Alamethicin aggregation in lipid membranes

Melittin can permeabilize membranes via large transient pores

Membrane active peptides are known to porate lipid bilayers, but their exact permeabilization mechanism and the structure of the nanoaggregates they form in membranes have often been difficult to determine experimentally. For many sequences at lower peptide concentrations, transient leakage is observed in experiments, suggesting the existence of transient pores. For two well-know peptides, alamethicin and melittin, we show here that molecular mechanics simulations i) can directly distinguish equilibrium poration and non-equilibrium transient leakage processes, and ii) can be used to observe the detailed pore structures and mechanism of permeabilization in both cases. Our results are in very high agreement with numerous experimental evidence for these two peptides. This suggests that molecular simulations can capture key membrane poration phenomena directly and in the future may develop to be a useful tool that can assist experimental peptide design.

Intrinsic Lipid Curvature and Bilayer Elasticity as Regulators of Channel Function: A Comparative Single-Molecule Study

Perturbations in bilayer material properties (thickness, lipid intrinsic curvature and elastic moduli) modulate the free energy difference between different membrane protein conformations, thereby leading to changes in the conformational preferences of bilayer-spanning proteins. To further explore the relative importance of curvature and elasticity in determining the changes in bilayer properties that underlie the modulation of channel function, we investigated how the micelle-forming amphiphiles Triton X-100, reduced Triton X-100 and the HII lipid phase promoter capsaicin modulate the function of alamethicin and gramicidin channels. Whether the amphiphile-induced changes in intrinsic curvature were negative or positive, amphiphile addition increased gramicidin channel appearance rates and lifetimes and stabilized the higher conductance states in alamethicin channels. When the intrinsic curvature was modulated by altering phospholipid head group interactions, however, maneuvers that promote a negative-going curvature stabilized the higher conductance states in alamethicin channels but destabilized gramicidin channels. Using gramicidin channels of different lengths to probe for changes in bilayer elasticity, we found that amphiphile adsorption increases bilayer elasticity, whereas altering head group interactions does not. We draw the following conclusions: first, confirming previous studies, both alamethicin and gramicidin channels are modulated by changes in lipid bilayer material properties, the changes occurring in parallel yet differing dependent on the property that is being changed; second, isolated, negative-going changes in curvature stabilize the higher current levels in alamethicin channels and destabilize gramicidin channels; third, increases in bilayer elasticity stabilize the higher current levels in alamethicin channels and stabilize gramicidin channels; and fourth, the energetic consequences of changes in elasticity tend to dominate over changes in curvature.

Impacts of Hydrophobic Mismatch on Antimicrobial Peptide Efficacy and Bilayer Permeabilization

Antimicrobial resistance continues to be a major threat to world health, with the continued emergence of resistant bacterial strains. Antimicrobial peptides have emerged as an attractive option for the development of novel antimicrobial compounds in part due to their ubiquity in nature and the general lack of resistance development to this class of molecules. In this work, we analyzed the antimicrobial peptide C18G and several truncated forms for efficacy and the underlying mechanistic effects of the sequence truncation. The peptides were screened for antimicrobial efficacy against several standard laboratory strains, and further analyzed using fluorescence spectroscopy to evaluate binding to model lipid membranes and bilayer disruption. The results show a clear correlation between the length of the peptide and the antimicrobial efficacy. Furthermore, there is a correlation between peptide length and the hydrophobic thickness of the bilayer, indicating that hydrophobic mismatch is likely a contributing factor to the loss of efficacy in shorter peptides.

Rotational Dynamics of The Transmembrane Domains Play an Important Role in Peptide Dynamics of Viral Fusion and Ion Channel Forming Proteins—A Molecular Dynamics Simulation Study

Focusing on the transmembrane domains (TMDs) of viral fusion and channel-forming proteins (VCPs), experimentally available and newly generated peptides in an ideal conformation of the S and E proteins of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus type 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and SARS-CoV, gp41 and Vpu, both of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1), haemagglutinin and M2 of influenza A, as well as gB of herpes simplex virus (HSV), are embedded in a fully hydrated lipid bilayer and used in multi-nanosecond molecular dynamics simulations. It is aimed to identify differences in the dynamics of the individual TMDs of the two types of viral membrane proteins. The assumption is made that the dynamics of the individual TMDs are decoupled from their extra-membrane domains, and that the mechanics of the TMDs are distinct from each other due to the different mechanism of function of the two types of proteins. The diffusivity coefficient (DC) of the translational and rotational diffusion is decreased in the oligomeric state of the TMDs compared to those values when calculated from simulations in their monomeric state. When comparing the calculations for two different lengths of the TMD, a longer full peptide and a shorter purely TMD stretch, (i) the difference of the calculated DCs begins to level out when the difference exceeds approximately 15 amino acids per peptide chain, and (ii) the channel protein rotational DC is the most affected diffusion parameter. The rotational dynamics of the individual amino acids within the middle section of the TMDs of the fusion peptides remain high upon oligomerization, but decrease for the channel peptides, with an increasing number of monomers forming the oligomeric state, suggesting an entropic penalty on oligomerization for the latter.

Synergistic Biophysical Techniques Reveal Structural Mechanisms of Engineered Cationic Antimicrobial Peptides in Lipid Model Membranes

In the quest for new antibiotics, two novel engineered cationic antimicrobial peptides (eCAPs) have been rationally designed. WLBU2 and D8 (all 8 valines are the d-enantiomer) efficiently kill both Gram-negative and -positive bacteria, but WLBU2 is toxic and D8 nontoxic to eukaryotic cells. We explore protein secondary structure, location of peptides in six lipid model membranes, changes in membrane structure and pore evidence. We suggest that protein secondary structure is not a critical determinant of bactericidal activity, but that membrane thinning and dual location of WLBU2 and D8 in the membrane headgroup and hydrocarbon region may be important. While neither peptide thins the Gram-negative lipopolysaccharide outer membrane model, both locate deep into its hydrocarbon region where they are primed for self-promoted uptake into the periplasm. The partially α-helical secondary structure of WLBU2 in a red blood cell (RBC) membrane model containing 50 % cholesterol, could play a role in destabilizing this RBC membrane model causing pore formation that is not observed with the D8 random coil, which correlates with RBC hemolysis caused by WLBU2 but not by D8.

Pore Forming Properties of Alamethicin in Negatively Charged Floating Bilayer Lipid Membranes Supported on Gold Electrodes

Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), atomic force microscopy (AFM), and photon polarization modulation infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (PM-IRRAS) were employed to investigate the formation of alamethicin pores in negatively charged bilayers composed of a mixture of 1,2-dimyristoyl- sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DMPC) and egg-PG floating at gold (111) electrode surfaces modified by self-assembled monolayers of 1-thio-β-d-glucose (β-Tg). The EIS data showed that the presence of alamethicin decreases the membrane resistivity by about 1 order of magnitude. PM-IRRAS measurements provided information about the tilt angles of peptide helical axis with respect to the bilayer normal. The small tilt angles obtained for the peptide helical axis prove that the alamethicin molecules were inserted into the DMPC/egg-PG membranes. The tilt angles decreased when negative potentials were applied, which correlates with the observed decrease in membrane resistivity, indicating that ion pore formation is assisted by the transmembrane potential. Molecular resolution AFM images provided visual evidence that alamethicin molecules aggregate forming hexagonal porous 2D lattices with periodicities of 2.0 ± 0.2 nm. The pore formation by alamethicin in the negatively charged membrane was compared with the interaction of this peptide with a bilayer formed by zwitterionic lipids. The comparison of these results showed that alamethicin preferentially forms ion translocating pores in negatively charged phospholipid membranes.

Role of Transmembrane Potential and Defects on the Permeabilization of Lipid Bilayers by Alamethicin, an Ion-Channel-Forming Peptide

The insertion and ion-conducting channel properties of alamethicin reconstituted into a 1,2-di- O-phytanyl- sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine bilayer floating on the surface of a gold (111) electrode modified with a 1-thio-β-d-glucose (β-Tg) self-assembled monolayer were investigated using a combination of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and polarization modulation infrared reflection absorption spectroscopy (PM-IRRAS). The hydrophilic β-Tg monolayer separated the bilayer from the gold substrate and created a water-rich spacer region, which better represents natural cell membranes. The EIS measurements acquired information about the membrane resistivity (a measure of membrane porosity), and the PM-IRRAS experiments provided insight into the conformation and orientation of the membrane constituents as a function of the transmembrane potential. The results showed that the presence of alamethicin had a small effect on the conformation and orientation of phospholipid molecules within the bilayer for all studied potentials. In contrast, the alamethicin peptides assumed a surface state, where the helical axes adopted a large tilt angle with respect to the surface normal, at small transmembrane potentials, and inserted into the bilayer at sufficiently negative transmembrane potentials forming pores, which behaved as barrel-stave ion channels for ionic transport across the membrane. The results indicated that insertion of alamethincin peptides into the bilayer was driven by the dipole-field interactions and that the transitions between the inserted and surface states were electrochemically reversible. Additionally, the EIS measurements performed on phospholipid bilayers without alamethicin also showed that the application of negative transmembrane potentials introduces defects into the bilayer. The membrane resistances measured in both the absence and presence of alamethicin show similar dependencies on the electrode potential, suggesting that the insertion of the peptide may also be assisted by the electroporation of the membrane. The findings in this study provide new insights into the mechanism of alamethicin insertion into phospholipid bilayers.

Dynamic membrane interactions of antibacterial and antifungal biomolecules, and amyloid peptides, revealed by solid-state NMR spectroscopy

A variety of biomolecules acting on the cell membrane folds into a biologically active structure in the membrane environment. It is, therefore, important to determine the structures and dynamics of such biomolecules in a membrane environment. While several biophysical techniques are used to obtain low-resolution information, solid-state NMR spectroscopy is one of the most powerful means for determining the structure and dynamics of membrane bound biomolecules such as antibacterial biomolecules and amyloidogenic proteins; unlike X-ray crystallography and solution NMR spectroscopy, applications of solid-state NMR spectroscopy are not limited by non-crystalline, non-soluble nature or molecular size of membrane-associated biomolecules. This review article focuses on the applications of solid-state NMR techniques to study a few selected antibacterial and amyloid peptides. Solid-state NMR studies revealing the membrane inserted bent α-helical structure associated with the hemolytic activity of bee venom melittin and the chemical shift oscillation analysis used to determine the transmembrane structure (with α-helix and 310-helix in the N- and C-termini, respectively) of antibiotic peptide alamethicin are discussed in detail. Oligomerization of an amyloidogenic islet amyloid polypeptide (IAPP, or also known as amylin) resulting from its aggregation in a membrane environment, molecular interactions of the antifungal natural product amphotericin B with ergosterol in lipid bilayers, and the mechanism of lipid raft formation by sphingomyelin studied using solid state NMR methods are also discussed in this review article. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled "Biophysical Exploration of Dynamical Ordering of Biomolecular Systems" edited by Dr. Koichi Kato.

Cation-containing lipid membranes – experiment and md simulations

Using small angle neutron diffraction and molecular dynamics simulations we studied the interactions between calcium (Ca2+) or zinc (Zn2+) cations, and oriented gel phase dipalmitoyl-phosphatidylcholine (DPPC) bilayers. For both cations studied at ~1:7 divalent metal ion to lipid molar ratio (Me2+:DPPC), bilayer thickness increased. Simulation results helped reveal subtle differences in the effects of the two cations on gel phase membranes.

Simulations of Membrane-Disrupting Peptides I: Alamethicin Pore Stability and Spontaneous Insertion

An all-atom molecular dynamics simulation of the archetype barrel-stave alamethicin (alm) pore in a 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine bilayer at 313 K indicates that ∼7 μs is required for equilibration of a preformed 6-peptide pore; the pore remains stable for the duration of the remaining 7 μs of the trajectory, and the structure factors agree well with experiment. A 5 μs simulation of 10 surface-bound alm peptides shows significant peptide unfolding and some unbinding, but no insertion. Simulations at 363 and 413 K with a -0.2 V electric field yield peptide insertion in 1 μs. Insertion is initiated by the folding of residues 3-11 into an α-helix, and mediated by membrane water or by previously inserted peptides. The stability of five alm pore peptides at 413 K with a -0.2 V electric field demonstrates a significant preference for a transmembrane orientation. Hence, and in contrast to the cationic antimicrobial peptide described in the following article, alm shows a strong preference for the inserted over the surface-bound state.

Simulations of Membrane-Disrupting Peptides II: AMP Piscidin 1 Favors Surface Defects over Pores

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) that disrupt bacterial membranes are promising therapeutics against the growing number of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. The mechanism of membrane disruption by the AMP piscidin 1 was examined with multimicrosecond all-atom molecular dynamics simulations and solid-state NMR spectroscopy. The primary simulation was initialized with 20 peptides in four barrel-stave pores in a fully hydrated 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine/1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoglycerol bilayer. The four pores relaxed to toroidal by 200 ns, only one porelike structure containing two transmembrane helices remained at 26 μs, and none of the 18 peptides released to the surface reinserted to form pores. The simulation was repeated at 413 K with an applied electric field and all peptides were surface-bound by 200 ns. Trajectories of surface-bound piscidin with and without applied fields at 313 and 413 K and totaling 6 μs show transient distortions of the bilayer/water interface (consistent with (31)P NMR), but no insertion to transmembrane or pore states. (15)N chemical shifts confirm a fully surface-bound conformation. Taken together, the simulation and experimental results imply that transient defects rather than stable pores are responsible for membrane disruption by piscidin 1, and likely other AMPs.

A Rapid and Quantitative Flow Cytometry Method for the Analysis of Membrane Disruptive Antimicrobial Activity

We describe a microbial flow cytometry method that quantifies within 3 hours antimicrobial peptide (AMP) activity, termed Minimum Membrane Disruptive Concentration (MDC). Increasing peptide concentration positively correlates with the extent of bacterial membrane disruption and the calculated MDC is equivalent to its MBC. The activity of AMPs representing three different membranolytic modes of action could be determined for a range of Gram positive and negative bacteria, including the ESKAPE pathogens, E. coli and MRSA. By using the MDC50 concentration of the parent AMP, the method provides high-throughput, quantitative screening of AMP analogues. A unique feature of the MDC assay is that it directly measures peptide/bacteria interactions and lysed cell numbers rather than bacteria survival as with MIC and MBC assays. With the threat of multi-drug resistant bacteria, this high-throughput MDC assay has the potential to aid in the development of novel antimicrobials that target bacteria with improved efficacy.

Determination of mosaicity in oriented stacks of lipid bilayers

Two methods of measuring the misorientation of domains in oriented multilamellar stacks of lipid bilayers superficially appeared to give different values for the mosaic spread. It is first shown that the traditional rocking method and a newer ring method give the same value of the mosaic spread when the two types of data are similarly analyzed. Both indicate a long-tailed, nearly Lorentzian, mosaic distribution function. Our primary innovation is the analysis of ring data as a function of the rocking angle. For our best oriented DOPC sample, this analysis is consistent with a single Lorentzian mosaic distribution function with width 0.05°. In contrast, samples of DMPC indicate a more complex mosaic distribution and larger widths.

Structure and orientation of antibiotic peptide alamethicin in phospholipid bilayers as revealed by chemical shift oscillation analysis of solid state nuclear magnetic resonance and molecular dynamics simulation

The structure, topology and orientation of membrane-bound antibiotic alamethicin were studied using solid state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. (13)C chemical shift interaction was observed in [1-(13)C]-labeled alamethicin. The isotropic chemical shift values indicated that alamethicin forms a helical structure in the entire region. The chemical shift anisotropy of the carbonyl carbon of isotopically labeled alamethicin was also analyzed with the assumption that alamethicin molecules rotate rapidly about the bilayer normal of the phospholipid bilayers. It is considered that the adjacent peptide planes form an angle of 100° or 120° when it forms α-helix or 310-helix, respectively. These properties lead to an oscillation of the chemical shift anisotropy with respect to the phase angle of the peptide plane. Anisotropic data were acquired for the 4 and 7 sites of the N- and C-termini, respectively. The results indicated that the helical axes for the N- and C-termini were tilted 17° and 32° to the bilayer normal, respectively. The chemical shift oscillation curves indicate that the N- and C-termini form the α-helix and 310-helix, respectively. The C-terminal 310-helix of alamethicin in the bilayer was experimentally observed and the unique bending structure of alamethicin was further confirmed by measuring the internuclear distances of [1-(13)C] and [(15)N] doubly-labeled alamethicin. Molecular dynamics simulation of alamethicin embedded into dimyristoyl phophatidylcholine (DMPC) bilayers indicates that the helical axes for α-helical N- and 310-helical C-termini are tilted 12° and 32° to the bilayer normal, respectively, which is in good agreement with the solid state NMR results.

Participation of non-aminoisobutyric acid (Aib) residues in the 310 helical conformation of Aib-rich foldamers: a solid state study

3₁₀ helical conformations that extend over 21 Å result when selected non-Aib terminal and central residues are incorporated into Aib-rich foldamers.

New insights into the echinocandins and other fungal non-ribosomal peptides and peptaibiotics

Non-ribosomal peptide synthetases (NRPSs) are a primary modality for fungal peptidic natural product assembly and are responsible for some of the best known, most useful, and most destructive fungal metabolites. Through genome sequencing and computer-assisted recognition of modular motifs of catalytic domains, one can now confidently identify most NRPS biosynthetic genes of a fungal strain. The biosynthetic gene clusters responsible for two of the most important classes of NRP fungal derived drugs, cyclosporine and the echinocandins, have been recently characterized by genomic sequencing and annotation. Complete biosynthetic gene clusters for the pneumocandins and echinocandins have been mapped at the genetic level and functionally characterized to some extent. Genomic sequencing of representative strains of most of the variants in the echinocandin family, including the wild-type of the three fungal strains employed for industrial-scale production of caspofungin, micafungin and anidulofungin, has enabled characterization of the basic architecture of the echinocandin NRPS pathways. A comparative analysis of how pathway genes cause variations in lipoinitiation, biosynthesis of the non-proteinogenic amino acids, amino acid substitutions, and hydroxylations and sulfonations of the core peptide and contribute to the molecular diversity of the family is presented. We also review new information on the natural functions of NRPs, the differences between fungal and bacterial NRPSs, and functional characterization of selected NRPS gene clusters. Continuing discovery of the new fungal nonribosomal peptides has contributed new structural diversity and potential insights into their biological functions among other natural peptides and peptaibiotics. We therefore provide an update on new peptides, depsipeptides and peptaibols discovered in the Fungi since 2009.

Designing foldamer-foldamer interactions in solution: the roles of helix length and terminus functionality in promoting the self-association of aminoisobutyric acid oligomers

The biological activity of antibiotic peptaibols has been linked to their ability to aggregate, but the structure-activity relationship for aggregation is not well understood. Herein, we report a systematic study of a class of synthetic helical oligomer (foldamer) composed of aminoisobutyric acid (Aib) residues, which mimic the folding behavior of peptaibols. NMR spectroscopic analysis was used to quantify the dimerization constants in solution, which showed hydrogen-bond donors at the N terminus promoted aggregation more effectively than similar modifications at the C terminus. Elongation of the peptide chain also favored aggregation. The geometry of aggregation in solution was investigated by means of titrations with [D6]DMSO and 2D NOE NMR spectroscopy, which allowed the NH protons most involved in intermolecular hydrogen bonds in solution to be identified. X-ray crystallography studies of two oligomers allowed a comparison of the inter- and intramolecular hydrogen-bonding interactions in the solid state and in solution and gave further insight into the geometry of foldamer-foldamer interactions. These solution-based and solid-state studies indicated that the preferred geometry for aggregation is through head-to-tail interactions between the N and C termini of adjacent Aib oligomers.

Determining Structural and Mechanical Properties from Molecular Dynamics Simulations of Lipid Vesicles

We have developed an algorithm to determine membrane structure, area per lipid, and bending rigidity from molecular dynamics simulations of lipid vesicles. Current methods to extract structure from vesicle simulations define densities relative to the global center of mass of the vesicle. This approach ignores the long-wavelength fluctuations (undulations) that develop across the sphere and broaden the underlying structure. Our method establishes a local reference frame by defining a radially undulating reference surface (URS) and thereby removes the broadening effect of the undulations. Using an arc-length low-pass filter, we render the URS by defining the bilayer midplane on an equi-angular θ, ϕ-grid (colatitude, longitude). This surface is then expanded onto a truncated series of spherical harmonics. The spherical harmonic coefficients characterize the long-wavelength fluctuations that define both the local reference frame-used to determine the bilayer's structure-and the area per lipid (AL) along the undulating surface. Additionally, the resulting power spectrum of spherical harmonic coefficients can be fit to a Helfrich continuum model for membrane bending in spherical geometry to extract bending rigidity (kc). kc values determined for both DMPC and DMPC + cholesterol (30 mol %) vesicles are consistent with values from corresponding flat-patch systems determined using an independent, previously published spectral method. These new tools to accurately extract structure, AL, and kc should prove invaluable in evaluating the construction and equilibration of lipid vesicle simulations.

Conformational and thermodynamic properties of non-canonical α,α-dialkyl glycines in the peptaibol Alamethicin: molecular dynamics studies

In this work, we investigate the structure, dynamic and thermodynamic properties of noncanonical disubstituted amino acids (α,α-dialkyl glycines), also known as non-natural amino acids, in the peptaibol Alamethicin. The amino acids under study are Aib (α-amino isobutyric acid or α-methyl alanine), Deg (α,α-diethyl glycine), Dpg (α,α-dipropyl glycine), Dibg (α,α-di-isobutyl glycine), Dhg (α,α-dihexyl glycine), DΦg (α,α-diphenyl glycine), Dbzg (α,α-dibenzyl glycine), Ac6c (α,α-cyclohexyl glycine), and Dmg (α,α-dihydroxymethyl glycine). It is hypothesized that these amino acids are able to induce well-defined secondary structure in peptidomimetics. To test this hypothesis, new peptidomimetics of Alamethicin were constructed by replacing the native Aib positions of Alamethicin by one or more new α,α-dialkyl glycines. Dhg and Ac6c demonstrated the capacity to induce well-defined α-helical structures. Dhg and Ac6c also promote the thermodynamic stabilization of these peptides in a POPC model membrane and are better alternatives to the Aib in Alamethicin. These noncanonical amino acids also improved secondary structure properties, revealing preorganization in water and maintenance of α helical structure in POPC. We show that it is possible to optimize the helicity and thermodynamic properties of native Alamethicin, and we suggest that these amino acids could be incorporated in other peptides with similar structural effect.

Membrane structure correlates to function of LLP2 on the cytoplasmic tail of HIV-1 gp41 protein

Mutation studies previously showed that the lentivirus lytic peptide (LLP2) sequence of the cytoplasmic C-terminal tail of the HIV-1 gp41 envelope protein inhibited viral-initiated T-cell death and T-cell syncytium formation, at which time in the HIV life cycle the gp41 protein is embedded in the T-cell membrane. In striking contrast, the mutants did not affect virion infectivity, during which time the gp41 protein is embedded in the HIV envelope membrane. To examine the role of LLP2/membrane interactions, we applied synchrotron x-radiation to determine structure of hydrated membranes. We focused on WT LLP2 peptide (+3 charge) and MX2 mutant (-1 charge) with membrane mimics for the T-cell and the HIV-1 membranes. To investigate the influence of electrostatics, cholesterol content, and peptide palmitoylation, we also studied three other LLP2 variants and HIV-1 mimics without negatively charged lipids or cholesterol as well as extracted HIV-1 lipids. All LLP2 peptides bound strongly to T-cell membrane mimics, as indicated by changes in membrane structure and bending. In contrast, none of the weakly bound LLP2 variants changed the HIV-1 membrane mimic structure or properties. This correlates well with, and provides a biophysical basis for, previously published results that reported lack of a mutant effect in HIV virion infectivity in contrast to an inhibitory effect in T-cell syncytium formation. It shows that interaction of LLP2 with the T-cell membrane modulates biological function.

A thermodynamic approach to alamethicin pore formation

The structure and energetics of alamethicin Rf30 monomer to nonamer in cylindrical pores of 5 to 11Å radius are investigated using molecular dynamics simulations in an implicit membrane model that includes the free energy cost of acyl chain hydrophobic area exposure. Stable, low energy pores are obtained for certain combinations of radius and oligomeric number. The trimer and the tetramer formed 6Å pores that appear closed while the larger oligomers formed open pores at their optimal radius. The hexamer in an 8Å pore and the octamer in an 11Å pore give the lowest effective energy per monomer. However, all oligomers beyond the pentamer have comparable energies, consistent with the observation of multiple conductance levels. The results are consistent with the widely accepted "barrel-stave" model. The N terminal portion of the molecule exhibits smaller tilt with respect to the membrane normal than the C terminal portion, resulting in a pore shape that is a hybrid between a funnel and an hourglass. Transmembrane voltage has little effect on the structure of the oligomers but enhances or decreases their stability depending on its orientation. Antiparallel bundles are lower in energy than the commonly accepted parallel ones and could be present under certain experimental conditions. Dry aggregates (without an aqueous pore) have lower average effective energy than the corresponding aggregates in a pore, suggesting that alamethicin pores may be excited states that are stabilized in part by voltage and in part by the ion flow itself.

Analyzing the effects of hydrophobic mismatch on transmembrane α-helices using tryptophan fluorescence spectroscopy

Hydrophobic matching between transmembrane protein segments and the lipid bilayer in which they are embedded is a significant factor in the behavior and orientation of such transmembrane segments. The condition of hydrophobic mismatch occurs when the hydrophobic thickness of a lipid bilayer is significantly different than the length of the membrane spanning segment of a protein, resulting in a mismatch. This mismatch can result in altered function of proteins as well as nonnative structural arrangements including effects on transmembrane α-helix tilt angles, oligomerization state, and/or the formation of non-transmembrane topographies. Here, a fluorescence-based protocol is described for testing model transmembrane α-helices and their sensitivity to hydrophobic mismatch by measuring the propensity of these helices to form non-transmembrane structures. Overall, good hydrophobic matching between the bilayer and transmembrane segments is an important factor that must be considered when designing membrane proteins or peptides.

Introductory lecture: basic quantities in model biomembranes

One of the many aspects of membrane biophysics dealt with in this Faraday Discussion regards the material moduli that describe energies at a supramolecular level. This introductory lecture first critically reviews differences in reported numerical values of the bending modulus K(C), which is a central property for the biologically important flexibility of membranes. It is speculated that there may be a reason that the shape analysis method tends to give larger values of K(C) than the micromechanical manipulation method or the more recent X-ray method that agree very well with each other. Another theme of membrane biophysics is the use of simulations to provide exquisite detail of structures and processes. This lecture critically reviews the application of atomic level simulations to the quantitative structure of simple single component lipid bilayers and diagnostics are introduced to evaluate simulations. Another theme of this Faraday Discussion was lateral heterogeneity in biomembranes with many different lipids. Coarse grained simulations and analytical theories promise to synergistically enhance experimental studies when their interaction parameters are tuned to agree with experimental data, such as the slopes of experimental tie lines in ternary phase diagrams. Finally, attention is called to contributions that add relevant biological molecules to bilayers and to contributions that study the exciting shape changes and different non-bilayer structures with different lipids.

Direct visualization of the alamethicin pore formed in a planar phospholipid matrix

We present direct visualization of pores formed by alamethicin (Alm) in a matrix of phospholipids using electrochemical scanning tunneling microscopy (EC-STM). High-resolution EC-STM images show individual peptide molecules forming channels. The channels are not dispersed randomly in the monolayer but agglomerate forming 2D nanocrystals with a hexagonal lattice in which the average channel-channel distance is 1.90 ± 0.1 nm. The STM images suggest that each Alm is shared between the two adjacent channels. Every channel consists of six Alm molecules. Three or four of these molecules have the hydrophilic group oriented toward the center of the channel allowing for water column formation inside the channel. The dimensions of the central pore in the images are consistent with the dimension of the water column in a model of hexameric pore proposed in the literature. The images obtained in this work validate the barrel-stave model of the pore formed in phospholipid membranes by amphiphatic peptides. They also provide direct evidence for cluster formation by such pores.

Time-of-flight Bragg scattering from aligned stacks of lipid bilayers using the Liquids Reflectometer at the Spallation Neutron Source

Time-of-flight (TOF) neutron diffraction experiments on aligned stacks of lipid bilayers using the horizontal Liquids Reflectometer at the Spallation Neutron Source are reported. Specific details are given regarding the instrumental setup, data collection and reduction, phase determination of the structure factors, and reconstruction of the one-dimensional neutron scattering length density (NSLD) profile. The validity of using TOF measurements to determine the one-dimensional NSLD profile is demonstrated by reproducing the results of two well known lipid bilayer structures. The method is then applied to show how an antimicrobial peptide affects membranes with and without cholesterol.

Cyclodextrin-scaffolded alamethicin with remarkably efficient membrane permeabilizing properties and membrane current conductance

Bacterial resistance to classical antibiotics is a serious medical problem, which continues to grow. Small antimicrobial peptides represent a potential solution and are increasingly being developed as novel therapeutic agents. Many of these peptides owe their antibacterial activity to the formation of trans-membrane ion-channels resulting in cell lysis. However, to further develop the field of peptide antibiotics, a thorough understanding of their mechanism of action is needed. Alamethicin belongs to a class of peptides called peptaibols and represents one of these antimicrobial peptides. To examine the dynamics of assembly and to facilitate a thorough structural evaluation of the alamethicin ion-channels, we have applied click chemistry for the synthesis of templated alamethicin multimers covalently attached to cyclodextrin-scaffolds. Using oriented circular dichroism, calcein release assays, and single-channel current measurements, the α-helices of the templated multimers were demonstrated to insert into lipid bilayers forming highly efficient and remarkably stable ion-channels.

Toward understanding protocell mechanosensation

Mechanosensitive (MS) channels can prevent bacterial bursting during hypo-osmotic shocks by responding to increases in lateral tension at the membrane level through an integrated and coordinated opening mechanism. Mechanical regulation in protocells could have been one of the first mechanisms to evolve in order to preserve their integrity against changing environmental conditions. How has the rich functional diversity found in present cells been created throughout evolution, and what did the primordial MS channels look like? This review has been written with the aim of identifying which factors may have been important for the appearance of the first osmotic valve in a prebiotic context, and what this valve may have been like. It highlights the mechanical properties of lipid bilayers, the association of peptides as aggregates in membranes, and the conservation of sequence motifs as central aspects to understand the evolution of proteins that gate below the tension required for spontaneous pore formation and membrane rupture. The arguments developed here apply to both MscL and MscS homologs, but could be valid to mechano-susceptible proteins in general.

Rb(+) occlusion stabilized by vanadate in gastric H(+)/K(+)-ATPase at 25°C

Despite its similarity with the Na(+)/K(+)-ATPase, it has not been possible so far to isolate a K(+)-occluded state in the H(+)/K(+)-ATPase at room temperature. We report here results on the time course of formation of a state containing occluded Rb(+) (as surrogate for K(+)) in H(+)/K(+)-ATPase from gastric vesicles at 25°C. Alamethicin (a pore-forming peptide) showed to be a suitable agent to open vesicles, allowing a more efficient removal of Rb(+) ions from the intravesicular medium than C(12)E(8) (a non-ionic detergent). In the presence of vanadate and Mg(2+), the time course of [(86)Rb]Rb(+) uptake displayed a fast phase due to Rb(+) occlusion. The specific inhibitor of the H(+)/K(+)-ATPase SCH28080 significantly reduces the amount of Rb(+) occluded in the vanadate-H(+)/K(+)-ATPase complex. Occluded Rb(+) varies with [Rb(+)] according to a hyperbolic function with K(0.5)=0.29±0.06mM. The complex between the Rb(+)-occluded state and vanadate proved to be very stable even after removal of free Mg(2+) with EDTA. Our results yield a stoichiometry lower than one occluded Rb(+) per phosphorylation site, which might be explained assuming that, unlike for the Na(+)/K(+)-ATPase, Mg(2+)-vanadate is unable to recruit all the Rb(+)-bound to the Rb(+)-occluded form of the Rb(+)-vanadate-H(+)/K(+)-ATPase complex.

ORF8a of SARS-CoV forms an ion channel: experiments and molecular dynamics simulations

ORF8a protein is 39 residues long and contains a single transmembrane domain. The protein is synthesized using solid phase peptide synthesis and reconstituted into artificial lipid bilayers that forms cation-selective ion channels with a main conductance level of 8.9±0.8pS at elevated temperature (38.5°C). Computational modeling studies including multi nanosecond molecular dynamics simulations in a hydrated POPC lipid bilayer are done with a 22 amino acid transmembrane helix to predict a putative homooligomeric helical bundle model. A structural model of a pentameric bundle is proposed with cysteines, serines and threonines facing the pore.