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Zou J, Xiao S, Simmerling C, Raleigh DP. Quantitative Analysis of Protein Unfolded State Energetics: Experimental and Computational Studies Demonstrate That Non-Native Side-Chain Interactions Stabilize Local Native Backbone Structure. J Phys Chem B 2021; 125:3269-3277. [PMID: 33779182 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.0c08922] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Proteins fold on relatively smooth free energy landscapes which are biased toward the native state, but even simple topologies which fold rapidly can experience roughness on their free energy landscape. The details of these interactions are difficult to elucidate experimentally. Closely related to the problem of deciphering the details of the free energy landscape is the problem of defining the interactions in the denatured state ensemble (DSE) which is populated under native conditions, that is, under conditions where the native state is stable. The DSE of many proteins deviates from random coil models, but quantifying and defining the energetics of the transiently populated interactions in this ensemble is extremely challenging. Characterization of the DSE of proteins which fold to compact structures is also relevant to studies of intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) since interactions in the dynamic ensemble populated by IDPs can modulate their behavior. Here we show how experimental thermodynamic and pKa measurements can be combined with computational thermodynamic integration to quantify interactions in the DSE. We show that non-native side chain interactions can stabilize native backbone structure in the DSE and demonstrate that that even rapidly folding proteins can form energetically significant non-native interactions in their DSE. As an example, we characterize a non-native salt bridge that stabilizes local native backbone structure in the DSE of a widely studied fast-folding protein, the villin headpiece helical domain. The combined computational experimental approach is applicable to other protein unfolded states and provides insight that is impossible to obtain with either method alone.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junjie Zou
- Department of Chemistry, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York 11794-3400, United States.,Laufer Center for Physical and Quantitative Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York 11794-3400, United States
| | - Shifeng Xiao
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Marine Biotechnology and Ecology, College of Life Sciences and Oceanography, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, China
| | - Carlos Simmerling
- Department of Chemistry, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York 11794-3400, United States.,Laufer Center for Physical and Quantitative Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York 11794-3400, United States
| | - Daniel P Raleigh
- Department of Chemistry, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York 11794-3400, United States.,Laufer Center for Physical and Quantitative Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York 11794-3400, United States
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4
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Huang H, Simmerling C. Fast Pairwise Approximation of Solvent Accessible Surface Area for Implicit Solvent Simulations of Proteins on CPUs and GPUs. J Chem Theory Comput 2018; 14:5797-5814. [PMID: 30303377 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jctc.8b00413] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
We propose a pairwise and readily parallelizable SASA-based nonpolar solvation approach for protein simulations, inspired by our previous pairwise GB polar solvation model development. In this work, we developed a novel function to estimate the atomic and molecular SASAs of proteins, which results in comparable accuracy as the LCPO algorithm in reproducing numerical icosahedral-based SASA values. Implemented in Amber software and tested on consumer GPUs, our pwSASA method reasonably reproduces LCPO simulation results, but accelerates MD simulations up to 30 times compared to the LCPO implementation, which is greatly desirable for protein simulations facing sampling challenges. The value of incorporating the nonpolar term in implicit solvent simulations is explored on a peptide fragment containing the hydrophobic core of HP36 and evaluating thermal stability profiles of four small proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- He Huang
- Laufer Center for Physical and Quantitative Biology , Stony Brook University , Stony Brook , New York 11794 , United States.,Department of Chemistry , Stony Brook University , Stony Brook , New York 11794 , United States
| | - Carlos Simmerling
- Laufer Center for Physical and Quantitative Biology , Stony Brook University , Stony Brook , New York 11794 , United States.,Department of Chemistry , Stony Brook University , Stony Brook , New York 11794 , United States
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5
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Huang J, Rauscher S, Nawrocki G, Ran T, Feig M, de Groot BL, Grubmüller H, MacKerell AD. CHARMM36m: an improved force field for folded and intrinsically disordered proteins. Nat Methods 2017. [PMID: 27819658 DOI: 10.1038/2fnmeth.4067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/16/2023]
Abstract
The all-atom additive CHARMM36 protein force field is widely used in molecular modeling and simulations. We present its refinement, CHARMM36m (http://mackerell.umaryland.edu/charmm_ff.shtml), with improved accuracy in generating polypeptide backbone conformational ensembles for intrinsically disordered peptides and proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jing Huang
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Maryland, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Sarah Rauscher
- Department of Theoretical and Computational Biophysics, Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Grzegorz Nawrocki
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, USA
| | - Ting Ran
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Maryland, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Michael Feig
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, USA
| | - Bert L de Groot
- Department of Theoretical and Computational Biophysics, Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Helmut Grubmüller
- Department of Theoretical and Computational Biophysics, Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Alexander D MacKerell
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Maryland, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
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6
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CHARMM36m: an improved force field for folded and intrinsically disordered proteins. Nat Methods 2016; 14:71-73. [PMID: 27819658 DOI: 10.1038/nmeth.4067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3362] [Impact Index Per Article: 420.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2016] [Accepted: 10/05/2016] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
The all-atom additive CHARMM36 protein force field is widely used in molecular modeling and simulations. We present its refinement, CHARMM36m (http://mackerell.umaryland.edu/charmm_ff.shtml), with improved accuracy in generating polypeptide backbone conformational ensembles for intrinsically disordered peptides and proteins.
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7
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Baltzis AS, Glykos NM. Characterizing a partially ordered miniprotein through folding molecular dynamics simulations: Comparison with the experimental data. Protein Sci 2015; 25:587-96. [PMID: 26609791 DOI: 10.1002/pro.2850] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2015] [Revised: 09/22/2015] [Accepted: 11/15/2015] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
The villin headpiece helical subdomain (HP36) is one of the best known model systems for computational studies of fast-folding all-α miniproteins. HP21 is a peptide fragment-derived from HP36-comprising only the first and second helices of the full domain. Experimental studies showed that although HP21 is mostly unfolded in solution, it does maintain some persistent native-like structure as indicated by the analysis of NMR-derived chemical shifts. Here we compare the experimental data for HP21 with the results obtained from a 15-μs long folding molecular dynamics simulation performed in explicit water and with full electrostatics. We find that the simulation is in good agreement with the experiment and faithfully reproduces the major experimental findings, namely that (a) HP21 is disordered in solution with <10% of the trajectory corresponding to transiently stable structures, (b) the most highly populated conformer is a native-like structure with an RMSD from the corresponding portion of the HP36 crystal structure of <1 Å, (c) the simulation-derived chemical shifts-over the whole length of the trajectory-are in reasonable agreement with the experiment giving reduced χ(2) values of 1.6, 1.4, and 0.8 for the Δδ(13) C(α) , Δδ(13) CO, and Δδ(13) C(β) secondary shifts, respectively (becoming 0.8, 0.7, and 0.3 when only the major peptide conformer is considered), and finally, (d) the secondary structure propensity scores are in very good agreement with the experiment and clearly indicate the higher stability of the first helix. We conclude that folding molecular dynamics simulations can be a useful tool for the structural characterization of even marginally stable peptides.
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Affiliation(s)
- Athanasios S Baltzis
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Democritus University of Thrace, University Campus, Alexandroupolis, 68100, Greece
| | - Nicholas M Glykos
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Democritus University of Thrace, University Campus, Alexandroupolis, 68100, Greece
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8
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Harpole KW, O'Brien ES, Clark MA, McKnight CJ, Vugmeyster L, Wand AJ. The unusual internal motion of the villin headpiece subdomain. Protein Sci 2015; 25:423-32. [PMID: 26473993 DOI: 10.1002/pro.2831] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2015] [Accepted: 10/12/2015] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
The thermostable 36-residue subdomain of the villin headpiece (HP36) is the smallest known cooperatively folding protein. Although the folding and internal dynamics of HP36 and close variants have been extensively studied, there has not been a comprehensive investigation of side-chain motion in this protein. Here, the fast motion of methyl-bearing amino acid side chains is explored over a range of temperatures using site-resolved solution nuclear magnetic resonance deuterium relaxation. The squared generalized order parameters of methyl groups extensively spatially segregate according to motional classes. This has not been observed before in any protein studied using this methodology. The class segregation is preserved from 275 to 305 K. Motions detected in Helix 3 suggest a fast timescale of conformational heterogeneity that has not been previously observed but is consistent with a range of folding and dynamics studies. Finally, a comparison between the order parameters in solution with previous results based on solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance deuterium line shape analysis of HP36 in partially hydrated powders shows a clear disagreement for half of the sites. This result has significant implications for the interpretation of data derived from a variety of approaches that rely on partially hydrated protein samples.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyle W Harpole
- Johnson Research Foundation and Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 19104-6059
| | - Evan S O'Brien
- Johnson Research Foundation and Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 19104-6059
| | - Matthew A Clark
- Department of Chemistry, University of Alaska Anchorage, Anchorage, Alaska, 99508
| | - C James McKnight
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, 02118
| | - Liliya Vugmeyster
- Department of Chemistry, University of Alaska Anchorage, Anchorage, Alaska, 99508.,Department of Chemistry, University of Colorado at Denver, Denver, Colorado, 80204
| | - A Joshua Wand
- Johnson Research Foundation and Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 19104-6059
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9
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A compact native 24-residue supersecondary structure derived from the villin headpiece subdomain. Biophys J 2015; 108:678-86. [PMID: 25650934 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpj.2014.11.3482] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2014] [Revised: 10/23/2014] [Accepted: 11/20/2014] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Many small proteins fold highly cooperatively in an all-or-none fashion and thus their native states are well protected from thermal fluctuations by an extensive network of interactions across the folded structure. Because protein structures are stabilized by local and nonlocal interactions among distal residues, dissecting individual substructures from the context of folded proteins results in large destabilization and loss of unique three-dimensional structure. Thus, mini-protein substructures can only rarely be derived from natural templates. Here, we describe a compact native 24-residues-long supersecondary structure derived from the hyperstable villin headpiece subdomain consisting of helices 2 and 3 (HP24). Using a combination of experimental techniques, including NMR and small-angle x-ray scattering, as well as all-atom replica exchange molecular-dynamics simulations, we show that a variant with stabilizing substitutions (HP24stab) forms a densely packed and compact conformation. In HP24stab, interactions between helices 2 and 3 are similar to those observed in native folded HP35, and the two helices cooperatively stabilize each other by completing the hydrophobic core lining the central part of HP35. Interestingly, even though the HP24wt fragment shows a more expanded and less structured conformation, NMR and simulations demonstrate a preference for a native-like topology. Thus, the two stabilizing residues in HP24stab shift the energy balance toward the native state, leading to a minimal folding motif.
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10
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Xiao S, Patsalo V, Shan B, Bi Y, Green DF, Raleigh DP. Rational modification of protein stability by targeting surface sites leads to complicated results. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2013; 110:11337-42. [PMID: 23798426 PMCID: PMC3710877 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1222245110] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The rational modification of protein stability is an important goal of protein design. Protein surface electrostatic interactions are not evolutionarily optimized for stability and are an attractive target for the rational redesign of proteins. We show that surface charge mutants can exert stabilizing effects in distinct and unanticipated ways, including ones that are not predicted by existing methods, even when only solvent-exposed sites are targeted. Individual mutation of three solvent-exposed lysines in the villin headpiece subdomain significantly stabilizes the protein, but the mechanism of stabilization is very different in each case. One mutation destabilizes native-state electrostatic interactions but has a larger destabilizing effect on the denatured state, a second removes the desolvation penalty paid by the charged residue, whereas the third introduces unanticipated native-state interactions but does not alter electrostatics. Our results show that even seemingly intuitive mutations can exert their effects through unforeseen and complex interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Vadim Patsalo
- Applied Mathematics, and
- Laufer Center for Physical and Quantitative Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794-3600
| | | | - Yuan Bi
- Departments of Chemistry and
| | - David F. Green
- Departments of Chemistry and
- Applied Mathematics, and
- Laufer Center for Physical and Quantitative Biology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794-3600
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11
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Lv C, Tan C, Qin M, Zou D, Cao Y, Wang W. Low folding cooperativity of HP35 revealed by single-molecule force spectroscopy and molecular dynamics simulation. Biophys J 2012; 102:1944-51. [PMID: 22768951 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpj.2012.03.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2011] [Revised: 03/08/2012] [Accepted: 03/14/2012] [Indexed: 10/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Some small proteins, such as HP35, fold at submicrosecond timescale with low folding cooperativity. Although these proteins have been extensively investigated, still relatively little is known about their folding mechanism. Here, using single-molecule force spectroscopy and steered molecule dynamics simulation, we study the unfolding of HP35 under external force. Our results show that HP35 unfolds at extremely low forces without a well-defined unfolding transition state. Subsequently, we probe the structure of unfolded HP35 using the persistence length obtained in the force spectroscopy. We found that the persistence length of unfolded HP35 is around 0.72 nm, >40% longer than typical unstructured proteins, suggesting that there are a significant amount of residual secondary structures in the unfolded HP35. Molecular dynamics simulation further confirmed this finding and revealed that many native contacts are preserved in HP35, even its two ends have been extended up to 8 nm. Our results therefore suggest that retaining a significant amount of secondary structures in the unfolded state of HP35 may be an efficient way to reduce the entropic cost for the formation of tertiary structure and increase the folding speed, although the folding cooperativity is compromised. Moreover, we anticipate that the methods we used in this work can be extended to the study of other proteins with complex folding behaviors and even intrinsically disordered ones.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chunmei Lv
- National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructure and Department of Physics, Nanjing University, Nanjing, People's Republic of China
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12
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Serrano AL, Bilsel O, Gai F. Native state conformational heterogeneity of HP35 revealed by time-resolved FRET. J Phys Chem B 2012; 116:10631-8. [PMID: 22891809 DOI: 10.1021/jp211296e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
The villin headpiece subdomain (HP35) has become one of the most widely used model systems in protein folding studies, due to its small size and ultrafast folding kinetics. Here, we use HP35 as a test bed to show that the fluorescence decay kinetics of an unnatural amino acid, p-cyanophenylalanine (Phe(CN)), which are modulated by a nearby quencher (e.g., tryptophan or 7-azatryptophan) through the mechanism of fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET), can be used to detect protein conformational heterogeneity. This method is based on the notion that protein conformations having different donor-acceptor distances and interconverting slowly compared to the fluorescence lifetime of the donor (Phe(CN)) would exhibit different donor fluorescence lifetimes. Our results provide strong evidence suggesting that the native free energy basin of HP35 is populated with conformations that differ mostly in the position and mean helicity of the C-terminal helix. This finding is consistent with several previous experimental and computational studies. Moreover, this result holds strong implications for computational investigation of the folding mechanism of HP35.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arnaldo L Serrano
- Department of Chemistry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, United States
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13
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Wang L, Skinner JL. Thermally induced protein unfolding probed by isotope-edited IR spectroscopy. J Phys Chem B 2012; 116:9627-34. [PMID: 22853174 PMCID: PMC3463243 DOI: 10.1021/jp304613b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Infrared (IR) spectroscopy has been widely utilized for the study of protein folding, unfolding, and misfolding processes. We have previously developed a theoretical method for calculating IR spectra of proteins in the amide I region. In this work, we apply this method, in combination with replica-exchange molecular dynamics simulations, to study the equilibrium thermal unfolding transition of the villin headpiece subdomain (HP36). Temperature-dependent IR spectra and spectral densities are calculated. The spectral densities correctly reflect the unfolding conformational changes in the simulation. With the help of isotope labeling, we are able to capture the feature that helix 2 of HP36 loses its secondary structure before global unfolding occurs, in agreement with experiment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lu Wang
- Theoretical Chemistry Institute and Department of Chemistry, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706 USA
| | - James L. Skinner
- Theoretical Chemistry Institute and Department of Chemistry, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706 USA
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14
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Highly perturbed pKa values in the unfolded state of hen egg white lysozyme. Biophys J 2012; 102:1636-45. [PMID: 22500764 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpj.2012.02.048] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2011] [Revised: 01/28/2012] [Accepted: 02/13/2012] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
The majority of pK(a) values in protein unfolded states are close to the amino acid model pK(a) values, thus reflecting the weak intramolecular interactions present in the unfolded ensemble of most proteins. We have carried out thermal denaturation measurements on the WT and eight mutants of HEWL from pH 1.5 to pH 11.0 to examine the unfolded state pK(a) values and the pH dependence of protein stability for this enzyme. The availability of accurate pK(a) values for the folded state of HEWL and separate measurements of mutant-induced effects on the folded state pK(a) values, allows us to estimate the pK(a) values of seven acidic residues in the unfolded state of HEWL. Asp-48 and Asp-66 display pK(a) values of 2.9 and 3.1 in our analysis, thus representing the most depressed unfolded state pK(a) values observed to date. We observe a strong correlation between the folded state pK(a) values and the unfolded state pK(a) values of HEWL, thus suggesting that the unfolded state of HEWL possesses a large degree of native state characteristics.
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15
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Brown JW, Farelli JD, McKnight CJ. On the unyielding hydrophobic core of villin headpiece. Protein Sci 2012; 21:647-54. [PMID: 22467489 DOI: 10.1002/pro.2048] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2012] [Revised: 02/09/2012] [Accepted: 02/13/2012] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Villin headpiece (HP67) is a small, autonomously-folding domain that has become a model system for understanding the fundamental tenets governing protein folding. In this communication, we explore the role that Leu61 plays in the structure and stability of the construct. Deletion of Leu61 results in a completely unfolded protein that cannot be expressed in Escherichia coli. Omission of only the aliphatic leucine side chain (HP67 L61G) perturbed neither the backbone conformation nor the orientation of local hydrophobic side chains. As a result, a large, solvent-exposed hydrophobic pocket, a negative replica of the leucine side-chain, was created on the surface. The loss of the hydrophobic interface between leucine 61 and the hydrophobic pocket destabilized the construct by ~3.3 kcal/mol. Insertion of a single glycine residue immediately before Leu61 (HP67 L61[GL]) was also highly destabilizing and had the effect of altering the backbone conformation (α-helix to π-helix) in order to precisely preserve the wild-type position and conformation of all hydrophobic residues, including Leu61. In addition to demonstrating that the hydrophobic side-chain of Leu61 is critically important for the stability of villin headpiece, our results are consistent with the notion that the precise interactions present within the hydrophobic core, rather than the hydrogen bonds that define the secondary structure, specify a protein's fold.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeffrey W Brown
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts 02118, USA
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16
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Zhu L, Ghosh K, King M, Cellmer T, Bakajin O, Lapidus LJ. Evidence of Multiple Folding Pathways for the Villin Headpiece Subdomain. J Phys Chem B 2011; 115:12632-7. [PMID: 21923150 DOI: 10.1021/jp206238y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Li Zhu
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824, United States
- Advanced Photonics Center, Southeast University, Nanjing 210096, China
| | - Kingshuk Ghosh
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Denver, Denver, Colorado 80208, United States
| | - Michael King
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824, United States
| | - Troy Cellmer
- Laboratory of Chemical Physics, Building 5, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland 20892, United States
| | - Olgica Bakajin
- Center for Biophotonics Science and Technology, University of California, Davis, Sacramento, California, United States
| | - Lisa J. Lapidus
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824, United States
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17
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Bowler BE. Residual structure in unfolded proteins. Curr Opin Struct Biol 2011; 22:4-13. [PMID: 21978577 DOI: 10.1016/j.sbi.2011.09.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2011] [Accepted: 09/07/2011] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
The denatured state ensemble (DSE) of unfolded proteins, once considered to be well-modeled by an energetically featureless random coil, is now well-known to contain flickering elements of residual structure. The position and nature of DSE residual structure may provide clues toward deciphering the protein folding code. This review focuses on recent advances in our understanding of the nature of DSE collapse under folding conditions, the quantification of the stability of residual structure in the DSE, the determination of the location and types of residues involved in thermodynamically significant residual structure and advances in detection of long-range interactions in the DSE.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bruce E Bowler
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry and Center for Biomolecular Structure and Dynamics, The University of Montana, Missoula, MT 59812, USA.
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18
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Jani V, Sonavane UB, Joshi R. Microsecond scale replica exchange molecular dynamic simulation of villin headpiece: an insight into the folding landscape. J Biomol Struct Dyn 2011; 28:845-60. [PMID: 21469746 DOI: 10.1080/07391102.2011.10508612] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Abstract
Reaching the experimental time scale of millisecond is a grand challenge for protein folding simulations. The development of advanced Molecular Dynamics techniques like Replica Exchange Molecular Dynamics (REMD) makes it possible to reach these experimental timescales. In this study, an attempt has been made to reach the multi microsecond simulation time scale by carrying out folding simulations on a three helix bundle protein, Villin, by combining REMD and Amber United Atom model. Twenty replicas having different temperatures ranging from 295 K to 390 K were simulated for 1.5 µs each. The lowest Root Mean Square Deviation (RMSD) structure of 2.5 Å was obtained with respect to native structure (PDB code 1VII), with all the helices formed. The folding population landscapes were built using segment-wise RMSD and Principal Components as reaction coordinates. These analyses suggest the two-stage folding for Villin. The combination of REMD and Amber United Atom model may be useful to understand the folding mechanism of various fast folding proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vinod Jani
- Bioinformatics Team, Scientific and Engineering Computing Group, Centre for Development of Advanced Computing, Pune University Campus, Ganeshkhind, Pune - 411007, Maharashtra, India
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19
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Quantitative comparison of villin headpiece subdomain simulations and triplet-triplet energy transfer experiments. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2011; 108:12734-9. [PMID: 21768345 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1010880108] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
As the fastest folding protein, the villin headpiece (HP35) serves as an important bridge between simulation and experimental studies of protein folding. Despite the simplicity of this system, experiments continue to reveal a number of surprises, including structure in the unfolded state and complex equilibrium dynamics near the native state. Using 2.5 ms of molecular dynamics and Markov state models, we connect to current experimental results in three ways. First, we present and validate a novel method for the quantitative prediction of triplet-triplet energy transfer experiments. Second, we construct a many-state model for HP35 that is consistent with previous experiments. Finally, we predict contact-formation time traces for all 1,225 possible triplet-triplet energy transfer experiments on HP35.
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20
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Baldwin RL, Frieden C, Rose GD. Dry molten globule intermediates and the mechanism of protein unfolding. Proteins 2011; 78:2725-37. [PMID: 20635344 DOI: 10.1002/prot.22803] [Citation(s) in RCA: 93] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
New experimental results show that either gain or loss of close packing can be observed as a discrete step in protein folding or unfolding reactions. This finding poses a significant challenge to the conventional two-state model of protein folding. Results of interest involve dry molten globule (DMG) intermediates, an expanded form of the protein that lacks appreciable solvent. When an unfolding protein expands to the DMG state, side chains unlock and gain conformational entropy, while liquid-like van der Waals interactions persist. Four unrelated proteins are now known to form DMGs as the first step of unfolding, suggesting that such an intermediate may well be commonplace in both folding and unfolding. Data from the literature show that peptide amide protons are protected in the DMG, indicating that backbone structure is intact despite loss of side-chain close packing. Other complementary evidence shows that secondary structure formation provides a major source of compaction during folding. In our model, the major free-energy barrier separating unfolded from native states usually occurs during the transition between the unfolded state and the DMG. The absence of close packing at this barrier provides an explanation for why phi-values, derived from a Brønsted-Leffler plot, depend primarily on structure at the mutational site and not on specific side-chain interactions. The conventional two-state folding model breaks down when there are DMG intermediates, a realization that has major implications for future experimental work on the mechanism of protein folding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert L Baldwin
- Department of Biochemistry, Stanford University Medical Center, Beckman Center, School of Medicine, Stanford, California 94305-5307, USA.
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21
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Sosnick TR, Barrick D. The folding of single domain proteins--have we reached a consensus? Curr Opin Struct Biol 2010; 21:12-24. [PMID: 21144739 DOI: 10.1016/j.sbi.2010.11.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 120] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2010] [Revised: 11/03/2010] [Accepted: 11/04/2010] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
Rather than stressing the most recent advances in the field, this review highlights the fundamental topics where disagreement remains and where adequate experimental data are lacking. These topics include properties of the denatured state and the role of residual structure, the nature of the fundamental steps and barriers, the extent of pathway heterogeneity and non-native interactions, recent comparisons between theory and experiment, and finally, dynamical properties of the folding reaction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tobin R Sosnick
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Institute for Biophysical Dynamics, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA.
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22
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Xiao S, Raleigh DP. A critical assessment of putative gatekeeper interactions in the villin headpiece helical subdomain. J Mol Biol 2010; 401:274-85. [PMID: 20570680 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2010.05.070] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2010] [Revised: 05/26/2010] [Accepted: 05/28/2010] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
The helical subdomain of the villin headpiece (HP36) is one of the smallest naturally occurring proteins that folds cooperatively. Its small size, rapid folding, and simple three-helix topology have made it an extraordinary popular model system for computational, theoretical, and experimental studies of protein folding. Aromatic-proline interactions involving Trp64 and Pro62 have been proposed to play a critical role in specifying the subdomain fold by acting as gatekeeper residues. Note that the numbering corresponds to full-length headpiece. Mutation of Pro62 has been shown to lead to a protein that does not fold, but this may arise for two different reasons: The residue may make interactions that are critical for the specificity of the fold or the mutation may simply destabilize the domain. In the first case, the protein cannot fold, while in the second, the small fraction of molecules that do fold adopt the correct structure. The modest stability of the wild type prevents a critical analysis of these interactions because even moderately destabilizing mutations lead to a very small folded state population. Using a hyperstable variant of HP36, denoted DM HP36, as our new wild type, we characterized a set of mutants designed to assess the role of the putative gatekeeper interactions. Four single mutants, DM Pro62Ala, DM Trp64Leu, DM Trp64Lys, and DM Trp64Ala, and a double mutant, DM Pro62Ala Trp64Leu, were prepared. All mutants are less stable than DM HP36, but all are well folded as judged by CD and (1)H NMR. All of the mutants display sigmoidal thermal unfolding and urea-induced unfolding curves. Double-mutant cycle analysis shows that the interactions between Pro62 and Trp64 are weak but favorable. Interactions involving Pro62 and proline-aromatic interactions are, thus, not required for specifying the subdomain fold. The implications for the design and thermodynamics of miniature proteins are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shifeng Xiao
- Department of Chemistry, State University of New York at Stony Brook, Stony Brook, NY 11794-3400, USA
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An unlocking/relocking barrier in conformational fluctuations of villin headpiece subdomain. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2010; 107:4955-60. [PMID: 20194774 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.0910001107] [Citation(s) in RCA: 111] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
A reversible structural unlocking reaction, in which the close-packed van der Waals interactions break cooperatively, has been found for the villin headpiece subdomain (HP35) using triplet-triplet-energy transfer to monitor conformational fluctuations from equilibrium. Unlocking is associated with an unfavorable enthalpy change (DeltaH(0) = 35 +/- 4 kJ/mol) which is nearly compensated in free energy by the entropy change (DeltaS(0) = 112 +/- 20 Jxmol(-1)xK(-1)). The unlocking reaction has a time constant of about 1 mus at 5 degrees C and is enthalpy-limited with an activation energy of 32 +/- 1 kJ/mol and a large Arrhenius preexponential factor of A = 7.5 x 10(11) s(-1). In the unlocked state a fast local conformational fluctuation with a time constant of 170 ns and a low activation barrier of 17 +/- 1 kJ/mol leads to unfolding of the C-terminal helix and to its undocking from the core. On a much slower time scale, global unfolding occurs from the unlocked state. These results suggest that native protein structures are locked into conformations with low amplitude motions. Large scale motions and global unfolding require an initial structural unlocking step leading to a state with properties of a dry molten globule. The experiments additionally yielded information on the dynamics of loop formation between different positions in unfolded HP35. Comparison of the results with dynamics in unstructured model peptides indicates slightly decelerated kinetics of local loop formation in the C-terminal region which points at residual, nonrandom structure. Dynamics of long-range loop formation, in contrast, are not influenced by residual structure, which argues against unfolded state properties as molecular origin for ultrafast folding of HP35.
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