Distance geometry and related methods for protein structure determination from NMR data

Zinc finger structure determination by NMR: Why zinc fingers can be a handful

Zinc fingers can be loosely defined as protein domains containing one or more tetrahedrally-co-ordinated zinc ions whose role is to stabilise the structure rather than to be involved in enzymatic chemistry; such zinc ions are often referred to as "structural zincs". Although structural zincs can occur in proteins of any size, they assume particular significance for very small protein domains, where they are often essential for maintaining a folded state. Such small structures, that sometimes have only marginal stability, can present particular difficulties in terms of sample preparation, handling and structure determination, and early on they gained a reputation for being resistant to crystallisation. As a result, NMR has played a more prominent role in structural studies of zinc finger proteins than it has for many other types of proteins. This review will present an overview of the particular issues that arise for structure determination of zinc fingers by NMR, and ways in which these may be addressed.

Modes of Cholesterol Binding in Membrane Proteins: A Joint Analysis of 73 Crystal Structures

Cholesterol is a highly asymmetric lipid molecule. As an essential constituent of the cell membrane, cholesterol plays important structural and signaling roles in various biological processes. The first high-resolution crystal structure of a transmembrane protein in complex with cholesterol was a human β₂-adrenergic receptor structure deposited to the Protein Data Bank in 2007. Since then, the number of the cholesterol-bound crystal structures has grown considerably providing an invaluable resource for obtaining insights into the structural characteristics of cholesterol binding. In this work, we examine the spatial and orientation distributions of cholesterol relative to the protein framework in a collection of 73 crystal structures of membrane proteins. To characterize the cholesterol-protein interactions, we apply singular value decomposition to an array of interatomic distances, which allows us to systematically assess the flexibility and variability of cholesterols in transmembrane proteins. Together, this joint analysis reveals the common characteristics among the observed cholesterol structures, thereby offering important guidelines for prediction and modification of potential cholesterol binding sites in transmembrane proteins.

Modern Technologies of Solution Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy for Three-dimensional Structure Determination of Proteins Open Avenues for Life Scientists

Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy is a powerful technique for structural studies of chemical compounds and biomolecules such as DNA and proteins. Since the NMR signal sensitively reflects the chemical environment and the dynamics of a nuclear spin, NMR experiments provide a wealth of structural and dynamic information about the molecule of interest at atomic resolution. In general, structural biology studies using NMR spectroscopy still require a reasonable understanding of the theory behind the technique and experience on how to recorded NMR data. Owing to the remarkable progress in the past decade, we can easily access suitable and popular analytical resources for NMR structure determination of proteins with high accuracy. Here, we describe the practical aspects, workflow and key points of modern NMR techniques used for solution structure determination of proteins. This review should aid NMR specialists aiming to develop new methods that accelerate the structure determination process, and open avenues for non-specialist and life scientists interested in using NMR spectroscopy to solve protein structures.

Inferential modeling of 3D chromatin structure

For eukaryotic cells, the biological processes involving regulatory DNA elements play an important role in cell cycle. Understanding 3D spatial arrangements of chromosomes and revealing long-range chromatin interactions are critical to decipher these biological processes. In recent years, chromosome conformation capture (3C) related techniques have been developed to measure the interaction frequencies between long-range genome loci, which have provided a great opportunity to decode the 3D organization of the genome. In this paper, we develop a new Bayesian framework to derive the 3D architecture of a chromosome from 3C-based data. By modeling each chromosome as a polymer chain, we define the conformational energy based on our current knowledge on polymer physics and use it as prior information in the Bayesian framework. We also propose an expectation-maximization (EM) based algorithm to estimate the unknown parameters of the Bayesian model and infer an ensemble of chromatin structures based on interaction frequency data. We have validated our Bayesian inference approach through cross-validation and verified the computed chromatin conformations using the geometric constraints derived from fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) experiments. We have further confirmed the inferred chromatin structures using the known genetic interactions derived from other studies in the literature. Our test results have indicated that our Bayesian framework can compute an accurate ensemble of 3D chromatin conformations that best interpret the distance constraints derived from 3C-based data and also agree with other sources of geometric constraints derived from experimental evidence in the previous studies. The source code of our approach can be found in https://github.com/wangsy11/InfMod3DGen.

Selective measurements of long-range homonuclear J-couplings in solid-state NMR

We demonstrate here that the principle of frequency-selective spin-echoes can be extended to the measurements of long-range homonuclear scalar J-couplings in the solid-state. Singly or doubly frequency-selective pulses were used to generate either a J-modulated experiment (S) or a reference experiment (S0). The combination of these two distinct experiments provides experimental data that, in favorable cases, are insensitive to incoherent relaxation effects, and which can be used to estimate long-range homonuclear J-couplings in multiple spin-systems. The concept is illustrated in the case of a uniformly (13)C and (15)N labeled sample of L-histidine, where the absolute value of homonuclear J-couplings between two spins separated by one, two or three covalent bonds are measured. Moreover, we show that a (2)J((15)N-C-(15)N) coupling as small as 0.9 Hz can be precisely measured with the method presented here.

IRMPD spectroscopy shows that AGG forms an oxazolone b2+ ion

Infrared multiple photon dissociation (IRMPD) spectroscopy combined with theoretical vibrational spectra provides a powerful tool for probing structure. This technique has been used to probe the structure of protonated cyclic AG and the b(2)(+) ion from AGG. The experimental spectrum for protonated cyclo AG compares very well with the theoretical spectra for a diketopiperazine. The spectrum corresponds best to a combination of two structures protonation at the alanine and glycine amide oxygens. The experimental spectrum for the b(2)(+) ion from protonated AGG matches best to the theoretical spectrum for an oxazolone structure protonated on the ring nitrogen. In particular, the carbonyl stretching band at 1970 cm(-1) is blue-shifted by approximately 200 cm(-1) compared to the experimental spectrum for protonated cAG, indicating that these two structures are distinct. This is the first time that an IRPD spectrum of a b(2)(+) ion has been obtained and, for this ion, the oxazolone structure proposed based on prior calculations and experiments is confirmed by the spectroscopic method.

Error distribution derived NOE distance restraints

Errors and imprecisions in distance restraints derived from NOESY peak volumes are usually accounted for by generous lower and upper bounds on the distances. In this paper, we propose a new form of distance restraints, replacing the subjective bounds by a potential function obtained from the error distribution of the distances. We derived the shape of the potential from molecular dynamics calculations and by comparison of NMR data with X-ray crystal structures. We used complete cross-validation to derive the optimal weight for the data in the calculation. In a model system with synthetic restraints, the accuracy of the structures improved significantly compared to calculations with the usual form of restraints. For experimental data sets, the structures systematically approach the X-ray crystal structures of the same protein. Also standard quality indicators improve compared to standard calculations. The results did not depend critically on the exact shape of the potential. The new approach is less subjective and uses fewer assumptions in the interpretation of NOESY peak volumes as distance restraints than the usual approach. Figures of merit for the structures, such as the RMS difference from the average structure or the RMS difference from the data, are therefore less biased and more meaningful measures of structure quality than with the usual form of restraints.

A distinct utility of the amide III infrared band for secondary structure estimation of aqueous protein solutions using partial least squares methods

Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy is becoming an increasingly important method to study protein secondary structure. The amide I region of the protein infrared spectrum is the widely used region, whereas the amide III region has been comparatively neglected due to its low signal. Since there is no water interference in the amide III region and, more importantly, the different secondary structures of proteins have more resolved differences in their amide III spectra, it is quite promising to use the amide III region to determine protein secondary structure. In our current study, a partial least squares (PLS) method was used to predict protein secondary structures from the protein IR spectra. The IR spectra of aqueous solutions of 16 different proteins of known crystal structure have been recorded, and the amide I, the amide III, and the amide I combined with the amide III region of these proteins were used to set up the calibration set for the PLS algorithm. Our results correlate quite well with the data from X-ray studies, and the prediction from the amide III region is better than that from amide I or combined amide I and amide III regions.

NMR solution structure of attractin, a water-borne protein pheromone from the mollusk Aplysia californica

Water-borne protein pheromones are essential for coordination of reproductive activities in many marine organisms. In this paper, we describe the first structure of a pheromone protein from a marine organism, that of attractin (58 residues) from Aplysia californica. The NMR solution structure was determined from TOCSY, NOESY, and DQF-COSY measurements of recombinant attractin expressed in insect cells. The sequential resonance assignments were done with standard manual procedures. Approximately 90% of the 949 unambiguous NOESY cross-peaks were assigned automatically with simultaneous three-dimensional structure calculation using our NOAH/DIAMOD/FANTOM program suite. The final bundle of energy-refined structures is well-defined, with an average rmsd value to the mean structure of 0.72 +/- 0.12 A for backbone and 1.32 +/- 0.11 A for heavy atoms for amino acids 3-47. Attractin contains two antiparallel helices, made up of residues Ile9-Gln16 and I30-S36. The NMR distance constraints are consistent with the three disulfide bonds determined by mass spectroscopy (C4-C41, C13-C33, and C20-C26), where the first two could be directly determined from NOESY cross-peaks between CH beta protons of the corresponding cysteines. The second helix contains the (L/I)(29)IEECKTS(36) sequence conserved in attractins from five species of Aplysia that could interact with the receptor. The sequence and structure of this region are similar to those of the recognition helix of the Er-11 pheromone of the unicellular ciliate Euplotes raikovi, suggesting a possible common pathway for intercellular communication of these two distinct pheromone families.

The geometry of shape space: application to influenza

Shape space was proposed over 20 years ago as a conceptual formalism in which to represent antibody/antigen binding. It has since played a key role in computational immunology. Antigens and antibodies are considered to be points in an abstract "shape space", where coordinates of points in this space represent generalized physico-chemical properties associated with various (unspecified) physical properties related to binding, such as geometric shape, hydrophobicity, charge, etc. Distances in shape space between points representing antibodies and (the shape complement) of antigens are assumed to be related to their affinity, with small distances corresponding to high affinity. In this paper, we provide algorithms, related to metric and ordinal multidimensional scaling algorithms first developed in the mathematical psychology literature, which construct explicit, quantitative coordinates for points in shape space given experimental data such as hemagglutination inhibition assays, or other general affinity assays. Previously, such coordinates had been conceptual constructs and totally implicit. The dimension of shape space deduced from hemagglutination inhibition assays for influenza is low, approximately five dimensional. The deduction of the explicit geometry of shape space given experimental affinity data provides new ways to quantify the similarity of antibodies to antibodies, antigens to antigens, and the affinity of antigens to antibodies. This has potential utility in, e.g. strain selection decisions for annual influenza vaccines, among other applications. The analysis techniques presented here are not restricted to the analysis of antibody-antigen interactions and are generally applicable to affinity data resulting from binding assays.

Automatic assignment of NOESY cross peaks and determination of the protein structure of a new world scorpion neurotoxin using NOAH/DIAMOD

The 3D NMR structures of the scorpion neurotoxin, CsE-v5, were determined from the same NOESY spectra with NOAH/DIAMOD, an automated assignment and 3D structure calculation software package, and with a conventional manual assignment combined with a distance geometry/simulated annealing (X-PLOR) refinement method. The NOESY assignments and the 3D structures obtained from the two independent methods were compared in detail. The NOAH/DIAMOD program suite uses feedback filtering and self-correcting distance geometry methods to automatically assign NOESY spectra and to calculate the 3D structure of a protein. NOESY cross peaks were automatically picked using a standard software package and combined with 74 manually assigned NOESY peaks to start the NOAH/DIAMOD calculations. After 63 NOAH/DIAMOD cycles, using REDAC procedures in the last 8 cycles, and final FANTOM constrained energy minimization, a bundle of 20 structures with the smallest target functions has a RMSD of 0.81 A for backbone atoms and 1.11 A for all heavy atoms to the mean structure. Despite some missing chemical shifts of side chain protons, 776 (including 74 manually assigned) of 1130 NOE peaks were unambiguously assigned, 150 peaks have more than one possible assignment compatible with the bundle structures, and only 30 peaks could not be assigned within the given chemical shift tolerance ranges in either the D1 or the D2 dimension. The remaining 174, mainly weak NOE peaks were not compatible with the final 20 best bundle structures at the last NOAH/DIAMOD cycle. The automatically determined structures agree well with the structures determined independently using the conventional method and the same NMR spectra, with the mean RMSD in well-defined regions of 0.84 A for bb and 1.48 A for all heavy atoms from residues 2-5, 18-26, 32-36, and 39-45. This study demonstrates the potential of the NOAH/DIAMOD program suite to automatically assign NMR data for proteins and determine their structure.

Automated 2D NOESY assignment and structure calculation of Crambin(S22/I25) with the self-correcting distance geometry based NOAH/DIAMOD programs

The NOAH/DIAMOD program suite was used to automatically assign an experimental 2D NOESY spectrum of the 46 residue protein crambin(S22/I25), using feedback filtering and self-correcting distance geometry (SECODG). Automatically picked NOESY cross peaks were combined with 157 manually assigned peaks to start NOAH/DIAMOD calculations. At each cycle, DIAMOD was used to calculate an ensemble of 40 structures from these NOE distance constraints and random starting structures. The 10 structures with smallest target function values were analyzed by the structure-based filter, NOAH, and a new set of possible assignments was automatically generated based on chemical shifts and distance constraints violations. After 60 iterations and final energy minimization, the 10 structures with smallest target functions converged to 1.48 A for backbone atoms. Despite several missing chemical shifts, 426 of 613 NOE peaks were unambiguously assigned; 59 peaks were ambiguously assigned. The remaining 128 peaks picked automatically by FELIX are probably primarily noise peaks, with a few real peaks that were not assigned by NOAH due to the incomplete proton chemical shifts list.

Allostery in rabbit pyruvate kinase: development of a strategy to elucidate the mechanism

Isozymes of pyruvate kinase (PK) expressed in rabbit muscle and kidney show different allosteric kinetics. The only amino acid changes in the two isozymes, originating from alternative RNA splicing, occur at a stretch of 55 amino acids in the C domain near the subunit interface. The self-correcting distance geometry (SECODG) program DIAMOD was used to calculate a homology model of these interfacial contacts in the four helix bundle of the kidney PK dimer, based on the X-ray structure of the tetrameric rabbit muscle PK [Larsen et al. (1994) Biochemistry 33, 6301-6309]. Energy refinement with the program FANTOM, using the ECEPP/2 force field to assess packing and electrostatic interactions between the two subunits, yielded two groups of energetically favorable conformations. The primary difference in the two groups is the loop conformation of residue Pro 402, which is serine in muscle PK. In one loop conformation, the conserved Lys 421 can form an intersubunit salt bridge as observed in the muscle PK crystal structure. The other loop conformation favors an alternative intrasubunit salt bridge, similar to that found in the Escherichia coli PK structure, which was not used for generating the model. The intersubunit salt bridge leads to an intersubunit hydrogen bonding between Lys 421 of one subunit and Tyr 443 of the other. To provide direct evidence on the roles of these residues, site-directed mutagenesis of the muscle PK gene was conducted. Converting Ser 402 to a proline and Tyr 443 to a phenylalanine changed neither the secondary nor the tetrameric structure, as measured by far UV-CD and sedimentation velocity, respectively. However, the S402P mutant exhibits steady-state kinetics, indicating that the mutant is more reponsive to regulation by effectors, while the mutant Y443F was essentially equivalent to wild-type muscle PK protein except for a lower affinity to phosphoenolpyruvate. These findings suggest a pivotal role for a few key residues in the allosteric regulation in PK.

New methods of structure refinement for macromolecular structure determination by NMR

Recent advances in multidimensional NMR methodology have permitted solution structures of proteins in excess of 250 residues to be solved. In this paper, we discuss several methods of structure refinement that promise to increase the accuracy of macromolecular structures determined by NMR. These methods include the use of a conformational database potential and direct refinement against three-bond coupling constants, secondary 13C shifts, 1H shifts, T1/T2 ratios, and residual dipolar couplings. The latter two measurements provide long range restraints that are not accessible by other solution NMR parameters.

Ambiguous distance data in the calculation of NMR structures

The use of molecular dynamics for simulated annealing optimization of structures calculated from NMR data is reviewed. I focus on ways of directly using and automatically assigning ambiguous peaks from nuclear Overhauser enhancement experiments during the structure calculation.

Structure calculation from NMR data

NMR calculation methods have kept pace with the rapid extension of NMR experiments to larger molecules. By including additional data and effects of local dynamics in the refinement, we can obtain a more complete picture of the molecule in solution. The structure determination process is being aided by new methods to solve some aspects of spectral assignment during the structure calculation.

Improving the quality of NMR and crystallographic protein structures by means of a conformational database potential derived from structure databases

A new conformational database potential involving dihedral angle relationships in databases of high-resolution highly refined protein crystal structures is presented as a method for improving the quality of structures generated from NMR data. The rationale for this procedure is based on the observation that uncertainties in the description of the nonbonded contacts present a key limiting factor in the attainable accuracy of protein NMR structures and that the nonbonded interaction terms presently used have poor discriminatory power between high- and low-probability local conformations. The idea behind the conformational database potential is to restrict sampling during simulated annealing refinement to conformations that are likely to be energetically possible by effectively limiting the choices of dihedral angles to those that are known to be physically realizable. In this manner, the variability in the structures produced by this method is primarily a function of the experimental restraints, rather than an artifact of a poor nonbonded interaction model. We tested this approach with the experimental NMR data (comprising an average of about 30 restraints per residue and consisting of interproton distances, torsion angles, 3JHN alpha coupling constants, and 13C chemical shifts) used previously to calculate the solution structure of reduced human thioredoxin (Qin J, Clore GM, Gronenborn AM, 1994, Structure 2:503-522). Incorporation of the conformational database potential into the target function used for refinement (which also includes terms for the experimental restraints, covalent geometry, and nonbonded interactions in the form of either a repulsive, repulsive-attractive, or 6-12 Lennard-Jones potential) results in a significant improvement in various quantitative measures of quality (Ramachandran plot, side-chain torsion angles, overall packing). This is achieved without compromising the agreement with the experimental restraints and the deviations from idealized covalent geometry that remain within experimental error, and the agreement between calculated and observed 1H chemical shifts that provides an independent NMR parameter of accuracy. The method is equally applicable to crystallographic refinement, and should be particular useful during the early stages of either an NMR or crystallographic structure determination and in cases where relatively few experimental restraints can be derived from the measured data (due, for example, to broad lines in the NMR spectra or to poorly diffracting crystals).

The solution conformational features of two highly homologous antigenic peptides of foot-and-mouth disease virus serotype A, variant A and USA, correlate with their serological properties

The solution structure of a peptide corresponding to the VP1 region 141-160 of foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) serotype A variant USA has been studied by NMR and computer calculations and compared with the results from a study on a highly homologous peptide deriving from serotype A, variant A. The two peptides differ in their serological behavior and contain the immunodominant epitope of the virus which partly overlaps with its receptor binding region. Distance constraints, derived both from 2D and 3D homonuclear NMR and 2D-heteronuclear NMR experiments, were combined with DG calculations to yield 50 structures. After refinement through EM and restrained molecular dynamics simulations the selected structures shared several general features. In particular the 151-158 region was a helix in all cases while a large loop similar to that found in peptide A but comprising less residues and stabilized by an H-bond between the side chains of D147 and S150 was found in the majority of structures. A further loop, common to all structures, was identified around the RGD sequence (145-147). This was different from that found in the corresponding region of peptide A as were the conformations of the individual residues within the RGDX sequence. The different structural features shown by the two peptides were rationalized in terms of the S148 (peptide A) to F148 (peptide USA) mutation. The second mutation, that at position 153 (L in A, P in USA) did not appear to affect the structure of the peptide significantly although the different dimensions of the loop in the central region and the type of H-bond stabilizing it could be potentially ascribed to this second mutation. All criteria used pointed to different structural features for the two peptides consistent with their serological behaviour.

The solution structure of the immunodominant and cell receptor binding regions of foot-and-mouth disease virus serotype A, variant A

Abstract: The solution structure of a 20 amino acid long peptide corresponding to the region 141-160 of the envelope protein Vp1 from foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) serotype A, variant A, has been determined by a combination of NMR experiments and computer calculations. The peptide contains both the immunodominant epitope as well as the sequence (RGD) used by the virus to bind the cell receptor in the initial stages of infection. These two sites have been shown to partially overlap. One hundred and thirty-five NMR distance constraints were used to obtain a set of 11 structures by distance geometry, minimization and molecular dynamics simulations. These structures were divided into two homogeneous families based upon backbone superimposition. The first and most populated family was characterized by a backbone RMS of 1.5 +/- 0.4 A, the second by a backbone RMS of 0.8 +/- 0.2 A. The two families had similar structural features and differed mainly in the backbone angles of G149. In the larger of the two families these angles favoured the formation of a loop comprising residues 147 to 152 and stabilized by a H-bond between NH of D147 and the CO of A152. In the second family, where this bond was absent, the peptide adopted in this region the shape of an irregular helix. The C-terminal half of the peptide (152-159) was similar in both families and largely helical. Similar structural features were also found within the VRGDS sequence (144-148) which was assigned to a beta-turn type IV. The features of the two families of structures were found to be different from those of the recently published X-ray structure of the antigenic loop of a chemically modified form of FMDV. Proposals accounting for these differences are provided which take into account the dual activity of the 141-160 sequence (i.e. antibody binding and cell invasion through receptor binding).

Predicting the helix packing of globular proteins by self-correcting distance geometry

A new self-correcting distance geometry method for predicting the three-dimensional structure of small globular proteins was assessed with a test set of 8 helical proteins. With the knowledge of the amino acid sequence and the helical segments, our completely automated method calculated the correct backbone topology of six proteins. The accuracy of the predicted structures ranged from 2.3 A to 3.1 A for the helical segments compared to the experimentally determined structures. For two proteins, the predicted constraints were not restrictive enough to yield a conclusive prediction. The method can be applied to all small globular proteins, provided the secondary structure is known from NMR analysis or can be predicted with high reliability.

Two-, three-, and four-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy of protein pharmaceuticals

Advances in NMR spectroscopy and related computational methods continue at a rapid pace. In the past three years, the capability to make complete assignments of protein spectra has expanded from a limit of approximately 100 residues to a limit of possibly 400 residues via isotope-edited three- and four-dimensional methods.

The use and misuse of FTIR spectroscopy in the determination of protein structure

Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy is an established tool for the structural characterization of proteins. However, many potential pitfalls exist for the unwary investigator. In this review we critically assess the application of FTIR spectroscopy to the determination of protein structure by (1) outlining the principles underlying protein secondary structure determination by FTIR spectroscopy, (2) highlighting the situations in which FTIR spectroscopy should be considered the technique of choice, (3) discussing the manner in which experiments should be conducted to derive as much physiologically relevant information as possible, and (4) outlining current methods for the determination of secondary structure from infrared spectra of proteins.

A variable target intensity-restrained global optimization (VARTIGO) procedure for determining three-dimensional structures of polypeptides from NOESY data: application to gramicidin-S

A global optimization method for intensity-restrained structure refinement, based on variable target function (VTF) analysis, is illustrated using experimental data on a model peptide, gramicidin-S (GS) dissolved in DMSO. The method (referred to as VARTIGO for variable target intensity-restrained global optimization) involves minimization of a target function in which the range of NOE contacts is gradually increased in successive cycles of optimization in dihedral angle space. Several different starting conformations (including all-trans) have been tested to establish the validity of the method. Not all optimizations were successful, but these were readily identifiable from their large NOE R-factors. We also show that it is possible to simultaneously optimize the rotational correlation time along with the dihedral angles. The structural features of GS thus obtained from the successful optimizations are in excellent agreement with the available experimental data. A comparison is made with structures generated from an intensity-restrained single target function (STF) analysis. The results on GS suggest that VARTIGO refinement is capable of yielding better quality structures. Our work also underscores the need for a simultaneous analysis of different NOE R-factors in judging the quality of optimized structures. The NOESY data on GS in DMSO appear to provide evidence for the presence of two orientations for the ornithine side chain, in fast exchange. The NOESY spectra for this case were analyzed using a relaxation rate matrix which is a weighted average of the relaxation rate matrices for the individual conformations.

Structures of protein complexes by multidimensional heteronuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy

With the advent of multidimensional heteronuclear-edited and -filtered NMR experiments, the field of three-dimensional structure determination by NMR has again increased in scope, making it possible to move the technology beyond the approximately 10 kDa limit inherent to conventional two-dimensional NMR to systems up to potentially 35 to 40 kDa. This article outlines the basic strategies for solving three-dimensional structures of larger systems, in particular, protein complexes and multimeric proteins using three- and four-dimensional NMR spectroscopy, summarizes the key experiments, and illustrates the power of these methods using several examples of protein-DNA, protein-peptide complexes, and oligomeric proteins from the authors' laboratories.

Coupling constants and hydrogen bonds as experimental restraints in a distance geometry refinement protocol

A refinement procedure commonly used after distance geometry calculations has been modified to include the use of experimental restraints from coupling constants and hydrogen bonds. Fewer experimental distance constrains (NOEs) are available for peptides as compared to proteins; therefore it is important to incorporate other conformational restraints into refinement methods. The procedure was applied to a cyclic hexapeptide containing two thioamide substitutions, cyclo(-Gly1-Pro2-Phe3 psi [CS-NH]Val4-D-Phe5-Phe6 psi [CS-NH]-). Distance geometry was used to study this peptide, since no potential energy parameters, required in molecular mechanics or dynamics calculations, are available for the thioamide. This is a general problem in the study of peptidomimetics; physiochemical properties of heteroatoms are required within a self-consistent force field. Here, we illustrate the use of metric matrix distance geometry followed by refinement with distance and angle driven dynamics (DADD). We also introduce a new way to handle intramolecular hydrogen bonds by an additional very small and flexible restraint. This method is a viable alternative for the conformational examination of peptides and peptidomimetics. The modifications described here should also find use in the conformational determination of flexible regions of proteins, where the number of NOEs are limited.

Determination of the NMR solution structure of the cyclophilin A-cyclosporin A complex

The three-dimensional NMR solution structure of the cyclophilin A (Cyp)-cyclosporin A (CsA) complex was determined, and here we provide a detailed description of the analysis of the NMR data and the structure calculation. Using 15N- and 13C-resolved three- and four-dimensional [1H,1H]-nuclear Overhauser enhancement (NOE) spectroscopy with uniformly isotope-labeled Cyp in the complex, a final data set of 1810 intra-Cyp, 107 intra-CsA and 63 intermolecular NOE upper distance constraints was collected as input for the structure calculation with the program DIANA. A group of DIANA conformers, selected by a previously described analysis of the dependence of the maximal root-mean-square deviation (rmsd) among the individual conformers on the residual target function value, was subjected to energy refinement with the program FANTOM. The 22 best energy-refined conformers were then used to represent the solution structure. The average rmsd relative to the mean structure of these 22 conformers is 1.1 A for the backbone atoms of all residues of the complex. The molecular architecture of Cyp in the Cyp-CsA complex includes an eight-stranded antiparallel beta-barrel, which is closed on each side by an amphipathic helix. CsA is bound in a cavity formed by part of the barrel surface and four loops with nonregular secondary structure. Comparison of this structure with structures of Cyp-CsA and other Cyp-peptide complexes determined by different approaches shows extensive similarities.

Pattern recognition and self-correcting distance geometry calculations applied to myohemerythrin

A topological list, consisting of segments of regular secondary structures and a list of buried and solvent accessible residues, is automatically predicted from multiple aligned sequences in a protein family. This topological list is translated into geometric constraints for distance geometry calculation in torsion angle space. A new self-correcting distance geometry method detects and eliminates false distance constraints. In an application to the four-helix bundle protein, myohem-erythrin, the right-handed global fold was correctly reproduced with a root-mean-square deviation of 2.6 A, when the topological list was derived from the X-ray structure. A predicted topological list, coupled with constraints from the residues in the active site of myohemerythrin, predicted the correct fold with a root-mean-square deviation of 4 A for backbone atoms.

Young Investigator Award Lecture. Structures of larger proteins, protein-ligand and protein-DNA complexes by multidimensional heteronuclear NMR

The recent development of a whole panoply of multidimensional heteronuclear-edited and -filtered NMR experiments has revolutionized the field of protein structure determination by NMR, making it possible to extend the methodology from the 10-kDa limit of conventional 2-dimensional NMR to systems up to potentially 35-40 kDa. The basic strategy for solving 3-dimensional structures of larger proteins and protein-ligand complexes in solution using 3- and 4-dimensional NMR spectroscopy is summarized, and the power of these methods is illustrated using 3 examples: interleukin-1 beta, the complex of calmodulin with a target peptide, and the specific complex of the transcription factor GATA-1 with its cognate DNA target site.

A reduced representation of proteins for use in restraint satisfaction calculations

A reduced representation of proteins has been developed for use in restraint satisfaction calculations with dynamic simulated annealing. Each amino acid residue is represented by up to four spherical virtual atoms. The virtual bonds and excluded volume of these atoms has been parameterized by analysis of 83 protein structures determined at high resolution by X-ray crystallography. The use of the new representation in NOE distance restraint satisfaction has been compared with the standard all-atom representation for the determination of the structures of crambin, echistatin, and protein G. Using the reduced representation, there is a 30-fold decrease in the computer time needed for generating a single structure, and up to a 20-fold decrease in the time taken to produce an acceptable structure compared to using the all-atom representation. The root mean square deviation between the mean structure obtained with all-atom and reduced representations is between 1.5 and 1.7 A for C alpha atoms. The new representation is adequate for describing the "low-resolution" features of protein structure such as the general fold and the positions of secondary structure elements. It can also provide an initial structure for more detailed refinement with the full all-atom representation.