A rapid test for identification of autonomous folding units in proteins

The conformational landscape of a serpin N-terminal subdomain facilitates folding and in-cell quality control

Many multi-domain proteins including the serpin family of serine protease inhibitors contain non-sequential domains composed of regions that are far apart in sequence. Because proteins are translated vectorially from N- to C-terminus, such domains pose a particular challenge: how to balance the conformational lability necessary to form productive interactions between early and late translated regions while avoiding aggregation. This balance is mediated by the protein sequence properties and the interactions of the folding protein with the cellular quality control machinery. For serpins, particularly α 1 -antitrypsin (AAT), mutations often lead to polymer accumulation in cells and consequent disease suggesting that the lability/aggregation balance is especially precarious. Therefore, we investigated the properties of progressively longer AAT N-terminal fragments in solution and in cells. The N-terminal subdomain, residues 1-190 (AAT190), is monomeric in solution and efficiently degraded in cells. More β -rich fragments, 1-290 and 1-323, form small oligomers in solution, but are still efficiently degraded, and even the polymerization promoting Siiyama (S53F) mutation did not significantly affect fragment degradation. In vitro, the AAT190 region is among the last regions incorporated into the final structure. Hydrogen-deuterium exchange mass spectrometry and enhanced sampling molecular dynamics simulations show that AAT190 has a broad, dynamic conformational ensemble that helps protect one particularly aggregation prone β -strand from solvent. These AAT190 dynamics result in transient exposure of sequences that are buried in folded, full-length AAT, which may provide important recognition sites for the cellular quality control machinery and facilitate degradation and, under favorable conditions, reduce the likelihood of polymerization.

Modulating long-range energetics via helix stabilization: A case study using T4 lysozyme

Cooperative protein folding requires distant regions of a protein to interact and provide mutual stabilization. The mechanism of this long-distance coupling remains poorly understood. Here, we use T4 lysozyme (T4L*) as a model to investigate long-range communications across two subdomains of a globular protein. T4L* is composed of two structurally distinct subdomains, although it behaves in a two-state manner at equilibrium. The subdomains of T4L* are connected via two topological connections: the N-terminal helix that is structurally part of the C-terminal subdomain (the A-helix) and a long helix that spans both subdomains (the C-helix). To understand the role that the C-helix plays in cooperative folding, we analyzed a circularly permuted version of T4L* (CP13*), whose subdomains are connected only by the C-helix. We demonstrate that when isolated as individual fragments, both subdomains of CP13* can fold autonomously into marginally stable conformations. The energetics of the N-terminal subdomain depend on the formation of a salt bridge known to be important for stability in the full-length protein. We show that the energetic contribution of the salt bridge to the stability of the N-terminal fragment increases when the C-helix is stabilized, such as occurs upon folding of the C-terminal subdomain. These results suggest a model where long-range energetic coupling is mediated by helix stabilization and not specific tertiary interactions.

Timing Correlations in Proteins Predict Functional Modules and Dynamic Allostery

How protein structure encodes functionality is not fully understood. For example, long-range intraprotein communication can occur without measurable conformational change and is often not captured by existing structural correlation functions. It is shown here that important functional information is encoded in the timing of protein motions, rather than motion itself. I introduce the conditional activity function to quantify such timing correlations among the degrees of freedom within proteins. For three proteins, the conditional activities between side-chain dihedral angles were computed using the output of microseconds-long atomistic simulations. The new approach demonstrates that a sparse fraction of side-chain pairs are dynamically correlated over long distances (spanning protein lengths up to 7 nm), in sharp contrast to structural correlations, which are short-ranged (<1 nm). Regions of high self- and inter-side-chain dynamical correlations are found, corresponding to experimentally determined functional modules and allosteric connections, respectively.

Non-native structure appears in microseconds during the folding of E. coli RNase H

The folding pathway of Escherichia coli RNase H is one of the best experimentally characterized for any protein. In spite of this, spectroscopic studies have never captured the earliest events. Using continuous-flow microfluidic mixing, we have now observed the first several milliseconds of folding by monitoring the tryptophan fluorescence lifetime (60 μs dead time). Two folding intermediates are observed, the second of which is the previously characterized I(core) millisecond intermediate. The new earlier intermediate is likely on-pathway and appears to have long-range non-native structure, providing a rare example of such non-native structure formation in a folding pathway. The tryptophan fluorescence lifetimes also suggest a deviation from native packing in the second intermediate, I(core). Similar results from a fragment of RNase H demonstrate that only half of the protein is significantly involved in this early structure formation. These studies give us a view of the formation of tertiary structure on the folding pathway, which complements previous hydrogen-exchange studies that monitored only secondary structure and observed sequential native structure formation. Our results provide detailed folding information on both a timescale and a size-scale accessible to all-atom molecular dynamics simulations of protein folding.

Evidence for close side-chain packing in an early protein folding intermediate previously assumed to be a molten globule

The molten globule, a conformational ensemble with significant secondary structure but only loosely packed tertiary structure, has been suggested to be a ubiquitous intermediate in protein folding. However, it is difficult to assess the tertiary packing of transiently populated species to evaluate this hypothesis. Escherichia coli RNase H is known to populate an intermediate before the rate-limiting barrier to folding that has long been thought to be a molten globule. We investigated this hypothesis by making mimics of the intermediate that are the ground-state conformation at equilibrium, using two approaches: a truncation to generate a fragment mimic of the intermediate, and selective destabilization of the native state using point mutations. Spectroscopic characterization and the response of the mimics to further mutation are consistent with studies on the transient kinetic intermediate, indicating that they model the early intermediate. Both mimics fold cooperatively and exhibit NMR spectra indicative of a closely packed conformation, in contrast to the hypothesis of molten tertiary packing. This result is important for understanding the nature of the subsequent rate-limiting barrier to folding and has implications for the assumption that many other proteins populate molten globule folding intermediates.

OneG-Vali: a computational tool for detecting, estimating and validating cryptic intermediates of proteins under native conditions

Unfolding pathway of T4 lysozyme under native conditions as predicted by the OneG-Vali has been illustrated. Also, structural contexts of various states (native (N), cryptic intermediates (CIs) and unfolded (U) conformations) of the protein and the population of three CIs are depicted.

Defining structural and evolutionary modules in proteins: a community detection approach to explore sub-domain architecture

Background

Assessing protein modularity is important to understand protein evolution. Still the question of the existence of a sub-domain modular architecture remains. We propose a graph-theory approach with significance and power testing to identify modules in protein structures. In the first step, clusters are determined by optimizing the partition that maximizes the modularity score. Second, each cluster is tested for significance. Significant clusters are referred to as modules. Evolutionary modules are identified by analyzing homologous structures. Dynamic modules are inferred from sets of snapshots of molecular simulations. We present here a methodology to identify sub-domain architecture robustly, biologically meaningful, and statistically supported.

Results

The robustness of this new method is tested using simulated data with known modularity. Modules are correctly identified even when there is a low correlation between landmarks within a module. We also analyzed the evolutionary modularity of a data set of α-amylase catalytic domain homologs, and the dynamic modularity of the Niemann-Pick C1 (NPC1) protein N-terminal domain.

The α-amylase contains an (α/β)₈ barrel (TIM barrel) with the polysaccharides cleavage site and a calcium-binding domain. In this data set we identified four robust evolutionary modules, one of which forms the minimal functional TIM barrel topology.

The NPC1 protein is involved in the intracellular lipid metabolism coordinating sterol trafficking. NPC1 N-terminus is the first luminal domain which binds to cholesterol and its oxygenated derivatives. Our inferred dynamic modules in the protein NPC1 are also shown to match functional components of the protein related to the NPC1 disease.

Conclusions

A domain compartmentalization can be found and described in correlation space. To our knowledge, there is no other method attempting to identify sub-domain architecture from the correlation among residues. Most attempts made focus on sequence motifs of protein-protein interactions, binding sites, or sequence conservancy. We were able to describe functional/structural sub-domain architecture related to key residues for starch cleavage, calcium, and chloride binding sites in the α-amylase, and sterol opening-defining modules and disease-related residues in the NPC1. We also described the evolutionary sub-domain architecture of the α-amylase catalytic domain, identifying the already reported minimum functional TIM barrel.

OneG: a computational tool for predicting cryptic intermediates in the unfolding kinetics of proteins under native conditions

Understanding the relationships between conformations of proteins and their stabilities is one key to address the protein folding paradigm. The free energy change (ΔG) of unfolding reactions of proteins is measured by traditional denaturation methods and native hydrogen-deuterium (H/D) exchange methods. However, the free energy of unfolding (ΔG(U)) and the free energy of exchange (ΔG(HX)) of proteins are not in good agreement, though the experimental conditions of both methods are well matching to each other. The anomaly is due to any one or combinations of the following reasons: (i) effects of cis-trans proline isomerisation under equilibrium unfolding reactions of proteins (ii) inappropriateness in accounting the baselines of melting curves (iii) presence of cryptic intermediates, which may elude the melting curve analysis and (iv) existence of higher energy metastable states in the H/D exchange reactions of proteins. Herein, we have developed a novel computational tool, OneG, which accounts the discrepancy between ΔG(U) and ΔG(HX) of proteins by systematically accounting all the four factors mentioned above. The program is fully automated and requires four inputs: three-dimensional structures of proteins, ΔG(U), ΔG(U)(*) and residue-specific ΔG(HX) determined under EX2-exchange conditions in the absence of denaturants. The robustness of the program has been validated using experimental data available for proteins such as cytochrome c and apocytochrome b(562) and the data analyses revealed that cryptic intermediates of the proteins detected by the experimental methods and the cryptic intermediates predicted by the OneG for those proteins were in good agreement. Furthermore, using OneG, we have shown possible existence of cryptic intermediates and metastable states in the unfolding pathways of cardiotoxin III and cobrotoxin, respectively, which are homologous proteins. The unique application of the program to map the unfolding pathways of proteins under native conditions have been brought into fore and the program is publicly available at http://sblab.sastra.edu/oneg.html.

Identification of residual structure in the unfolded state of ribonuclease H1 from the moderately thermophilic Chlorobium tepidum: comparison with thermophilic and mesophilic homologues

Ribonucleases H from organisms that grow at different temperatures demonstrate a variable change in heat capacity upon unfolding (DeltaC degrees (P)) [Ratcliff, K., et al. (2009) Biochemistry 48, 5890-5898]. This DeltaC degrees (P) has been shown to correlate with a tolerance to higher temperatures and residual structure in the unfolded state of the thermophilic proteins. In the RNase H from Thermus thermophilus, the low DeltaC degrees (P) has been shown to arise from the same region as the folding core of the protein, and mutagenic studies have shown that loss of a hydrophobic residue in this region can disrupt this residual unfolded state structure and result in a return to a more mesophile-like DeltaC degrees (P) [Robic, S., et al. (2002) Protein Sci. 11, 381-389; Robic, S., et al. (2003) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 100, 11345-11349]. To understand further how residual structure in the unfolded state is encoded in the sequences of these thermophilic proteins, we subjected the RNase H from Chlorobium tepidum to similar studies. Analysis of new chimeric proteins reveals that like T. thermophilus RNase H, the folding core of C. tepidum RNase H plays an important role in the unfolded state of this protein. Mutagenesis studies, based on both a computational investigation of the hydrophobic networks in the core region and comparisons with similar studies on T. thermophilus RNase H, identify new residues involved in this residual structure and suggest that the residual structure in the unfolded state of C. tepidum RNase H is more restricted than that of T. thermophilus. We conclude that while the folding core region determines the thermophilic-like behavior of this family of proteins, the residue-specific details vary.

Fuzzy domains: new way of describing flexibility and interdependence of the protein domains

We proposed the innovative method of domain identification based on the concept of the fuzzy domains. In this method each residue of the protein can belong to several domains simultaneously with certain weights, which reflect to what extent this residue shares the motion pattern of the given domain. Our method allows describing the fuzzy boundaries between the domains and the gradual changes of the motion pattern from one domain to the other. It provides the reasonable compromise between the continuous change of the protein dynamics from one residue to the other and the discrete description of the structure in terms of small number of domains. We suggested quantitative criterion, which shows the overall degree of domain flexibility in the protein. The concept of the fuzzy domains provides an innovative way of visualization of domain flexibility, which makes the gradual transitions between the domains clearly visible and comparable to available experimental and structural data. In the future, the concept of the fuzzy domains can be used in the coarse-grained simulations of the domain dynamics in order to account for internal protein flexibility.

SPROUTS: a database for the evaluation of protein stability upon point mutation

SPROUTS (Structural Prediction for pRotein fOlding UTility System) is a new database that provides access to various structural data sets and integrated functionalities not yet available to the community. The originality of the SPROUTS database is the ability to gain access to a variety of structural analyses at one place and with a strong interaction between them. SPROUTS currently combines data pertaining to 429 structures that capture representative folds and results related to the prediction of critical residues expected to belong to the folding nucleus: the MIR (Most Interacting Residues), the description of the structures in terms of modular fragments: the TEF (Tightened End Fragments), and the calculation at each position of the free energy change gradient upon mutation by one of the 19 amino acids. All database results can be displayed and downloaded in textual files and Excel spreadsheets and visualized on the protein structure. SPROUTS is a unique resource to access as well as visualize state-of-the-art characteristics of protein folding and analyse the effect of point mutations on protein structure. It is available at http://bioinformatics.eas.asu.edu/sprouts.html.

GANDivAWeb: a web server for detecting early folding units ("foldons") from protein 3D structures

Background

It has long been known that small regions of proteins tend to fold independently and are then stabilized by interactions between these distinct subunits or modules. Such units, also known as autonomous folding units (AFUs) or"foldons" play a key role in protein folding. A knowledge of such early folding units has diverse applications in protein engineering as well as in developing an understanding of the protein folding process. Such AFUs can also be used as model systems in order to study the structural organization of proteins.

Results

In an earlier work, we had utilized a global network partitioning algorithm to identify modules in proteins. We had shown that these modules correlate well with AFUs. In this work, we have developed a webserver, GANDivAWeb, to identify early folding units or "foldons" in networks using the algorithm described earlier. The website has three functionalities: (a) It is able to display information on the modularity of a database of 1420 proteins used in the original work, (b) It can take as input an uploaded PDB file, identify the modules using the GANDivA algorithm and email the results back to the user and (c) It can take as input an uploaded PDB file and a results file (obtained from functionality (b)) and display the results using the embedded viewer. The results include the module decomposition of the protein, plots of cartoon representations of the protein colored by module identity and connectivity as well as contour plots of the hydrophobicity and relative accessible surface area (RASA) distributions.

Conclusion

We believe that the GANDivAWeb server, will be a useful tool for scientists interested in the phenomena of protein folding as well as in protein engineering. Our tool not only provides a knowledge of the AFUs through a natural graph partitioning approach but is also able to identify residues that are critical during folding. It is our intention to use this tool to study the topological determinants of protein folding by analyzing the topological changes in proteins over the unfolding/folding pathways.

Protein folding and misfolding: mechanism and principles

Two fundamentally different views of how proteins fold are now being debated. Do proteins fold through multiple unpredictable routes directed only by the energetically downhill nature of the folding landscape or do they fold through specific intermediates in a defined pathway that systematically puts predetermined pieces of the target native protein into place? It has now become possible to determine the structure of protein folding intermediates, evaluate their equilibrium and kinetic parameters, and establish their pathway relationships. Results obtained for many proteins have serendipitously revealed a new dimension of protein structure. Cooperative structural units of the native protein, called foldons, unfold and refold repeatedly even under native conditions. Much evidence obtained by hydrogen exchange and other methods now indicates that cooperative foldon units and not individual amino acids account for the unit steps in protein folding pathways. The formation of foldons and their ordered pathway assembly systematically puts native-like foldon building blocks into place, guided by a sequential stabilization mechanism in which prior native-like structure templates the formation of incoming foldons with complementary structure. Thus the same propensities and interactions that specify the final native state, encoded in the amino-acid sequence of every protein, determine the pathway for getting there. Experimental observations that have been interpreted differently, in terms of multiple independent pathways, appear to be due to chance misfolding errors that cause different population fractions to block at different pathway points, populate different pathway intermediates, and fold at different rates. This paper summarizes the experimental basis for these three determining principles and their consequences. Cooperative native-like foldon units and the sequential stabilization process together generate predetermined stepwise pathways. Optional misfolding errors are responsible for 3-state and heterogeneous kinetic folding.

Network scaling invariants help to elucidate basic topological principles of proteins

The structural architecture of proteins continues to be an area of active research. Despite the difference in models dealing with the way proteins fold into their tertiary structures, it is recognized that small regions of proteins tend to fold independently and are then stabilized by interactions between these distinct subunits. However, there are a number of different definitions of what comprises an independent subunit. In the belief that an unequivocal definition of a domain must be based on the most fundamental property of protein 3D structure, namely, the adjacency matrix of inter-residues contact, we adopt a network representation of the protein. In this work, we used a well-established, global method for identifying modules in networks, without any specific reference to the kind of network being analyzed. The algorithm converges toward the maximization of the modularity of the given protein network and, in doing so, allows the representation of the residues of the protein in terms of their intramodule degree, z, and participation coefficient, P. We demonstrate that the labeling of residues in terms of these invariants allows for information-rich representations of the studied proteins as well as to sketch a new way to link sequence, structure, and the dynamical properties of proteins. We discovered a strong invariant character of protein molecules in terms of P/z characterization, pointing to a common topological design of all protein structures. This invariant representation, applied to different protein systems, enabled us to identify the possible functional role of high P/z residues during the folding process. Additionally, we observe a hierarchical behavior of protein structural organization that provides a sequence-secondary-tertiary structure link. The discovery of similar and repeatable scaling laws at different level of definitions going from hydrophobicity patterning along the sequence up to the size of an autonomous folding unit (AFU) and general contact distribution of the entire molecule suggest a hierarchical-like behavior of protein architecture. This implies the possibility to select different privileged scales of observation for deriving useful information on protein systems.

Branching in the sequential folding pathway of cytochrome c

Previous results indicate that the folding pathways of cytochrome c and other proteins progressively build the target native protein in a predetermined stepwise manner by the sequential formation and association of native-like foldon units. The present work used native state hydrogen exchange methods to investigate a structural anomaly in cytochrome c results that suggested the concerted folding of two segments that have little structural relationship in the native protein. The results show that the two segments, an 18-residue omega loop and a 10-residue helix, are able to unfold and refold independently, which allows a branch point in the folding pathway. The pathway that emerges assembles native-like foldon units in a linear sequential manner when prior native-like structure can template a single subsequent foldon, and optional pathway branching is seen when prior structure is able to support the folding of two different foldons.

Exploring subdomain cooperativity in T4 lysozyme I: structural and energetic studies of a circular permutant and protein fragment

Small proteins are generally observed to fold in an apparent two-state manner. Recently, however, more sensitive techniques have demonstrated that even seemingly single-domain proteins are actually made up of smaller subdomains. T4 lysozyme is one such protein. We explored the relative autonomy of its two individual subdomains and their contribution to the overall stability of T4 lysozyme by examining a circular permutation (CP13*) that relocates the N-terminal A-helix, creating subdomains that are contiguous in sequence. By determining the high-resolution structure of CP13* and characterizing its energy landscape using native state hydrogen exchange (NSHX), we show that connectivity between the subdomains is an important determinant of the energetic cooperativity but not structural integrity of the protein. The circular permutation results in a protein more easily able to populate a partially unfolded form in which the C-terminal subdomain is folded and the N-terminal subdomain is unfolded. We also created a fragment model of this intermediate and demonstrate using X-ray crystallography that its structure is identical to the corresponding residues in the full-length protein with the exception of a small network of hydrophobic interactions. In sum, we conclude that the C-terminal subdomain dominates the energetics of T4 lysozyme folding, and the A-helix serves an important role in coupling the two subdomains.

Dynamic protein domains: identification, interdependence, and stability

Existing methods of domain identification in proteins usually provide no information about the degree of domain independence and stability. However, this information is vital for many areas of protein research. The recently developed hierarchical clustering of correlation patterns (HCCP) technique provides machine-based domain identification in a computationally simple and physically consistent way. Here we present the modification of this technique, which not only allows determination of the most plausible number of dynamic domains but also makes it possible to estimate the degree of their independence (the extent of correlated motion) and stability (the range of environmental conditions, where domains remain intact). With this technique we provided domain assignments and calculated intra- and interdomain correlations and interdomain energies for >2500 test proteins. It is shown that mean intradomain correlation of motions can serve as a quantitative criterion of domain independence, and the HCCP stability gap is a measure of their stability. Our data show that the motions of domains with high stability are usually independent. In contrast, the domains with moderate stability usually exhibit a substantial degree of correlated motions. It is shown that in multidomain proteins the domains are most stable if they are of similar size, and this correlates with the observed abundance of such proteins.

Mapping the Distribution of Conformational Information Throughout a Protein Sequence

The three-dimensional structure of protein is encoded in the sequence, but many amino acid residues carry no essential conformational information, and the identity of those that are structure-determining is elusive. By circular permutation and terminal deletion, we produced and purified 25 Bacillus licheniformis beta-lactamase (ESBL) variants that lack 5-21 contiguous residues each, and collectively have 82% of the sequence and 92% of the non-local atom-atom contacts eliminated. Circular dichroism and size-exclusion chromatography showed that most of the variants form conformationally heterogeneous mixtures, but by measuring catalytic constants, we found that all populate, to a greater or lesser extent, conformations with the essential features of the native fold. This suggests that no segment of the ESBL sequence is essential to the structure as a whole, which is congruent with the notion that local information and modular organization can impart most of the tertiary fold specificity and cooperativity.

Modeling the bound conformation of Pemphigus vulgaris-associated peptides to MHC Class II DR and DQ alleles

Background

Pemphigus vulgaris (PV) is a severe autoimmune blistering disorder characterized by the presence of pathogenic autoantibodies directed against desmoglein-3 (Dsg3), involving specific DR4 and DR6 alleles in Caucasians and DQ5 allele in Asians. The development of sequence-based predictive algorithms to identify potential Dsg3 epitopes has encountered limited success due to the paucity of PV-associated allele-specific peptides as training data.

Results

In this work we constructed atomic models of ten PV associated, non-associated and protective alleles. Nine previously identified stimulatory Dsg3 peptides, Dsg3 96–112, Dsg3 191–205, Dsg3 206–220, Dsg3 252–266, Dsg3 342–356, Dsg3 380–394, Dsg3 763–777, Dsg3 810–824 and Dsg3 963–977, were docked into the binding groove of each model to analyze the structural aspects of allele-specific binding.

Conclusion

Our docking simulations are entirely consistent with functional data obtained from in vitro competitive binding assays and T cell proliferation studies in DR4 and DR6 PV patients. Our findings ascertain that DRB1*0402 plays a crucial role in the selection of specific self-peptides in DR4 PV. DRB1*0402 and DQB1*0503 do not necessarily share the same core residues, indicating that both alleles may have different binding specificities. In addition, our results lend credence to the hypothesis that the alleles DQB1*0201 and *0202 play a protective role by binding Dsg3 peptides with greater affinity than the susceptible alleles, allowing for efficient deletion of autoreactive T cells.

Hierarchical clustering of the correlation patterns: New method of domain identification in proteins

New method of identification of dynamical domains in proteins - Hierarchical Clustering of the Correlation Patterns (HCCP) is proposed. HCCP allows to identify the domains using single three-dimensional structure of the studied proteins and does not require any adjustable parameters that can influence the results. The method is based on hierarchical clustering performed on the matrices of correlation patterns, which are obtained by the transformation of ordinary pairwise correlation matrices. This approach allows to extract additional information from the correlation matrices, which increases reliability of domain identification. It is shown that HCCP is insensitive to small variations of the pairwise correlation matrices. Particularly it produces identical results if the data obtained for the same protein crystallized with different spatial positions of domains are used for analysis. HCCP can utilize correlation matrices obtained by any method such as normal mode or essential dynamics analysis, Gaussian network or anisotropic network models, etc. These features make HCCP an attractive method for domain identification in proteins.

Additivity in Both Thermodynamic Stability and Thermal Transition Temperature for Rubredoxin Chimeras via Hybrid Native Partitioning

Given any operational definition of pairwise interaction, the set of residues that differ between two structurally homologous proteins can be uniquely partitioned into subsets of clusters for which no such interactions occur between clusters. Although hybrid protein sequences that preserve such clustering are consistent with tertiary structures composed of only parental native-like interactions, the stability of such predicted structures will depend upon the physical robustness of the assumed interaction potential. A simple distance cutoff criterion was applied to the most thermostable protein known to predict such a seven-residue cluster in the metal binding site region of Pyrococcus furiosus rubredoxin and a mesophile homolog. Both conformational stability and thermal transition temperature measurements demonstrate that 39% of the differential stability arises from these seven residues.

The βαβαβ elementary supersecondary structure of the Rossmann fold from porcine lactate dehydrogenase exhibits characteristics of a molten globule

Protein classifications show that the Rossmann fold, which consists of two betaalphabetaalphabeta motifs (BABAB) related by a rough twofold axis, is the most populated alphabeta fold, and that the betaalphabeta submotif (BAB) is a widespread elementary structural arrangement. Herein, we report MD simulations, circular dichroism and NMR analyses on BAB and BABAB from porcine lactate dehydrogenase to evaluate their intrinsic stability. Our results demonstrate that BAB is not stable in solution and is not a folding nucleus. We also find that BABAB, despite its appearance of a functional and structural unit, is not an independent and thermodynamically stable folding unit. Rather, we show that BABAB retains most native secondary structure but very little tertiary structure, thus displaying characteristics of a molten globule.

Rapid assessment of contact-dependent secondary structure propensity: Relevance to amyloidogenic sequences

We have previously demonstrated that calculation of contact-dependent secondary structure propensity (CSSP) is highly sensitive in detecting non-native beta-strand propensities in the core sequences of known amyloidogenic proteins. Here we describe a CSSP method based on an artificial neural network that rapidly and accurately quantifies the influence of tertiary contacts (TCs) on secondary structure propensity in local regions of protein sequences. The present method exhibited 72% accuracy in predicting the alternate secondary structure adopted by chameleon sequences located in highly disparate TC regions. Analysis of 1930 nonhomologous protein domains reveals that the alpha-helix and the beta-strand largely share the same sequence context, and that tertiary context is a major determinant of the native conformation. Conversely, it appears that the propensity of random coils for either the alpha-helix or the beta-strand is largely invariant to tertiary effects. The present CSSP method successfully reproduced the amyloidogenic character observed in local regions of the human islet amyloid polypeptide (hIAPP). Furthermore, CSSP profiles were strongly correlated (r = 0.76) with the observed mutational effects on the aggregation rate of acylphosphatase. Taken together, these results provide compelling evidence in support of the present CSSP approach as a sensitive probe useful for analysis of full-length proteins and for detection of core sequences that may trigger amyloid fibril formation. The combined speed and simplicity of the CSSP method lends itself to proteome-wide analysis of the amyloidogenic nature of common proteins.

Detecting hidden sequence propensity for amyloid fibril formation

The preponderance of evidence implicates protein misfolding in many unrelated human diseases. In all cases, normal correctly folded proteins transform from their proper native structure into an abnormal beta-rich structure known as amyloid fibril. Here we introduce a computational algorithm to detect nonnative (hidden) sequence propensity for amyloid fibril formation. Analyzing sequence-structure relationships in terms of tertiary contact (TC), we find that the hidden beta-strand propensity of a query local sequence can be quantitatively estimated from the secondary structure preferences of template sequences of known secondary structure found in regions of high TC. The present method correctly pinpoints the minimal peptide fragment shown experimentally as the likely local mediator of amyloid fibril formation in beta-amyloid peptide, islet amyloid polypeptide (hIAPP), alpha-synuclein, and human acetylcholinesterase (AChE). It also found previously unrecognized beta-strand propensities in the prototypical helical protein myoglobin that has been reported as amyloidogenic. Analysis of 2358 nonhomologous protein domains provides compelling evidence that most proteins contain sequences with significant hidden beta-strand propensity. The present method may find utility in many medically relevant applications, such as the engineering of protein sequences and the discovery of therapeutic agents that specifically target these sequences for the prevention and treatment of amyloid diseases.

Folding of an abridged beta-lactamase

The effects of C-terminal truncation on the equilibrium folding transitions and folding kinetics of B. licheniformis exo small beta-lactamase (ES-betaL) have been measured. ES-betaL lacking 19 residues (ES-betaL(C)(Delta)(19)) has no enzymic activity. Deletion of the last 14 residues produces ES-betaL(C)(Delta)(14), which is 0.1% active. The enzyme lacking nine residues (ES-betaL(C)(Delta)(9)) is nearly fully active, has native optical and hydrodynamic properties, and is protease resistant, a distinguishing feature of the wild-type enzyme. Although ES-betaL(C)(Delta)(9) folds properly, it does so 4 orders of magnitude slower than ES-betaL, making possible the isolation and characterization of a compact intermediate state (I(P) ES-betaL(C)(Delta)(9)). Based on the analysis of folding rates and equilibrium constants, we propose that equilibrium between I(P) ES-betaL(C)(Delta)(9) and other intermediate slow folding. Residues removed in ES-betaL(C)(Delta)(9) and ES-betaL(C)(Delta)(14) are helical and firmly integrated into the enzyme body through many van der Waals interactions involving residues distant in sequence. The results suggest that the deleted residues play a key role in the folding process and also the existence of a modular organization of the protein matrix, at the subdomain level. The results are compared with other examples of this kind in the folding literature.

Mapping of unit boundaries of a protein: exhaustive search for permissive sites for duplication by complementation analysis of random fragment libraries of tryptophan synthase alpha subunit

To identify peptide units that make up a single-domain protein, we searched for possible combinations of N and C-fragments that exhibit functional complementation, and attempted an exhaustive evaluation of peptide unit boundaries. The tryptophan synthase alpha subunit was used as a model enzyme, which has a single TIM (beta8/alpha8) barrel domain. Libraries comprising randomly digested N and C-fragments were constructed, and clones expressing enzymatic activity were selected by the ability to confer growth of the Escherichia coli trpA mutant on a medium lacking tryptophan. More than 50 clones were obtained, and two cleavable positions were found on the loops after extra-helix 2' and helix 5. Half of the clones harbored N and C-fragments having an overlap between two fragments. The remaining clones harbored one fragment made by the fusion of N and C-fragments with insertional sequence duplication. Mapping the frequency of occurrence of fragment overlap and insertional duplication showed significant peaks at two loops, which coincide with the cleavable sites. These results suggest that the boundaries of unit fragments are located at these positions, and that bisection, fragment overlap and insertion are all possible at the unit boundaries.

NMR Structures of 36 and 73-residue Fragments of the Calreticulin P-domain

Calreticulin (CRT) is an abundant, soluble molecular chaperone of the endoplasmic reticulum. Similar to its membrane-bound homolog calnexin (CNX), it is a lectin that promotes the folding of proteins carrying N-linked glycans. Both proteins cooperate with an associated co-chaperone, the thiol-disulfide oxidoreductase ERp57. This enzyme catalyzes the formation of disulfide bonds in CNX and CRT-bound glycoprotein substrates. Previously, we solved the NMR structure of the central proline-rich P-domain of CRT comprising residues 189-288. This structure shows an extended hairpin topology, with three short anti-parallel beta-sheets, three small hydrophobic clusters, and one helical turn at the tip of the hairpin. We further demonstrated that the residues 225-251 at the tip of the CRT P-domain are involved in direct contacts with ERp57. Here, we show that the CRT P-domain fragment CRT(221-256) constitutes an autonomous folding unit, and has a structure highly similar to that of the corresponding region in CRT(189-288). Of the 36 residues present in CRT(221-256), 32 form a well-structured core, making this fragment one of the smallest known natural sequences to form a stable non-helical fold in the absence of disulfide bonds or tightly bound metal ions. CRT(221-256) comprises all the residues of the intact P-domain that were shown to interact with ERp57. Isothermal titration microcalorimetry (ITC) now showed affinity of this fragment for ERp57 similar to that of the intact P-domain, demonstrating that CRT(221-256) may be used as a low molecular mass mimic of CRT for further investigations of the interaction with ERp57. We also solved the NMR structure of the 73-residue fragment CRT(189-261), in which the tip of the hairpin and the first beta-sheet are well structured, but the residues 189-213 are disordered, presumably due to lack of stabilizing interactions across the hairpin.

Experimental evaluation of topological parameters determining protein-folding rates

Recent work suggests that structural topology plays a key role in determining protein-folding rates and pathways. The refolding rates of small proteins that fold without intermediates are found to correlate with simple structural parameters such as relative contact order, long-range order, or the fraction of short-range contacts. To test and evaluate the role of structural topology experimentally, a set of circular permutants of the ribosomal protein S6 from Thermus thermophilus was analyzed. Despite a wide range of relative contact order, the permuted proteins all fold with similar rates. These results suggest that alternative topological parameters may better describe the role of topology in protein-folding rates.

Partially folded structure of flavin adenine dinucleotide-depleted ferredoxin-NADP+ reductase with residual NADP+ binding domain

Maize ferredoxin-NADP(+) reductase (FNR) consists of flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) and NADP(+) binding domains with a FAD molecule bound noncovalently in the cleft between these domains. The structural changes of FNR induced by dissociation of FAD have been characterized by a combination of optical and biochemical methods. The CD spectrum of the FAD-depleted FNR (apo-FNR) suggested that removal of FAD from holo-FNR produced an intermediate conformational state with partially disrupted secondary and tertiary structures. Small angle x-ray scattering indicated that apo-FNR assumes a conformation that is less globular in comparison with holo-FNR but is not completely chain-like. Interestingly, the replacement of tyrosine 95 responsible for FAD binding with alanine resulted in a molecular form similar to apo-protein of the wild-type enzyme. Both apo- and Y95A-FNR species bound to Cibacron Blue affinity resin, indicating the presence of a native-like conformation for the NADP(+) binding domain. On the other hand, no evidence was found for the existence of folded conformations in the FAD binding domains of these proteins. These results suggested that FAD-depleted FNR assumes a partially folded structure with a residual NADP(+) binding domain but a disordered FAD binding domain.

Contributions of folding cores to the thermostabilities of two ribonucleases H

To investigate the contribution of the folding cores to the thermodynamic stability of RNases H, we used rational design to create two chimeras composed of parts of a thermophilic and a mesophilic RNase H. Each chimera combines the folding core from one parent protein and the remaining parts of the other. Both chimeras form active, well-folded RNases H. Stability curves, based on CD-monitored chemical denaturations, show that the chimera with the thermophilic core is more stable, has a higher midpoint of thermal denaturation, and a lower change in heat capacity (DeltaCp) upon unfolding than the chimera with the mesophilic core. A possible explanation for the low DeltaCp of both the parent thermophilic RNase H and the chimera with the thermophilic core is the residual structure in the denatured state. On the basis of the studied parameters, the chimera with the thermophilic core resembles a true thermophilic protein. Our results suggest that the folding core plays an essential role in conferring thermodynamic parameters to RNases H.

Highly divergent dihydrofolate reductases conserve complex folding mechanisms

To test the hypothesis that protein folding mechanisms are better conserved than amino acid sequences, the mechanisms for dihydrofolate reductases (DHFR) from human (hs), Escherichia coli (ec) and Lactobacillus casei (lc) were elucidated and compared using intrinsic Trp fluorescence and fluorescence-detected 8-anilino-1-naphthalenesulfonate (ANS) binding. The development of the native state was monitored using either methotrexate (absorbance at 380 nm) or NADPH (extrinsic fluorescence) binding. All three homologs displayed complex unfolding and refolding kinetic mechanisms that involved partially folded states and multiple energy barriers. Although the pairwise sequence identities are less than 30 %, folding to the native state occurs via parallel folding channels and involves two types of on-pathway kinetic intermediates for all three homologs. The first ensemble of kinetic intermediates, detected within a few milliseconds, has significant secondary structure and exposed hydrophobic cores. The second ensemble is obligatory and has native-like side-chain packing in a hydrophobic core; however, these intermediates are unable to bind active-site ligands. The formation of the ensemble of native states occurs via three channels for hsDHFR, and four channels for lcDHFR and ecDHFR. The binding of active-site ligands (methotrexate and NADPH) accompanies the rate-limiting formation of the native ensemble. The conservation of the fast, intermediate and slow-folding events for this complex alpha/beta motif provides convincing evidence for the hypothesis that evolutionarily related proteins achieve the same fold via similar pathways.

Cooperative folding of the isolated alpha-helical domain of hen egg-white lysozyme

Proteins in the alpha-lactalbumin and c-type lysozyme family have been studied extensively as model systems in protein folding. Early formation of the alpha-helical domain is observed in both alpha-lactalbumin and c-type lysozyme; however, the details of the kinetic folding pathways are significantly different. The major folding intermediate of hen egg-white lysozyme has a cooperatively formed tertiary structure, whereas the intermediate of alpha-lactalbumin exhibits the characteristics of a molten globule. In this study, we have designed and constructed an isolated alpha-helical domain of hen egg-white lysozyme, called Lyso-alpha, as a model of the lysozyme folding intermediate that is stable at equilibrium. Disulfide-exchange studies show that under native conditions, the cysteine residues in Lyso-alpha prefer to form the same set of disulfide bonds as in the alpha-helical domain of full-length lysozyme. Under denaturing conditions, formation of the nearest-neighbor disulfide bonds is strongly preferred. In contrast to the isolated alpha-helical domain of alpha-lactalbumin, Lyso-alpha with two native disulfide bonds exhibits a well-defined tertiary structure, as indicated by cooperative thermal unfolding and a well-dispersed NMR spectrum. Thus, the determinants for formation of the cooperative side-chain interactions are located mainly in the alpha-helical domain. Our studies suggest that the difference in kinetic folding pathways between alpha-lactalbumin and lysozyme can be explained by the difference in packing density between secondary structural elements and support the hypothesis that the structured regions in a protein folding intermediate may correspond to regions that can fold independently.