Thermal aggregation of a model allosteric protein in different conformational states

Effect of Chemical Chaperones on the Stability of Proteins during Heat- or Freeze-Thaw Stress

The importance of studying the structural stability of proteins is determined by the structure-function relationship. Protein stability is influenced by many factors among which are freeze-thaw and thermal stresses. The effect of trehalose, betaine, sorbitol and 2-hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (HPCD) on the stability and aggregation of bovine liver glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) upon heating at 50 °C or freeze-thawing was studied by dynamic light scattering, differential scanning calorimetry, analytical ultracentrifugation and circular dichroism spectroscopy. A freeze-thaw cycle resulted in the complete loss of the secondary and tertiary structure, and aggregation of GDH. All the cosolutes suppressed freeze-thaw- and heat-induced aggregation of GDH and increased the protein thermal stability. The effective concentrations of the cosolutes during freeze-thawing were lower than during heating. Sorbitol exhibited the highest anti-aggregation activity under freeze-thaw stress, whereas the most effective agents stabilizing the tertiary structure of GDH were HPCD and betaine. HPCD and trehalose were the most effective agents suppressing GDH thermal aggregation. All the chemical chaperones stabilized various soluble oligomeric forms of GDH against both types of stress. The data on GDH were compared with the effects of the same cosolutes on glycogen phosphorylase b during thermal and freeze-thaw-induced aggregation. This research can find further application in biotechnology and pharmaceutics.

Effects of Molecular Crowding and Betaine on HSPB5 Interactions, with Target Proteins Differing in the Quaternary Structure and Aggregation Mechanism

The aggregation of intracellular proteins may be enhanced under stress. The expression of heat-shock proteins (HSPs) and the accumulation of osmolytes are among the cellular protective mechanisms in these conditions. In addition, one should remember that the cell environment is highly crowded. The antiaggregation activity of HSPB5 and the effect on it of either a crowding agent (polyethylene glycol (PEG)) or an osmolyte (betaine), or their mixture, were tested on the aggregation of two target proteins that differ in the order of aggregation with respect to the protein: thermal aggregation of glutamate dehydrogenase and DTT-induced aggregation of lysozyme. The kinetic analysis of the dynamic light-scattering data indicates that crowding can decrease the chaperone-like activity of HSPB5. Nonetheless, the analytical ultracentrifugation shows the protective effect of HSPB5, which retains protein aggregates in a soluble state. Overall, various additives may either improve or impair the antiaggregation activity of HSPB5 against different protein targets. The mixed crowding arising from the presence of PEG and 1 M betaine demonstrates an extraordinary effect on the oligomeric state of protein aggregates. The shift in the equilibrium of HSPB5 dynamic ensembles allows for the regulation of its antiaggregation activity. Crowding can modulate HSPB5 activity by affecting protein-protein interactions.

The mechanism of thermal aggregation of glutamate dehydrogenase. The effect of chemical chaperones

Chemical chaperones are low-molecular compounds counteracting protein aggregation. Understanding of the mechanism of their effects is key to their potential use in biotechnology. The aggregation of bovine liver glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) was studied at 40 °C and 50 °C using dynamic light scattering, analytical ultracentrifugation, size-exclusion chromatography and differential scanning calorimetry. At 40 °C the GDH aggregation proceeds through the slow stages of hexamer dissociation and formation of small oligomeric aggregates. At 50 °C these stages are transient. The rate-limiting stage of the overall aggregation process is unfolding of the protein molecule; the order of aggregation with respect to protein, n = 1. The test system based on GDH aggregation at 50 °C was used to quantify the anti-aggregation activity of chemical chaperones by comparing their half-saturation concentrations [L]_0.5. Arginine ethyl ester had the highest anti-aggregation activity, with [L]_0.5 = 4 ± 1 mM. For other additives, [L]_0.5 was 22 ± 1 mM (arginine), 18 ± 1 mM (argininamide) and 95 ± 12 mM (proline). Arginine at concentrations up to 300 mM, argininamide at concentrations higher than 300 mM and arginine ethyl ester at concentrations higher than 500 mM enhance aggregate-aggregate sticking. These results explain the mechanism of heat-induced GDH aggregation and its peculiarities at different temperatures or in the presence of chemical chaperones.

Curcumin promotes fibril formation in F isomer of human serum albumin via amorphous aggregation

We here describe the amyloid fibrils promoting behavior of curcumin, which ability to inhibit amyloid fibrillization of several globular proteins is well documented. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), 90° light scattering (RLS), thioflavine T (ThT) and Congo red (CR) binding studies demonstrated that both F (pH3.4) and E (pH1.8) isomers of human serum albumin (HSA) in the absence and presence of curcumin initially converted into amorphous aggregates. Interestingly, only the sample containing F isomer preincubated with curcumin formed fibrils on incubation for longer period. We also found that curcumin strongly bind to the F isomer, alter its secondary, tertiary structures and thermal stability. We conclude that the conversion of intermediate states into amorphous aggregate to fibrils is dictated by its conformation. This study provides unique insights into ligand-controlled HSA aggregation pathway and should provide a useful model system to study both amorphous and the fibrillar aggregation of multidomain proteins.

Quantification of anti-aggregation activity of chaperones: a test-system based on dithiothreitol-induced aggregation of bovine serum albumin

The methodology for quantification of the anti-aggregation activity of protein and chemical chaperones has been elaborated. The applicability of this methodology was demonstrated using a test-system based on dithiothreitol-induced aggregation of bovine serum albumin at 45°C as an example. Methods for calculating the initial rate of bovine serum albumin aggregation (v agg) have been discussed. The comparison of the dependences of v agg on concentrations of intact and cross-linked α-crystallin allowed us to make a conclusion that a non-linear character of the dependence of v agg on concentration of intact α-crystallin was due to the dynamic mobility of the quaternary structure of α-crystallin and polydispersity of the α-crystallin-target protein complexes. To characterize the anti-aggregation activity of the chemical chaperones (arginine, arginine ethyl ester, arginine amide and proline), the semi-saturation concentration [L]0.5 was used. Among the chemical chaperones studied, arginine ethyl ester and arginine amide reveal the highest anti-aggregation activity ([L]0.5 = 53 and 58 mM, respectively).

Dynamic reorganization of metabolic enzymes into intracellular bodies

Both focused and large-scale cell biological and biochemical studies have revealed that hundreds of metabolic enzymes across diverse organisms form large intracellular bodies. These proteinaceous bodies range in form from fibers and intracellular foci--such as those formed by enzymes of nitrogen and carbon utilization and of nucleotide biosynthesis--to high-density packings inside bacterial microcompartments and eukaryotic microbodies. Although many enzymes clearly form functional mega-assemblies, it is not yet clear for many recently discovered cases whether they represent functional entities, storage bodies, or aggregates. In this article, we survey intracellular protein bodies formed by metabolic enzymes, asking when and why such bodies form and what their formation implies for the functionality--and dysfunctionality--of the enzymes that comprise them. The panoply of intracellular protein bodies also raises interesting questions regarding their evolution and maintenance within cells. We speculate on models for how such structures form in the first place and why they may be inevitable.

AGGRESCAN: method, application, and perspectives for drug design

Protein aggregation underlies the development of an increasing number of conformational human diseases of growing incidence, such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases. Furthermore, the accumulation of recombinant proteins as intracellular aggregates represents a critical obstacle for the biotechnological production of polypeptides. Also, ordered protein aggregates constitute novel and versatile nanobiomaterials. Consequently, there is an increasing interest in the development of methods able to forecast the aggregation properties of polypeptides in order to modulate their intrinsic solubility. In this context, we have developed AGGRESCAN, a simple and fast algorithm that predicts aggregation-prone segments in protein sequences, compares the aggregation properties of different proteins or protein sets and analyses the effect of mutations on protein aggregation propensities.

A protein aggregation based test for screening of the agents affecting thermostability of proteins

To search for agents affecting thermal stability of proteins, a test based on the registration of protein aggregation in the regime of heating with a constant rate was used. The initial parts of the dependences of the light scattering intensity (I) on temperature (T) were analyzed using the following empiric equation: I = K_agg(T−T₀)², where K_agg is the parameter characterizing the initial rate of aggregation and T₀ is a temperature at which the initial increase in the light scattering intensity is registered. The aggregation data are interpreted in the frame of the model assuming the formation of the start aggregates at the initial stages of the aggregation process. Parameter T₀ corresponds to the moment of the origination of the start aggregates. The applicability of the proposed approach was demonstrated on the examples of thermal aggregation of glycogen phosphorylase b from rabbit skeletal muscles and bovine liver glutamate dehydrogenase studied in the presence of agents of different chemical nature. The elaborated approach to the study of protein aggregation may be used for rapid identification of small molecules that interact with protein targets.