Complete 1H and 13C assignment of Lys and Leu sidechains of staphylococcal nuclease using HCCH-COSY and HCCH-TOCSY 3D NMR spectroscopy

Mapping the sevoflurane-binding sites of calmodulin

General anesthetics, with sevoflurane (SF) being the first choice inhalational anesthetic agent, provide reversible, broad depressor effects on the nervous system yet have a narrow margin of safety. As characterization of low-affinity binding interactions of volatile substances is exceptionally challenging with the existing methods, none of the numerous cellular targets proposed as chief protagonists in anesthesia could yet be confirmed. The recognition that most critical functions modulated by volatile anesthetics are under the control of intracellular Ca²⁺ concentration, which in turn is primarily regulated by calmodulin (CaM), motivated us for characterization of the SF–CaM interaction. Solution NMR (Nuclear Magnetic Resonance) spectroscopy was used to identify SF-binding sites using chemical shift displacement, NOESY and heteronuclear Overhauser enhancement spectroscopy (HOESY) experiments. Binding affinities were measured using ITC (isothermal titration calorimetry). SF binds to both lobes of (Ca²⁺)₄-CaM with low mmol/L affinity whereas no interaction was observed in the absence of Ca²⁺. SF does not affect the calcium binding of CaM. The structurally closely related SF and isoflurane are shown to bind to the same clefts. The SF-binding clefts overlap with the binding sites of physiologically relevant ion channels and bioactive small molecules, but the binding affinity suggests it could only interfere with very weak CaM targets.

Differential responses of the backbone and side-chain conformational dynamics in FKBP12 upon binding the transition-state analog FK506: implications for transition-state stabilization and target protein recognition

FKBP12 serves a dual role as a peptidyl-prolyl cis-trans isomerase and as a modulator of several cell signaling pathways. The macrolide FK506 is a transition-state analog of the catalyzed reaction and displaces FKBP12 from its natural target proteins. We compared the conformational exchange dynamics of the backbone and methyl-bearing side chains of FKBP12 in the free and FK506-bound states using NMR relaxation-dispersion experiments. Our results show that the free enzyme exchanges between the ground state and an excited state that resembles the ligand-bound state or Michaelis complex. In FK506-bound FKBP12, the backbone is confined to a single conformation, while conformational exchange prevails for many methyl groups. The residual side-chain dynamics in the transition-state analog-bound state suggests that the transition-state ensemble involves multiple conformations, a finding that challenges the long-standing concept of conformational restriction in the transition-state complex. Furthermore, exchange between alternative conformations is observed in the bound state for an extended network of methyl groups that includes locations remote from the active site. Several of these locations are known to be important for interactions with cellular target proteins, including calcineurin and the ryanodine receptor, suggesting that the conformational heterogeneity might play a role in the promiscuous binding of FKBP12 to different targets.

Functional Dynamics of Human FKBP12 Revealed by Methyl 13C Rotating Frame Relaxation Dispersion NMR Spectroscopy

Transverse relaxation dispersion NMR spectroscopy can provide atom-specific information about time scales, populations, and the extent of structural reorganization in proteins under equilibrium conditions. A method is described that uses side-chain methyl groups as local reporters for conformational transitions taking place in the microsecond regime. The experiment measures carbon nuclear spin relaxation rates in the presence of continuous wave off-resonance irradiation, in proteins uniformly enriched with 13C, and partially randomly labeled with 2H. The method was applied to human FK-506 binding protein (FKBP12), which uses a common surface for binding substrates in its dual role as both an immunophilin and folding assistant. Conformational dynamics on a time scale of approximately 130 micros were detected for methyl groups located in the substrate binding pocket, demonstrating its plasticity in the absence of substrate. The spatial arrangement of affected side-chain atoms suggests that substrate recognition involves the rapid relative movement of the subdomain comprising residues Ala81-Thr96 and that the observed dynamics play an important role in facilitating the interaction of this protein with its many partners, including calcineurin.

NMR assignment of protein side chains using residue-correlated labeling and NOE spectra

A new approach for the isotopic labeling of proteins is proposed that aims to facilitate side chain resonance assignments. Residue-correlated (RC) labeling is achieved by the expression of a protein on a medium containing a mixture of labeled, e.g., [U-13C,15N]amino acids, and NMR silent, [U-2H]amino acids. De novo synthesis of amino acids was suppressed by feedback inhibition by the amino acids in the growth medium and by the addition of beta-chloro-L-alanine, a transaminase inhibitor. Incorporation of these amino acids into synthesized proteins results in a relative diminution of inter-residue NOE interactions and a relative enhancement of intra-residue NOEs. Comparison of the resulting NOE spectra with those obtained from a uniformly labeled sample allows identification of intra-residue NOE peaks. Thus, this approach provides direct information for sidechain assignments in the NOE spectra, which are subsequently used for structural analysis. We have demonstrated the feasibility of this strategy for the 143 amino acid nuclease inhibitor NuiA, both at 35 degrees C, corresponding to a rotational correlation time of 9.5 ns, and at 5 degrees C, corresponding to a rotational correlation time of 22 ns.

Dynamics of methyl groups in proteins as studied by proton-detected 13C NMR spectroscopy. Application to the leucine residues of staphylococcal nuclease

This paper describes the application of recently developed nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) pulse sequences to obtain information about the internal dynamics of isotopically enriched hydrophobic side chains in proteins. The two-dimensional spectra provided by the pulse sequences enable one to make accurate measurements of nuclear Overhauser effects (NOE) and longitudinal (T1) and transverse (T2) relaxation times of enriched methyl carbons in proteins. Herein, these techniques are used to investigate the internal dynamics of the 11 leucine side chains of staphylococcal nuclease (SNase), a small enzyme having Mr = 16.8K, in the absence and presence of ligands thymidine 3',5'-bisphosphate (pdTp) and Ca2+. We report the synthesis of [5,5'-13C2]leucine, the preparation of SNase containing the labeled leucine, the sequential assignment of the leucine methyl carbons and protons in the liganded and unliganded proteins, and the measurement of the 13C T1, T2, and NOE values for the SNase leucine methyl carbons. Analysis of the relaxation parameters using the formalism of Lipari and Szabo shows that the internal motions of the leucine methyl carbons are characterized by effective correlation times tau f (5-80 ps) and tau s (less than 2 ns). The fast motion is identified with the rapid rotation of the methyl group about the C gamma-C delta bond axis, while the slow motion is associated with reorientation of the C gamma-C delta bond axis itself. The mean squared order parameters associated with the latter motion, Ss2, lie in the range 0.34-0.92. The values of Ss2 correlate reasonably well with the temperature factors of the leucine methyl carbons obtained from the crystal structures, but some are smaller than anticipated on the basis of the fact that nearly all leucine methyl carbons are buried and have temperature factors no larger than that of the leucine backbone atoms. Five leucine residues in liganded SNase and eight in unliganded SNase have values of Ss2 less than 0.71. These order parameters correspond to large amplitude motions (angular excursions of 27-67 degrees) of the C gamma-C delta bond axis. These results indicate that, in solution, the internal motions of the leucine side chains of SNase are significantly larger than suggested by the X-ray structures or by qualitative analysis of NOESY spectra. Comparison of Ss2 values obtained from liganded and unliganded SNase reveals a strong correlation between delta Ss2 and distance between the leucine methyl carbon and the ligands.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)