1
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Li W, Cao P, Xu P, Sun F, Wang C, Zhang J, Dong S, Wilson JR, Xu D, Fan H, Feng Z, Zhang X, Zhu Q, Fan Y, Brown N, Justin N, Gamblin SJ, Li H, Zhang Y, He J. Rapid reconstitution of ubiquitinated nucleosome using a non-denatured histone octamer ubiquitylation approach. Cell Biosci 2024; 14:81. [PMID: 38886783 DOI: 10.1186/s13578-024-01265-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2024] [Accepted: 06/07/2024] [Indexed: 06/20/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Histone ubiquitination modification is emerging as a critical epigenetic mechanism involved in a range of biological processes. In vitro reconstitution of ubiquitinated nucleosomes is pivotal for elucidating the influence of histone ubiquitination on chromatin dynamics. RESULTS In this study, we introduce a Non-Denatured Histone Octamer Ubiquitylation (NDHOU) approach for generating ubiquitin or ubiquitin-like modified histone octamers. The method entails the co-expression and purification of histone octamers, followed by their chemical cross-linking to ubiquitin using 1,3-dibromoacetone. We demonstrate that nucleosomes reconstituted with these octamers display a high degree of homogeneity, rendering them highly compatible with in vitro biochemical assays. These ubiquitinated nucleosomes mimic physiological substrates in function and structure. Additionally, we have extended this method to cross-linking various histone octamers and three types of ubiquitin-like proteins. CONCLUSIONS Overall, our findings offer an efficient strategy for producing ubiquitinated nucleosomes, advancing biochemical and biophysical studies in the field of chromatin biology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Weijie Li
- Tomas Lindahl Nobel Laureate Laboratory, The Seventh Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Shenzhen, 518107, China
| | - Peirong Cao
- Department of Neuroscience, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong SAR, P.R. China
- School of Chinese Medicine, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong, China
| | - Pengqi Xu
- Tomas Lindahl Nobel Laureate Laboratory, The Seventh Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Shenzhen, 518107, China
| | - Fahui Sun
- CAS Key Laboratory of Regenerative Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, GIBH-HKU Guangdong-Hong Kong Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Research Centre, GIBH-CUHK Joint Research Laboratory on Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510530, China
| | - Chi Wang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Regenerative Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, GIBH-HKU Guangdong-Hong Kong Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Research Centre, GIBH-CUHK Joint Research Laboratory on Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510530, China
- School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230026, China
| | - Jiale Zhang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Regenerative Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, GIBH-HKU Guangdong-Hong Kong Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Research Centre, GIBH-CUHK Joint Research Laboratory on Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510530, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Shuqi Dong
- CAS Key Laboratory of Regenerative Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, GIBH-HKU Guangdong-Hong Kong Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Research Centre, GIBH-CUHK Joint Research Laboratory on Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510530, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Jon R Wilson
- Francis Crick Institute, 1 Midland Road, London, NW1 1AT, UK
| | - Difei Xu
- Tomas Lindahl Nobel Laureate Laboratory, The Seventh Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Shenzhen, 518107, China
| | - Hengxin Fan
- Tomas Lindahl Nobel Laureate Laboratory, The Seventh Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Shenzhen, 518107, China
| | - Zhenhuan Feng
- CAS Key Laboratory of Regenerative Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, GIBH-HKU Guangdong-Hong Kong Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Research Centre, GIBH-CUHK Joint Research Laboratory on Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510530, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Xiaofei Zhang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Regenerative Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, GIBH-HKU Guangdong-Hong Kong Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Research Centre, GIBH-CUHK Joint Research Laboratory on Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510530, China
- Key Laboratory of Biological Targeting Diagnosis, Therapy and Rehabilitation of Guangdong Higher Education Institutes, The Fifth Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, 510799, China
| | - Qingjun Zhu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Regenerative Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, GIBH-HKU Guangdong-Hong Kong Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Research Centre, GIBH-CUHK Joint Research Laboratory on Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510530, China
| | - Yingzhi Fan
- CAS Key Laboratory of Regenerative Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, GIBH-HKU Guangdong-Hong Kong Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Research Centre, GIBH-CUHK Joint Research Laboratory on Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510530, China
| | - Nick Brown
- Francis Crick Institute, 1 Midland Road, London, NW1 1AT, UK
| | - Neil Justin
- Francis Crick Institute, 1 Midland Road, London, NW1 1AT, UK
| | | | - He Li
- Key Laboratory of Biological Targeting Diagnosis, Therapy and Rehabilitation of Guangdong Higher Education Institutes, The Fifth Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, 510799, China
| | - Ying Zhang
- Tomas Lindahl Nobel Laureate Laboratory, The Seventh Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Shenzhen, 518107, China.
| | - Jun He
- CAS Key Laboratory of Regenerative Biology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, GIBH-HKU Guangdong-Hong Kong Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Research Centre, GIBH-CUHK Joint Research Laboratory on Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine, Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510530, China.
- Key Laboratory of Biological Targeting Diagnosis, Therapy and Rehabilitation of Guangdong Higher Education Institutes, The Fifth Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, 510799, China.
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2
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Gharios R, Li A, Kopyeva I, Francis RM, DeForest CA. One-Step Purification and N-Terminal Functionalization of Bioactive Proteins via Atypically Split Inteins. Bioconjug Chem 2024. [PMID: 38815180 DOI: 10.1021/acs.bioconjchem.4c00223] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/01/2024]
Abstract
Site-specific installation of non-natural functionality onto proteins has enabled countless applications in biotechnology, chemical biology, and biomaterials science. Though the N-terminus is an attractive derivatization location, prior methodologies targeting this site have suffered from low selectivity, a limited selection of potential chemical modifications, and/or challenges associated with divergent protein purification/modification steps. In this work, we harness the atypically split VidaL intein to simultaneously N-functionalize and purify homogeneous protein populations in a single step. Our method─referred to as VidaL-tagged expression and protein ligation (VEPL)─enables modular and scalable production of N-terminally modified proteins with native bioactivity. Demonstrating its flexibility and ease of use, we employ VEPL to combinatorially install 4 distinct (multi)functional handles (e.g., biotin, alkyne, fluorophores) to the N-terminus of 4 proteins that span three different classes: fluorescent (Enhanced Green Fluorescent Protein, mCherry), enzymatic (β-lactamase), and growth factor (epidermal growth factor). Moving forward, we anticipate that VEPL's ability to rapidly generate and isolate N-modified proteins will prove useful across the growing fields of applied chemical biology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan Gharios
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98105, United States
| | - Annabella Li
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98105, United States
| | - Irina Kopyeva
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98105, United States
| | - Ryan M Francis
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98105, United States
| | - Cole A DeForest
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98105, United States
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98105, United States
- Department of Chemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98105, United States
- Institute of Stem Cell & Regenerative Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98105, United States
- Molecular Engineering & Sciences Institute, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98105, United States
- Institute for Protein Design, University of Washington, Seattle ,Washington 98105, United States
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3
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Allen MC, Karplus PA, Mehl RA, Cooley RB. Genetic Encoding of Phosphorylated Amino Acids into Proteins. Chem Rev 2024; 124:6592-6642. [PMID: 38691379 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.4c00110] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/03/2024]
Abstract
Reversible phosphorylation is a fundamental mechanism for controlling protein function. Despite the critical roles phosphorylated proteins play in physiology and disease, our ability to study individual phospho-proteoforms has been hindered by a lack of versatile methods to efficiently generate homogeneous proteins with site-specific phosphoamino acids or with functional mimics that are resistant to phosphatases. Genetic code expansion (GCE) is emerging as a transformative approach to tackle this challenge, allowing direct incorporation of phosphoamino acids into proteins during translation in response to amber stop codons. This genetic programming of phospho-protein synthesis eliminates the reliance on kinase-based or chemical semisynthesis approaches, making it broadly applicable to diverse phospho-proteoforms. In this comprehensive review, we provide a brief introduction to GCE and trace the development of existing GCE technologies for installing phosphoserine, phosphothreonine, phosphotyrosine, and their mimics, discussing both their advantages as well as their limitations. While some of the technologies are still early in their development, others are already robust enough to greatly expand the range of biologically relevant questions that can be addressed. We highlight new discoveries enabled by these GCE approaches, provide practical considerations for the application of technologies by non-GCE experts, and also identify avenues ripe for further development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael C Allen
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Oregon State University, GCE4All Research Center, 2011 Agricultural and Life Sciences, Corvallis, Oregon 97331 United States
| | - P Andrew Karplus
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Oregon State University, GCE4All Research Center, 2011 Agricultural and Life Sciences, Corvallis, Oregon 97331 United States
| | - Ryan A Mehl
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Oregon State University, GCE4All Research Center, 2011 Agricultural and Life Sciences, Corvallis, Oregon 97331 United States
| | - Richard B Cooley
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Oregon State University, GCE4All Research Center, 2011 Agricultural and Life Sciences, Corvallis, Oregon 97331 United States
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4
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Minoshima M, Reja SI, Hashimoto R, Iijima K, Kikuchi K. Hybrid Small-Molecule/Protein Fluorescent Probes. Chem Rev 2024; 124:6198-6270. [PMID: 38717865 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.3c00549] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/23/2024]
Abstract
Hybrid small-molecule/protein fluorescent probes are powerful tools for visualizing protein localization and function in living cells. These hybrid probes are constructed by diverse site-specific chemical protein labeling approaches through chemical reactions to exogenous peptide/small protein tags, enzymatic post-translational modifications, bioorthogonal reactions for genetically incorporated unnatural amino acids, and ligand-directed chemical reactions. The hybrid small-molecule/protein fluorescent probes are employed for imaging protein trafficking, conformational changes, and bioanalytes surrounding proteins. In addition, fluorescent hybrid probes facilitate visualization of protein dynamics at the single-molecule level and the defined structure with super-resolution imaging. In this review, we discuss development and the bioimaging applications of fluorescent probes based on small-molecule/protein hybrids.
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Affiliation(s)
- Masafumi Minoshima
- Department of Applied Chemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, 2-1, Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka 5650871, Japan
| | - Shahi Imam Reja
- Immunology Frontier Research Center, Osaka University, 2-1, Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka 5650871, Japan
| | - Ryu Hashimoto
- Department of Applied Chemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, 2-1, Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka 5650871, Japan
| | - Kohei Iijima
- Department of Applied Chemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, 2-1, Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka 5650871, Japan
| | - Kazuya Kikuchi
- Department of Applied Chemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, 2-1, Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka 5650871, Japan
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5
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Sarkar D, Galleano I, Heusser SA, Ou SY, Uzun GR, Khoo KK, van der Heden van Noort GJ, Harrison JS, Pless SA. Protein semisynthesis underscores the role of a conserved lysine in activation and desensitization of acid-sensing ion channels. Cell Chem Biol 2024; 31:1000-1010.e6. [PMID: 38113885 DOI: 10.1016/j.chembiol.2023.11.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2023] [Revised: 07/21/2023] [Accepted: 11/28/2023] [Indexed: 12/21/2023]
Abstract
Acid-sensing ion channels (ASICs) are trimeric ion channels that open a cation-conducting pore in response to proton binding. Excessive ASIC activation during prolonged acidosis in conditions such as inflammation and ischemia is linked to pain and stroke. A conserved lysine in the extracellular domain (Lys211 in mASIC1a) is suggested to play a key role in ASIC function. However, the precise contributions are difficult to dissect with conventional mutagenesis, as replacement of Lys211 with naturally occurring amino acids invariably changes multiple physico-chemical parameters. Here, we study the contribution of Lys211 to mASIC1a function using tandem protein trans-splicing (tPTS) to incorporate non-canonical lysine analogs. We conduct optimization efforts to improve splicing and functionally interrogate semisynthetic mASIC1a. In combination with molecular modeling, we show that Lys211 charge and side-chain length are crucial to activation and desensitization, thus emphasizing that tPTS can enable atomic-scale interrogations of membrane proteins in live cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Debayan Sarkar
- Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology, University of Copenhagen, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Iacopo Galleano
- Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology, University of Copenhagen, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark; Department of Cell and Chemical Biology, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | | | - Sofie Yuewei Ou
- Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology, University of Copenhagen, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Gül Refika Uzun
- Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology, University of Copenhagen, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Keith K Khoo
- Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology, University of Copenhagen, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | | | | | - Stephan Alexander Pless
- Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology, University of Copenhagen, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark.
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6
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Frazier CL, Deb D, Weeks AM. Engineered reactivity of a bacterial E1-like enzyme enables ATP-driven modification of protein C termini. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.05.13.593989. [PMID: 38798401 PMCID: PMC11118369 DOI: 10.1101/2024.05.13.593989] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/29/2024]
Abstract
In biological systems, ATP provides an energetic driving force for peptide bond formation, but protein chemists lack tools that emulate this strategy. Inspired by the eukaryotic ubiquitination cascade, we developed an ATP-driven platform for C-terminal activation and peptide ligation based on E. coli MccB, a bacterial ancestor of ubiquitin-activating (E1) enzymes that natively catalyzes C-terminal phosphoramidate bond formation. We show that MccB can act on non-native substrates to generate an O-AMPylated electrophile that can react with exogenous nucleophiles to form diverse C-terminal functional groups including thioesters, a versatile class of biological intermediates that have been exploited for protein semisynthesis. To direct this activity towards specific proteins of interest, we developed the Thioesterification C-terminal Handle (TeCH)-tag, a sequence that enables high-yield, ATP-driven protein bioconjugation via a thioester intermediate. By mining the natural diversity of the MccB family, we developed two additional MccB/TeCH-tag pairs that are mutually orthogonal to each other and to the E. coli system, facilitating the synthesis of more complex bioconjugates. Our method mimics the chemical logic of peptide bond synthesis that is widespread in biology for high-yield in vitro manipulation of protein structure with molecular precision.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clara L. Frazier
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Wisconsin – Madison, Madison, WI, USA 53706
| | - Debashrito Deb
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Wisconsin – Madison, Madison, WI, USA 53706
| | - Amy M. Weeks
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Wisconsin – Madison, Madison, WI, USA 53706
- Department of Chemistry, University of Wisconsin – Madison, Madison, Wisconsin 53706
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7
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Gamage K, Wang B, Hard ER, Van T, Galesic A, Phillips GR, Pratt M, Lapidus LJ. Post-translational Modification of α-Synuclein Modifies Monomer Dynamics and Aggregation Kinetics. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.05.06.592473. [PMID: 38766253 PMCID: PMC11100617 DOI: 10.1101/2024.05.06.592473] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/22/2024]
Abstract
The intrinsically disordered protein α-Synuclein is identified as a major toxic aggregate in Parkinson's as well as several other neurodegenerative diseases. Recent work on this protein has focused on the effects of posttranslational modifications on aggregation kinetics. Among these, O-GlcNAcylation of α-Synuclein has been observed to inhibit the aggregation propensity of the protein. Here we investigate the monomer dynamics of two O-GlcNAcylated α-Synucleins, α-Syn(gT72) and α-Syn(gS87) and correlate them with the aggregation kinetics. We find that, compared to the unmodified protein, glycosylation at T72 makes the protein less compact and more diffusive while glycosylation at S87 makes the protein more compact and less diffusive. Based on a model of the earliest steps in aggregation, we predict that T72 should aggregate slower than unmodified protein, which is confirmed by ThT fluorescence measurements. In contrast, S87 should aggregate faster, which is not mirrored in ThT kinetics of later fibril formation but does not rule out a higher rate of formation of small oligomers. Together, these results show that posttranslational modifications do not uniformly affect aggregation propensity.
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8
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Ganguly HK, Ludwig BA, Tressler CM, Bhatt MR, Pandey AK, Quinn CM, Bai S, Yap GPA, Zondlo NJ. 4,4-Difluoroproline as a Unique 19F NMR Probe of Proline Conformation. Biochemistry 2024; 63:1131-1146. [PMID: 38598681 DOI: 10.1021/acs.biochem.3c00697] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/12/2024]
Abstract
Despite the importance of proline conformational equilibria (trans versus cis amide and exo versus endo ring pucker) on protein structure and function, there is a lack of convenient ways to probe proline conformation. 4,4-Difluoroproline (Dfp) was identified to be a sensitive 19F NMR-based probe of proline conformational biases and cis-trans isomerism. Within model compounds and disordered peptides, the diastereotopic fluorines of Dfp exhibit similar chemical shifts (ΔδFF = 0-3 ppm) when a trans X-Dfp amide bond is present. In contrast, the diastereotopic fluorines exhibit a large (ΔδFF = 5-12 ppm) difference in chemical shift in a cis X-Dfp prolyl amide bond. DFT calculations, X-ray crystallography, and solid-state NMR spectroscopy indicated that ΔδFF directly reports on the relative preference of one proline ring pucker over the other: a fluorine which is pseudo-axial (i.e., the pro-4R-F in an exo ring pucker, or the pro-4S-F in an endo ring pucker) is downfield, while a fluorine which is pseudo-equatorial (i.e., pro-4S-F when exo, or pro-4R-F when endo) is upfield. Thus, when a proline is disordered (a mixture of exo and endo ring puckers, as at trans-Pro in peptides in water), it exhibits a small Δδ. In contrast, when the Pro is ordered (i.e., when one ring pucker is strongly preferred, as in cis-Pro amide bonds, where the endo ring pucker is strongly favored), a large Δδ is observed. Dfp can be used to identify inherent induced order in peptides and to quantify proline cis-trans isomerism. Using Dfp, we discovered that the stable polyproline II helix (PPII) formed in the denatured state (8 M urea) exhibits essentially equal populations of the exo and endo proline ring puckers. In addition, the data with Dfp suggested the specific stabilization of PPII by water over other polar solvents. These data strongly support the importance of carbonyl solvation and n → π* interactions for the stabilization of PPII. Dfp was also employed to quantify proline cis-trans isomerism as a function of phosphorylation and the R406W mutation in peptides derived from the intrinsically disordered protein tau. Dfp is minimally sterically disruptive and can be incorporated in expressed proteins, suggesting its broad application in understanding proline cis-trans isomerization, protein folding, and local order in intrinsically disordered proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Himal K Ganguly
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware 19716, United States
| | - Brice A Ludwig
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware 19716, United States
| | - Caitlin M Tressler
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware 19716, United States
| | - Megh R Bhatt
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware 19716, United States
| | - Anil K Pandey
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware 19716, United States
| | - Caitlin M Quinn
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware 19716, United States
| | - Shi Bai
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware 19716, United States
| | - Glenn P A Yap
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware 19716, United States
| | - Neal J Zondlo
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware 19716, United States
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9
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Choi B, Acuña A, Link AJ. Cyclic Peptides from Graspetide Biosynthesis and Native Chemical Ligation. J Am Chem Soc 2024; 146:11605-11609. [PMID: 38634647 PMCID: PMC11064158 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.4c02745] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/19/2024]
Abstract
The ribosomally synthesized and post-translationally modified peptide (RiPP) superfamily of natural products includes many examples of cyclic peptides with diverse macrocyclization chemistries. The graspetides, one family of macrocyclized RiPPs, harbor side chain-side chain ester or amide linkages. We recently reported the structure and biosynthesis of the graspetide pre-fuscimiditide, a 22-amino-acid (aa) peptide with two ester cross-links forming a stem-loop structure. These cross-links are introduced by a single graspetide synthetase, the ATP-grasp enzyme ThfB. Here we show that ThfB can also catalyze the formation of amide or thioester cross-links in prefuscimiditide, with thioester formation being especially efficient. We further show that upon proteolysis to reveal an N-terminal cysteine residue, the thioester-linked peptide rapidly and quantitatively rearranges via native chemical ligation into an isopeptide-bonded head-to-tail cyclic peptide. The solution structure of this rearranged peptide was determined by using 2D NMR spectroscopy experiments. Our methodology offers a straightforward recombinant route to head-to-tail cyclic peptides.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brian Choi
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, 08544, United States
| | - Arthur Acuña
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, 08544, United States
| | - A. James Link
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, 08544, United States
- Department of Chemistry, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, 08544, United States
- Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, 08544, United States
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10
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Balana AT, Mahul-Mellier AL, Nguyen BA, Horvath M, Javed A, Hard ER, Jasiqi Y, Singh P, Afrin S, Pedretti R, Singh V, Lee VMY, Luk KC, Saelices L, Lashuel HA, Pratt MR. O-GlcNAc forces an α-synuclein amyloid strain with notably diminished seeding and pathology. Nat Chem Biol 2024; 20:646-655. [PMID: 38347213 PMCID: PMC11062923 DOI: 10.1038/s41589-024-01551-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2023] [Accepted: 01/12/2024] [Indexed: 02/15/2024]
Abstract
Amyloid-forming proteins such α-synuclein and tau, which are implicated in Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease, can form different fibril structures or strains with distinct toxic properties, seeding activities and pathology. Understanding the determinants contributing to the formation of different amyloid features could open new avenues for developing disease-specific diagnostics and therapies. Here we report that O-GlcNAc modification of α-synuclein monomers results in the formation of amyloid fibril with distinct core structure, as revealed by cryogenic electron microscopy, and diminished seeding activity in seeding-based neuronal and rodent models of Parkinson's disease. Although the mechanisms underpinning the seeding neutralization activity of the O-GlcNAc-modified fibrils remain unclear, our in vitro mechanistic studies indicate that heat shock proteins interactions with O-GlcNAc fibril inhibit their seeding activity, suggesting that the O-GlcNAc modification may alter the interactome of the α-synuclein fibrils in ways that lead to reduce seeding activity in vivo. Our results show that posttranslational modifications, such as O-GlcNAc modification, of α-synuclein are key determinants of α-synuclein amyloid strains and pathogenicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aaron T Balana
- Department of Chemistry, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Anne-Laure Mahul-Mellier
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Institute of Bioengineering, School of Life Sciences, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Binh A Nguyen
- Center for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, Department of Biophysics, Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Mian Horvath
- The Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Institute on Aging and Center for Neurodegenerative Disease Research, the Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Afraah Javed
- Department of Chemistry, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Eldon R Hard
- Department of Chemistry, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Yllza Jasiqi
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Institute of Bioengineering, School of Life Sciences, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Preeti Singh
- Center for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, Department of Biophysics, Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Shumaila Afrin
- Center for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, Department of Biophysics, Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Rose Pedretti
- Center for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, Department of Biophysics, Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Virender Singh
- Center for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, Department of Biophysics, Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Virginia M-Y Lee
- The Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Institute on Aging and Center for Neurodegenerative Disease Research, the Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Kelvin C Luk
- The Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Institute on Aging and Center for Neurodegenerative Disease Research, the Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Lorena Saelices
- Center for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases, Department of Biophysics, Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Hilal A Lashuel
- Laboratory of Molecular and Chemical Biology of Neurodegeneration, Institute of Bioengineering, School of Life Sciences, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.
| | - Matthew R Pratt
- Department of Chemistry, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
- Department Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
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11
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Guo M, Lei Y, Zhao K, Guo L, Dang B. A single backbone amide modification method to achieve single site-specific chemical protein conjugation. Methods Enzymol 2024; 698:57-88. [PMID: 38886040 DOI: 10.1016/bs.mie.2024.04.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/20/2024]
Abstract
Efficient and precise chemical protein modification methods are highly sought after in biotechnology. However, chemically distinguishing a single site within a large protein is challenging. This study introduces a Copper Assisted Sequence-specific Conjugation Tag (CAST) method, enabling rapid (second order rate 8.1 M-1s-1) and site-specific chemical modification of the protein backbone with pinpoint accuracy. The versatility of this method is demonstrated through the preparation of antibody-drug conjugates, showcasing high plasma stability and potent efficacy in both in vitro and in vivo settings. Thus, CAST emerges as an efficient and quantitative approach for attaching payloads to large, native proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengzhun Guo
- Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, P.R. China; Research Center for Industries of the Future and Key Laboratory of Structural Biology of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, P.R. China; Institute of Biology, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, P.R. China
| | - Yingjie Lei
- Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, P.R. China; Research Center for Industries of the Future and Key Laboratory of Structural Biology of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, P.R. China; Institute of Biology, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, P.R. China
| | - Kai Zhao
- Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, P.R. China; Research Center for Industries of the Future and Key Laboratory of Structural Biology of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, P.R. China; Institute of Biology, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, P.R. China
| | - Liang Guo
- Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, P.R. China; Research Center for Industries of the Future and Key Laboratory of Structural Biology of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, P.R. China; Institute of Biology, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, P.R. China
| | - Bobo Dang
- Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, P.R. China; Research Center for Industries of the Future and Key Laboratory of Structural Biology of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, P.R. China; Institute of Biology, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, P.R. China.
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12
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Bachelart T, Kumar S, Jouin A, Yousef M, Kieffer B, Torbeev V. Design, Synthesis and Catalytic Activity of Protein Containing Thiotyrosine as an Active Site Residue. Chembiochem 2024:e202400148. [PMID: 38629812 DOI: 10.1002/cbic.202400148] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2024] [Revised: 04/16/2024] [Indexed: 06/05/2024]
Abstract
Native chemical ligation is a key reaction in the toolbox of chemical methods for the synthesis of native and modified proteins. The catalysis of ligation is commonly performed by using small aryl-thiol molecules added at high concentrations. In this work, we incorporated thiotyrosine, a non-canonical amino acid containing an aryl-thiol moiety, into a designed cyclic protein « sans queue ni tête ». Importantly, the protein environment reduced the pKa of the thiol group to 5.8-5.9, which is significantly lower than the previously reported value for thiotyrosine in a short peptide (pKa 6.4). Furthermore, we demonstrated the catalytic activity of this protein both as hydrolase and in native chemical ligation of peptides. These results will be useful for the development of efficient protein catalysts (enzymes) for protein synthesis and modification.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Bachelart
- École Supérieure de Biotechnologie de Strasbourg (ESBS), CNRS UMR 7242 Biotechnology and Cellular Signalling, University of Strasbourg, 67400, Illkirch, France
| | - Shailesh Kumar
- École Supérieure de Biotechnologie de Strasbourg (ESBS), CNRS UMR 7242 Biotechnology and Cellular Signalling, University of Strasbourg, 67400, Illkirch, France
| | - Alexis Jouin
- École Supérieure de Biotechnologie de Strasbourg (ESBS), CNRS UMR 7242 Biotechnology and Cellular Signalling, University of Strasbourg, 67400, Illkirch, France
| | - Mo'ath Yousef
- École Supérieure de Biotechnologie de Strasbourg (ESBS), CNRS UMR 7242 Biotechnology and Cellular Signalling, University of Strasbourg, 67400, Illkirch, France
| | - Bruno Kieffer
- Institut de Génétique et de Biologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire (IGBMC), CNRS UMR 7104, INSERM U 1258, University of Strasbourg, 67400, Illkirch, France
| | - Vladimir Torbeev
- École Supérieure de Biotechnologie de Strasbourg (ESBS), CNRS UMR 7242 Biotechnology and Cellular Signalling, University of Strasbourg, 67400, Illkirch, France
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13
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Hananya N, Koren S, Muir TW. Interrogating epigenetic mechanisms with chemically customized chromatin. Nat Rev Genet 2024; 25:255-271. [PMID: 37985791 PMCID: PMC11176933 DOI: 10.1038/s41576-023-00664-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 09/25/2023] [Indexed: 11/22/2023]
Abstract
Genetic and genomic techniques have proven incredibly powerful for identifying and studying molecular players implicated in the epigenetic regulation of DNA-templated processes such as transcription. However, achieving a mechanistic understanding of how these molecules interact with chromatin to elicit a functional output is non-trivial, owing to the tremendous complexity of the biochemical networks involved. Advances in protein engineering have enabled the reconstitution of 'designer' chromatin containing customized post-translational modification patterns, which, when used in conjunction with sophisticated biochemical and biophysical methods, allow many mechanistic questions to be addressed. In this Review, we discuss how such tools complement established 'omics' techniques to answer fundamental questions on chromatin regulation, focusing on chromatin mark establishment and protein-chromatin interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nir Hananya
- Department of Chemistry, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Shany Koren
- Department of Chemistry, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Tom W Muir
- Department of Chemistry, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA.
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14
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Volkova A, Semenyuk P. Tyrosine phosphorylation of recombinant hirudin increases affinity to thrombin and antithrombotic activity. Proteins 2024; 92:329-342. [PMID: 37860993 DOI: 10.1002/prot.26616] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2023] [Revised: 09/22/2023] [Accepted: 10/06/2023] [Indexed: 10/21/2023]
Abstract
Thrombin is one of the key enzymes of the blood coagulation system and a promising target for the development of anticoagulants. One of the most specific natural thrombin inhibitors is hirudin, contained in the salivary glands of medicinal leeches. The medicinal use of recombinant hirudin is limited because of the lack of sulfation on Tyr63, resulting in a 10-fold decrease in activity compared to native (sulfated) hirudin. In the present work, a set of hirudin derivatives was tested for affinity to thrombin: phospho-Tyr63, Tyr63(carboxymethyl)Phe, and Tyr63Glu mutants, which mimic Tyr63 sulfation and Gln65Glu mutant and lysine-succinylated hirudin, which enhance the overall negative charge of hirudin, as well as sulfo-hirudin and desulfo-hirudin as references. Using steered molecular dynamics simulations with subsequent umbrella sampling, phospho-hirudin was shown to exhibit the highest affinity to thrombin among all hirudin analogs, including native sulfo-hirudin; succinylated hirudin was also prospective. Phospho-hirudin exhibited the highest antithrombotic activity in in vitro assay in human plasma. Taking into account the modern methods for obtaining phospho-hirudin and succinylated hirudin, they are prospective as anticoagulants in clinical practice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alina Volkova
- Faculty of Bioengineering and Bioinformatics, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
| | - Pavel Semenyuk
- Belozersky Institute of Physico-Chemical Biology, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
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15
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Heath SL, Guseman AJ, Gronenborn AM, Horne WS. Probing effects of site-specific aspartic acid isomerization on structure and stability of GB1 through chemical protein synthesis. Protein Sci 2024; 33:e4883. [PMID: 38143426 PMCID: PMC10868458 DOI: 10.1002/pro.4883] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2023] [Revised: 12/18/2023] [Accepted: 12/20/2023] [Indexed: 12/26/2023]
Abstract
Chemical modifications of long-lived proteins, such as isomerization and epimerization, have been evoked as prime triggers for protein-damage related diseases. Deamidation of Asn residues, which results in formation of a mixture of l- and d-Asp and isoAsp via an intermediate aspartyl succinimide, can result in the disruption of cellular proteostasis and toxic protein depositions. In contrast to extensive data on the biological prevalence and functional implications of aspartyl succinimide formation, much less is known about the impact of the resulting altered backbone composition on properties of individual proteins at a molecular level. Here, we report the total chemical synthesis, biophysical characterization, and NMR structural analysis of a series of variants of the B1 domain of protein G from Streptococcal bacteria (GB1) in which all possible Asp isomers as well as an aspartyl succinimide were individually incorporated at a defined position in a solvent-exposed loop. Subtle local structural effects were observed; however, these were accompanied by notable differences in thermodynamic folded stability. Surprisingly, the noncanonical backbone connectivity of d-isoAsp led to a variant that exhibited enhanced stability relative to the natural protein.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shelby L. Heath
- Department of ChemistryUniversity of PittsburghPittsburghPennsylvaniaUSA
| | - Alex J. Guseman
- Department of Structural BiologyUniversity of Pittsburgh School of MedicinePittsburghPennsylvaniaUSA
| | - Angela M. Gronenborn
- Department of ChemistryUniversity of PittsburghPittsburghPennsylvaniaUSA
- Department of Structural BiologyUniversity of Pittsburgh School of MedicinePittsburghPennsylvaniaUSA
| | - W. Seth Horne
- Department of ChemistryUniversity of PittsburghPittsburghPennsylvaniaUSA
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16
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Moreno-Yruela C, Fierz B. Revealing chromatin-specific functions of histone deacylases. Biochem Soc Trans 2024; 52:353-365. [PMID: 38189424 DOI: 10.1042/bst20230693] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2023] [Revised: 12/21/2023] [Accepted: 12/22/2023] [Indexed: 01/09/2024]
Abstract
Histone deacylases are erasers of Nε-acyl-lysine post-translational modifications and have been targeted for decades for the treatment of cancer, neurodegeneration and other disorders. Due to their relatively promiscuous activity on peptide substrates in vitro, it has been challenging to determine the individual targets and substrate identification mechanisms of each isozyme, and they have been considered redundant regulators. In recent years, biochemical and biophysical studies have incorporated the use of reconstituted nucleosomes, which has revealed a diverse and complex arsenal of recognition mechanisms by which histone deacylases may differentiate themselves in vivo. In this review, we first present the peptide-based tools that have helped characterize histone deacylases in vitro to date, and we discuss the new insights that nucleosome tools are providing into their recognition of histone substrates within chromatin. Then, we summarize the powerful semi-synthetic approaches that are moving forward the study of chromatin-associated factors, both in vitro by detailed single-molecule mechanistic studies, and in cells by live chromatin modification. We finally offer our perspective on how these new techniques would advance the study of histone deacylases. We envision that such studies will help elucidate the role of individual isozymes in disease and provide a platform for the development of the next generation of therapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carlos Moreno-Yruela
- Laboratory of Biophysical Chemistry of Macromolecules (LCBM), Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering (ISIC), School of Basic Sciences, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
- Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology (ILF), Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Beat Fierz
- Laboratory of Biophysical Chemistry of Macromolecules (LCBM), Institute of Chemical Sciences and Engineering (ISIC), School of Basic Sciences, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
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17
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Ludwig BA, Forbes CR, Zondlo NJ. N-Terminal Proline Editing for the Synthesis of Peptides with Mercaptoproline and Selenoproline: Mechanistic Insights Lead to Greater Efficiency in Proline Native Chemical Ligation. ACS Chem Biol 2024; 19:536-550. [PMID: 38324914 DOI: 10.1021/acschembio.3c00705] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/09/2024]
Abstract
Native chemical ligation (NCL) at proline has been limited by cost and synthetic access. In addition, prior examples of NCL using mercaptoproline have exhibited stalling of the reaction after thioester exchange, due to inefficient S → N acyl transfer. Herein, we develop methods, using inexpensive Boc-4R-hydroxyproline, for the solid-phase synthesis of peptides containing N-terminal 4R-mercaptoproline and 4R-selenoproline. The synthesis proceeds via proline editing on the N-terminus of fully synthesized peptides on the solid phase, converting an N-terminal Boc-4R-hydroxyproline to the 4S-bromoproline, followed by an SN2 reaction with potassium thioacetate or selenobenzoic acid. After cleavage from the resin and deprotection, peptides with functionalized N-terminal proline amino acids were obtained. NCL reactions with mercaptoproline proceeded slowly under standard NCL conditions, with the S-acyl transthioesterification intermediate observed as a major species. Computational investigations indicated that the bicyclic intermediates and transition states for S → N acyl transfer are sufficiently low in energy (10-15 kcal mol-1 above starting material) that ring strain cannot explain the slow S → N acyl transfer. Instead, the bicyclic zwitterionic tetrahedral intermediate has a low barrier for reversion to the S-acyl intermediate, causing reversion to the thioester (reverse reaction) to occur preferentially over elimination to generate the amide (forward reaction). We hypothesized that a buffer capable of general acid and/or general base catalysis could promote S → N acyl transfer and thus achieve greater efficiency in proline NCL. In the presence of 2 M imidazole at pH 6.8, NCL with mercaptoproline proceeded efficiently to generate the peptide with a native amide bond. NCL with selenoproline also proceeded efficiently to generate the desired products when a thiophenol thioester was employed as a ligation partner. After desulfurization or deselenization, the products obtained were identical to those synthesized directly, confirming that the solid-phase proline editing reactions proceeded stereospecifically and without epimerization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brice A Ludwig
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware 19716, United States
| | - Christina R Forbes
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware 19716, United States
| | - Neal J Zondlo
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware 19716, United States
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18
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Vogl DP, Mateos B, Migotti M, Felkl M, Conibear AC, Konrat R, Becker CFW. Semisynthesis of segmentally isotope-labeled and site-specifically palmitoylated CD44 cytoplasmic tail. Bioorg Med Chem 2024; 100:117617. [PMID: 38306881 DOI: 10.1016/j.bmc.2024.117617] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2023] [Revised: 01/19/2024] [Accepted: 01/26/2024] [Indexed: 02/04/2024]
Abstract
CD44, a ubiquitously expressed transmembrane receptor, plays a crucial role in cell growth, migration, and tumor progression. Dimerization of CD44 is a key event in signal transduction and has emerged as a potential target for anti-tumor therapies. Palmitoylation, a posttranslational modification, disrupts CD44 dimerization and promotes CD44 accumulation in ordered membrane domains. However, the effects of palmitoylation on the structure and dynamics of CD44 at atomic resolution remain poorly understood. Here, we present a semisynthetic approach combining solid-phase peptide synthesis, recombinant expression, and native chemical ligation to investigate the impact of palmitoylation on the cytoplasmic domain (residues 669-742) of CD44 (CD44ct) by NMR spectroscopy. A segmentally isotope-labeled and site-specifically palmitoylated CD44 variant enabled NMR studies, which revealed chemical shift perturbations and indicated local and long-range conformational changes induced by palmitoylation. The long-range effects suggest altered intramolecular interactions and potential modulation of membrane association patterns. Semisynthetic, palmitoylated CD44ct serves as the basis for studying CD44 clustering, conformational changes, and localization within lipid rafts, and could be used to investigate its role as a tumor suppressor and to explore its therapeutic potential.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dominik P Vogl
- University of Vienna, Faculty of Chemistry, Institute of Biological Chemistry, Währinger Str. 38, 1090 Vienna, Austria; University of Vienna, Vienna Doctoral School in Chemistry (DoSChem), Währinger Str. 42, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Borja Mateos
- Max Perutz Laboratories, Vienna Biocenter Campus 5, 1030 Vienna, Austria
| | - Mario Migotti
- Max Perutz Laboratories, Vienna Biocenter Campus 5, 1030 Vienna, Austria; Vienna BioCenter PhD Program, Doctoral School of the University of Vienna and Medical University of Vienna, A-1030 Vienna, Austria
| | - Manuel Felkl
- University of Vienna, Faculty of Chemistry, Institute of Biological Chemistry, Währinger Str. 38, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Anne C Conibear
- TU Wien, Institute of Applied Synthetic Chemistry, Getreidemarkt 9, 1060 Vienna, Austria
| | - Robert Konrat
- Max Perutz Laboratories, Vienna Biocenter Campus 5, 1030 Vienna, Austria
| | - Christian F W Becker
- University of Vienna, Vienna Doctoral School in Chemistry (DoSChem), Währinger Str. 42, 1090 Vienna, Austria.
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19
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Peng J, Hughes GR, Müller MM, Seebeck FP. Enzymatic Fluoromethylation as a Tool for ATP-Independent Ligation. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2024; 63:e202312104. [PMID: 37955592 PMCID: PMC10952888 DOI: 10.1002/anie.202312104] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2023] [Revised: 11/06/2023] [Accepted: 11/09/2023] [Indexed: 11/14/2023]
Abstract
S-adenosylmethionine-dependent methyltransferases are involved in countless biological processes, including signal transduction, epigenetics, natural product biosynthesis, and detoxification. Only a handful of carboxylate methyltransferases have evolved to participate in amide bond formation. In this report we show that enzyme-catalyzed F-methylation of carboxylate substrates produces F-methyl esters that readily react with N- or S-nucleophiles under physiological conditions. We demonstrate the applicability of this approach to the synthesis of small amides, hydroxamates, and thioesters, as well as to site-specific protein modification and native chemical ligation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiaming Peng
- Department of ChemistryUniversity of BaselMattenstrasse 24a4002BaselSwitzerland
| | - Gregory R. Hughes
- Department of ChemistryKing's College LondonBritannia House7 Trinity StreetSE1 1DBLondonUK
| | - Manuel M. Müller
- Department of ChemistryKing's College LondonBritannia House7 Trinity StreetSE1 1DBLondonUK
| | - Florian P. Seebeck
- Department of ChemistryUniversity of BaselMattenstrasse 24a4002BaselSwitzerland
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20
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Peng J, Hughes GR, Müller MM, Seebeck FP. Enzymatic Fluoromethylation as a Tool for ATP-Independent Ligation. ANGEWANDTE CHEMIE (WEINHEIM AN DER BERGSTRASSE, GERMANY) 2024; 136:e202312104. [PMID: 38516647 PMCID: PMC10952241 DOI: 10.1002/ange.202312104] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2023] [Indexed: 03/23/2024]
Abstract
S-adenosylmethionine-dependent methyltransferases are involved in countless biological processes, including signal transduction, epigenetics, natural product biosynthesis, and detoxification. Only a handful of carboxylate methyltransferases have evolved to participate in amide bond formation. In this report we show that enzyme-catalyzed F-methylation of carboxylate substrates produces F-methyl esters that readily react with N- or S-nucleophiles under physiological conditions. We demonstrate the applicability of this approach to the synthesis of small amides, hydroxamates, and thioesters, as well as to site-specific protein modification and native chemical ligation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiaming Peng
- Department of ChemistryUniversity of BaselMattenstrasse 24a4002BaselSwitzerland
| | - Gregory R. Hughes
- Department of ChemistryKing's College LondonBritannia House7 Trinity StreetSE1 1DBLondonUK
| | - Manuel M. Müller
- Department of ChemistryKing's College LondonBritannia House7 Trinity StreetSE1 1DBLondonUK
| | - Florian P. Seebeck
- Department of ChemistryUniversity of BaselMattenstrasse 24a4002BaselSwitzerland
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21
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Liu G, Gao F, Yang X, Zhang J, Yang S, Li Y, Liu L. Aggregation-induced emission for the detection of peptide ligases with improving ligation efficiency. Anal Chim Acta 2023; 1284:341994. [PMID: 37996157 DOI: 10.1016/j.aca.2023.341994] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2023] [Revised: 10/26/2023] [Accepted: 11/01/2023] [Indexed: 11/25/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Monitoring peptide ligase activity is of great significance for biological research, medical diagnosis, and drug discovery. The current methods for the detection of peptide ligases suffer from the limitations of high background signal, elaborate design of substrate, and high reversibility of ligation reaction. In this work, we proposed a simple and sensitive method for ligase detection with reducing ligation reversibility on the basis of aggregation-induced emission (AIE) mechanism. RESULTS The peptide probes labeled with AIE luminogens (AIEgens) were water-soluble and emitted weak fluorescence. After ligation reaction, the enzymatic products with AIEgens showed high hydrophobicity and could readily assembly into aggregates, thus lighting up the fluorescence. More interestingly, the formation of aggregates pushed the equilibrium to the generation of the desired ligation products, thus improving the catalytic efficiency by driving the reaction towards completion. The ligation reaction conversion rate (>80 %) is significantly higher than that without blocking the reversibility with additional treatment. With sortase A (SrtA) as the analyte example, the detection limit of this method was found to be 0.01 nM with a linear range of 0-50 nM. The system was applied to evaluate the inhibition efficiency of berberine chloride and quercetin and determine the activity of SrtA in serum, lysate and Staphylococcus aureus with satisfactory results. SIGNIFICANCE This study indicated that the ligation efficiency and detection sensitivity can be improved by reducing ligation reversibility through AIE phenomenon. The proposed strategy could be used for the detection of other peptide ligases by adopting sequence-specific peptide substrates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gang Liu
- College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Anyang Normal University, Anyang, Henan, 455000, PR China; College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Henan University of Technology, Zhengzhou, Henan, 450001, PR China
| | - Fengli Gao
- College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Anyang Normal University, Anyang, Henan, 455000, PR China
| | - Xiupei Yang
- College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Anyang Normal University, Anyang, Henan, 455000, PR China
| | - Jingyi Zhang
- College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Anyang Normal University, Anyang, Henan, 455000, PR China
| | - Suling Yang
- College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Anyang Normal University, Anyang, Henan, 455000, PR China
| | - Yuanyuan Li
- College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Henan University of Technology, Zhengzhou, Henan, 450001, PR China.
| | - Lin Liu
- College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Anyang Normal University, Anyang, Henan, 455000, PR China.
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22
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Guo M, Zhao K, Guo L, Zhou R, He Q, Lu K, Li T, Liu D, Chen J, Tang J, Fu X, Zhou J, Zheng B, Mann SI, Zhang Y, Huang J, Yang B, Zhou T, Lei Y, Dang B. Copper assisted sequence-specific chemical protein conjugation at a single backbone amide. Nat Commun 2023; 14:8063. [PMID: 38052794 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-43753-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2023] [Accepted: 11/17/2023] [Indexed: 12/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Direct, site-specific methods of protein functionalization are highly desirable for biotechnology. However, such methods are challenging due to the difficulty of chemically differentiating a single site within a large protein. Herein, we propose "metal binding targeting" strategy and develop a Copper Assisted Sequence-specific conjugation Tag (CAST) method to achieve rapid (second order rate 8.1 M-1 s-1), site-specific protein backbone chemical modification with pinpoint accuracy. We demonstrate the versatility of CAST conjugation by preparing various on-demand modified recombinant proteins, including a homogeneous antibody-drug conjugate with high plasma stability and potent efficacy in vitro and in vivo. Thus, CAST provides an efficient and quantitative method to site-specifically attach payloads on large, native proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengzhun Guo
- Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Research Center for Industries of the Future and Key Laboratory of Structural Biology of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Institute of Biology, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Kai Zhao
- Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Research Center for Industries of the Future and Key Laboratory of Structural Biology of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Institute of Biology, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Liang Guo
- Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Research Center for Industries of the Future and Key Laboratory of Structural Biology of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Institute of Biology, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Rui Zhou
- Department of Nuclear Medicine and Positron Emission Tomography Center, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
| | - Qiuju He
- Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Research Center for Industries of the Future and Key Laboratory of Structural Biology of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Institute of Biology, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Kuan Lu
- Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Research Center for Industries of the Future and Key Laboratory of Structural Biology of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Institute of Biology, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Tian Li
- Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Research Center for Industries of the Future and Key Laboratory of Structural Biology of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Institute of Biology, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Dandan Liu
- Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory for Cancer Molecular Cell Biology, Life Sciences Institute, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Jinfeng Chen
- Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Research Center for Industries of the Future and Key Laboratory of Structural Biology of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Institute of Biology, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Jing Tang
- Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Research Center for Industries of the Future and Key Laboratory of Structural Biology of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Institute of Biology, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Xin Fu
- Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Research Center for Industries of the Future and Key Laboratory of Structural Biology of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Institute of Biology, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Jinyun Zhou
- Department of Nuclear Medicine and Positron Emission Tomography Center, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
| | - Bei Zheng
- Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Research Center for Industries of the Future and Key Laboratory of Structural Biology of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Institute of Biology, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Samuel I Mann
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry and the Cardiovascular Research Institute, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, 94158, USA
| | - Yongdeng Zhang
- Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Research Center for Industries of the Future and Key Laboratory of Structural Biology of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Institute of Biology, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Jing Huang
- Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Research Center for Industries of the Future and Key Laboratory of Structural Biology of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Institute of Biology, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Bing Yang
- Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory for Cancer Molecular Cell Biology, Life Sciences Institute, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Ting Zhou
- Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
- Research Center for Industries of the Future and Key Laboratory of Structural Biology of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
- Institute of Biology, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
| | - Yingjie Lei
- Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
- Research Center for Industries of the Future and Key Laboratory of Structural Biology of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
- Institute of Biology, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
| | - Bobo Dang
- Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
- Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
- Research Center for Industries of the Future and Key Laboratory of Structural Biology of Zhejiang Province, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
- Institute of Biology, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
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23
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Pratt MR, Vocadlo DJ. Understanding and exploiting the roles of O-GlcNAc in neurodegenerative diseases. J Biol Chem 2023; 299:105411. [PMID: 37918804 PMCID: PMC10687168 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2023.105411] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2023] [Revised: 10/18/2023] [Accepted: 10/23/2023] [Indexed: 11/04/2023] Open
Abstract
O-GlcNAc is a common modification found on nuclear and cytoplasmic proteins. Determining the catalytic mechanism of the enzyme O-GlcNAcase (OGA), which removes O-GlcNAc from proteins, enabled the creation of potent and selective inhibitors of this regulatory enzyme. Such inhibitors have served as important tools in helping to uncover the cellular and organismal physiological roles of this modification. In addition, OGA inhibitors have been important for defining the augmentation of O-GlcNAc as a promising disease-modifying approach to combat several neurodegenerative diseases including both Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease. These studies have led to development and optimization of OGA inhibitors for clinical application. These compounds have been shown to be well tolerated in early clinical studies and are steadily advancing into the clinic. Despite these advances, the mechanisms by which O-GlcNAc protects against these various types of neurodegeneration are a topic of continuing interest since improved insight may enable the creation of more targeted strategies to modulate O-GlcNAc for therapeutic benefit. Relevant pathways on which O-GlcNAc has been found to exert beneficial effects include autophagy, necroptosis, and processing of the amyloid precursor protein. More recently, the development and application of chemical methods enabling the synthesis of homogenous proteins have clarified the biochemical effects of O-GlcNAc on protein aggregation and uncovered new roles for O-GlcNAc in heat shock response. Here, we discuss the features of O-GlcNAc in neurodegenerative diseases, the application of inhibitors to identify the roles of this modification, and the biochemical effects of O-GlcNAc on proteins and pathways associated with neurodegeneration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew R Pratt
- Department of Chemistry and Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, USA.
| | - David J Vocadlo
- Department of Chemistry, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada; Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada.
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24
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Okamoto R, Shibata H, Yatsuzuka T, Hanao T, Maki Y, Kabayama K, Miura A, Fukase K, Kajihara Y. Convergent synthesis of proteins using peptide-aminothiazoline. Chem Commun (Camb) 2023; 59:13510-13513. [PMID: 37885305 DOI: 10.1039/d3cc04387h] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/28/2023]
Abstract
Sequential peptide coupling plays a central role in chemical protein synthesis. This paper describes a new peptide derivative, peptide-aminothiazoline (At), whereof the C-terminus is functionalized with 2-aminothiazoline. Peptide-At streamlined the sequential peptide ligation in a one-pot manner and demonstrated the convergent synthesis of a circular protein and homogeneous glycoproteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryo Okamoto
- Department of Chemistry, Graduate School of Science, Osaka University, 1-1, Machikaneyama, Toyonaka, Osaka 560-0043, Japan
- Forefront Research Center, Osaka University, 1-1, Machikaneyama, Toyonaka, Osaka 560-0043, Japan
| | - Hiroyuki Shibata
- Department of Chemistry, Graduate School of Science, Osaka University, 1-1, Machikaneyama, Toyonaka, Osaka 560-0043, Japan
| | - Takahiro Yatsuzuka
- Department of Chemistry, Graduate School of Science, Osaka University, 1-1, Machikaneyama, Toyonaka, Osaka 560-0043, Japan
| | - Takuya Hanao
- Department of Chemistry, Graduate School of Science, Osaka University, 1-1, Machikaneyama, Toyonaka, Osaka 560-0043, Japan
| | - Yuta Maki
- Department of Chemistry, Graduate School of Science, Osaka University, 1-1, Machikaneyama, Toyonaka, Osaka 560-0043, Japan
- Forefront Research Center, Osaka University, 1-1, Machikaneyama, Toyonaka, Osaka 560-0043, Japan
| | - Kazuya Kabayama
- Department of Chemistry, Graduate School of Science, Osaka University, 1-1, Machikaneyama, Toyonaka, Osaka 560-0043, Japan
- Forefront Research Center, Osaka University, 1-1, Machikaneyama, Toyonaka, Osaka 560-0043, Japan
| | - Ayane Miura
- Department of Chemistry, Graduate School of Science, Osaka University, 1-1, Machikaneyama, Toyonaka, Osaka 560-0043, Japan
| | - Koichi Fukase
- Department of Chemistry, Graduate School of Science, Osaka University, 1-1, Machikaneyama, Toyonaka, Osaka 560-0043, Japan
- Forefront Research Center, Osaka University, 1-1, Machikaneyama, Toyonaka, Osaka 560-0043, Japan
- Center for Advanced Modalities and DDS, Osaka University, 1-1, Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka 565-0871, Japan
| | - Yasuhiro Kajihara
- Department of Chemistry, Graduate School of Science, Osaka University, 1-1, Machikaneyama, Toyonaka, Osaka 560-0043, Japan
- Forefront Research Center, Osaka University, 1-1, Machikaneyama, Toyonaka, Osaka 560-0043, Japan
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25
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Zeng Y, Shi W, Liu Z, Xu H, Liu L, Hang J, Wang Y, Lu M, Zhou W, Huang W, Tang F. C-terminal modification and functionalization of proteins via a self-cleavage tag triggered by a small molecule. Nat Commun 2023; 14:7169. [PMID: 37935692 PMCID: PMC10630284 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-42977-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2023] [Accepted: 10/24/2023] [Indexed: 11/09/2023] Open
Abstract
The precise modification or functionalization of the protein C-terminus is essential but full of challenges. Herein, a chemical approach to modify the C-terminus is developed by fusing a cysteine protease domain on the C-terminus of the protein of interest, which could achieve the non-enzymatic C-terminal functionalization by InsP6-triggered cysteine protease domain self-cleavage. This method demonstrates a highly efficient way to achieve protein C-terminal functionalization and is compatible with a wide range of amine-containing molecules and proteins. Additionally, a reversible C-terminal de-functionalization is found by incubating the C-terminal modified proteins with cysteine protease domain and InsP6, providing a tool for protein functionalization and de-functionalization. Last, various applications of protein C-terminal functionalization are provided in this work, as demonstrated by the site-specific assembly of nanobody drug conjugates, the construction of a bifunctional antibody, the C-terminal fluorescent labeling, and the C-terminal transpeptidation and glycosylation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yue Zeng
- State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Center for Biotherapeutics Discovery Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, No.555 Zuchongzhi Rd, Pudong, Shanghai, 201203, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, No.19A Yuquan Road, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Wei Shi
- State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Center for Biotherapeutics Discovery Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, No.555 Zuchongzhi Rd, Pudong, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Zhi Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Center for Biotherapeutics Discovery Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, No.555 Zuchongzhi Rd, Pudong, Shanghai, 201203, China
- School of Chinese Materia Medica, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, No. 138 Xianlin Rd, Nanjing, 210023, China
| | - Hao Xu
- School of Chinese Materia Medica, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, No. 138 Xianlin Rd, Nanjing, 210023, China
| | - Liya Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Center for Biotherapeutics Discovery Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, No.555 Zuchongzhi Rd, Pudong, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Jiaying Hang
- State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Center for Biotherapeutics Discovery Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, No.555 Zuchongzhi Rd, Pudong, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Yongqin Wang
- School of Pharmaceutical Science and Technology, Hangzhou Institute of Advanced Study, Hangzhou, 310024, China
| | - Mengru Lu
- School of Pharmaceutical Science and Technology, Hangzhou Institute of Advanced Study, Hangzhou, 310024, China
| | - Wei Zhou
- School of Pharmaceutical Science and Technology, Hangzhou Institute of Advanced Study, Hangzhou, 310024, China
| | - Wei Huang
- State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Center for Biotherapeutics Discovery Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, No.555 Zuchongzhi Rd, Pudong, Shanghai, 201203, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, No.19A Yuquan Road, Beijing, 100049, China
- School of Chinese Materia Medica, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, No. 138 Xianlin Rd, Nanjing, 210023, China
- School of Pharmaceutical Science and Technology, Hangzhou Institute of Advanced Study, Hangzhou, 310024, China
| | - Feng Tang
- State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Center for Biotherapeutics Discovery Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Chinese Academy of Sciences, No.555 Zuchongzhi Rd, Pudong, Shanghai, 201203, China.
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, No.19A Yuquan Road, Beijing, 100049, China.
- School of Pharmaceutical Science and Technology, Hangzhou Institute of Advanced Study, Hangzhou, 310024, China.
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26
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Ding W, Zhao H, Chen Y, Lin S. New Strategies for Probing the Biological Functions of Protein Post-translational Modifications in Mammalian Cells with Genetic Code Expansion. Acc Chem Res 2023; 56:2827-2837. [PMID: 37793174 DOI: 10.1021/acs.accounts.3c00460] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/06/2023]
Abstract
Protein post-translational modification (PTM) is a major mechanism for functional diversification of the human genome and plays a crucial role in almost every aspect of cellular processes, and the dysregulation of the protein PTM network has been associated with a variety of human diseases. Using high-resolution mass spectrometry, protein PTMs can be efficiently discovered and profiled under various biological and physiological conditions. However, it is often challenging to address the biological function of PTMs with biochemical and mutagenesis-based approaches. Specifically, this field lacks methods that allow gain-of-function studies of protein PTMs to understand their functional consequences in living cells. In this context, the genetic code expansion (GCE) strategy has made tremendous progress in the direct installation of PTMs and their analogs in the form of noncanonical amino acids (ncAAs) for gain-of-function investigations.In addition to studying the biological functions of known protein PTMs, the discovery of new protein PTMs is even more challenging due to the lack of chemical information for designing specific enrichment methods. Genetically encoded ncAAs in the proteome can be used as specific baits to enrich and subsequently identify new PTMs by mass spectrometry.In this Account, we discuss recent developments in the investigation of the biological functions of protein PTMs and the discovery of protein PTMs using new GCE strategies. First, we leveraged a chimeric design to construct several broadly orthogonal translation systems (OTSs). These broad OTSs can be engineered to efficiently incorporate different ncAAs in both E. coli and mammalian cells. With these broad OTSs, we accomplish the following: (1) We develop a computer-aided strategy for the design and genetic incorporation of length-tunable lipidation mimics. These lipidation mimics can fully recapitulate the biochemical properties of natural lipidation in membrane association for probing its biological functions on signaling proteins and in albumin binding for designing long-acting protein drugs. (2) We demonstrate that the binding affinity between histone methylations and their corresponding readers can be substantially increased with genetically encoded electron-rich Trp derivatives. These engineered affinity-enhanced readers can be applied to enrich, image, and profile the interactome of chromatin methylations. (3) We report the identification and verification of a novel type of protein PTM, aminoacylated lysine ubiquitination, using genetically encoded PTM ncAAs as chemical probes. This approach provides a general strategy for the identification of unknown PTMs by increasing the abundance of PTM bait probes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenlong Ding
- Department of Medical Oncology, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou 310058, China
- Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory for Cancer Molecular Cell Biology, Life Sciences Institute, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
| | - Hongxia Zhao
- Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory for Cancer Molecular Cell Biology, Life Sciences Institute, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
| | - Yulin Chen
- Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory for Cancer Molecular Cell Biology, Life Sciences Institute, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
- Shaoxing Institute, Zhejiang University, Shaoxing 321000, China
| | - Shixian Lin
- Department of Medical Oncology, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou 310058, China
- Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory for Cancer Molecular Cell Biology, Life Sciences Institute, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
- Shaoxing Institute, Zhejiang University, Shaoxing 321000, China
- Cancer Center, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
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27
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Abstract
Deposits of the microtubule-associated protein Tau (MAPT) serve as a hallmark of neurodegenerative diseases known as tauopathies. Numerous studies have demonstrated that in diseases such as Alzheimer's disease (AD), Tau undergoes extensive remodeling. The attachment of post-translational modifications distributed throughout the entire sequence of the protein correlates with clinical presentation. A systematic examination of these protein alterations can shed light on their roles in both healthy and diseased states. However, the ability to access these modifications in the entire protein chain is limited as Tau can only be produced recombinantly or through semisynthesis. In this article, we describe the first chemical synthesis of the longest 2N4R isoform of Tau, consisting of 441 amino acids. The 2N4R Tau was divided into 3 major segments and a total of 11 fragments, all of which were prepared via solid-phase peptide synthesis. The successful chemical strategy has relied on the strategic use of two cysteine sites (C291 and C322) for the native chemical ligations (NCLs). This was combined with modern preparative protein chemistries, such as mercaptothreonine ligation (T205), diselenide-selenoester ligation (D358), and mutations of mercaptoamino acids into native residues via homogeneous radical desulfurization (A40, A77, A119, A157, A246, and A390). The successful completion of the synthesis has established a robust and scalable route to the native protein in multimilligram quantities and high purity. In broader terms, the presented strategy can be applied to the preparation of other shorter isoforms of Tau as well as to introduce all post-translational modifications that are characteristic of tauopathies such as AD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wyatt C Powell
- Department of Chemistry, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
| | - Ruiheng Jing
- Department of Chemistry, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
| | - Maciej A Walczak
- Department of Chemistry, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States
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28
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Wei T, Liu J, Li C, Tan Y, Wei R, Wang J, Wu H, Li Q, Liu H, Tang Y, Li X. Revealing the extracellular function of HMGB1 N-terminal region acetylation assisted by a protein semi-synthesis approach. Chem Sci 2023; 14:10297-10307. [PMID: 37772093 PMCID: PMC10530822 DOI: 10.1039/d3sc01109g] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2023] [Accepted: 09/05/2023] [Indexed: 09/30/2023] Open
Abstract
HMGB1 (high-mobility group box 1) is a non-histone chromatin-associated protein that has been widely reported as a representative damage-associated molecular pattern (DAMP) and to play a pivotal role in the proinflammatory process once it is in an extracellular location. Accumulating evidence has shown that HMGB1 undergoes extensive post-translational modifications (PTMs) that actively regulate its conformation, localization, and intermolecular interactions. However, fully characterizing the functional implications of these PTMs has been challenging due to the difficulty in accessing homogeneous HMGB1 with site-specific PTMs of interest. In this study, we developed a streamlined protein semi-synthesis strategy via salicylaldehyde ester-mediated chemical ligations (Ser/Thr ligation and Cys/Pen ligation, STL/CPL). This methodology enabled us to generate a series of N-terminal region acetylated HMGB1 proteins. Further studies revealed that acetylation regulates HMGB1-heparin interaction and modulates HMGB1's stability against thrombin, representing a regulatory switch to control HMGB1's extracellular activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tongyao Wei
- Department of Chemistry, State Key Lab of Synthetic Chemistry, The University of Hong Kong Pokfulam Road Hong Kong SAR P. R. China
| | - Jiamei Liu
- Department of Chemistry, State Key Lab of Synthetic Chemistry, The University of Hong Kong Pokfulam Road Hong Kong SAR P. R. China
| | - Can Li
- Department of Chemistry, State Key Lab of Synthetic Chemistry, The University of Hong Kong Pokfulam Road Hong Kong SAR P. R. China
| | - Yi Tan
- Department of Chemistry, State Key Lab of Synthetic Chemistry, The University of Hong Kong Pokfulam Road Hong Kong SAR P. R. China
| | - Ruohan Wei
- Department of Chemistry, State Key Lab of Synthetic Chemistry, The University of Hong Kong Pokfulam Road Hong Kong SAR P. R. China
| | - Jinzheng Wang
- Department of Chemistry, State Key Lab of Synthetic Chemistry, The University of Hong Kong Pokfulam Road Hong Kong SAR P. R. China
| | - Hongxiang Wu
- Department of Chemistry, State Key Lab of Synthetic Chemistry, The University of Hong Kong Pokfulam Road Hong Kong SAR P. R. China
| | - Qingrong Li
- Department of Chemistry, State Key Lab of Synthetic Chemistry, The University of Hong Kong Pokfulam Road Hong Kong SAR P. R. China
| | - Heng Liu
- Department of Chemistry, State Key Lab of Synthetic Chemistry, The University of Hong Kong Pokfulam Road Hong Kong SAR P. R. China
| | - Yubo Tang
- Department of Chemistry, State Key Lab of Synthetic Chemistry, The University of Hong Kong Pokfulam Road Hong Kong SAR P. R. China
| | - Xuechen Li
- Department of Chemistry, State Key Lab of Synthetic Chemistry, The University of Hong Kong Pokfulam Road Hong Kong SAR P. R. China
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29
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Moon S, Wang B, Ahn BS, Ryu AH, Hard ER, Javed A, Pratt MR. O-GlcNAc Modification Alters the Chaperone Activity of HSP27 Charcot-Marie-Tooth Type 2 (CMT2) Variants in a Mutation-Selective Fashion. ACS Chem Biol 2023; 18:1705-1712. [PMID: 37540114 PMCID: PMC10442854 DOI: 10.1021/acschembio.3c00292] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2023] [Accepted: 07/31/2023] [Indexed: 08/05/2023]
Abstract
Increased O-GlcNAc is a common feature of cellular stress, and the upregulation of this dynamic modification is associated with improved survival under these conditions. Likewise, the heat shock proteins are also increased under stress and prevent protein misfolding and aggregation. We previously linked these two phenomena by demonstrating that O-GlcNAc directly increases the chaperone of certain small heat shock proteins, including HSP27. Here, we examine this linkage further by exploring the potential function of O-GlcNAc on mutants of HSP27 that cause a heritable neuropathy called Charcot-Marie-Tooth type 2 (CMT2) disease. Using synthetic protein chemistry, we prepared five of these mutants bearing an O-GlcNAc at the major site of modification. Upon subsequent biochemical analysis of these proteins, we found that O-GlcNAc has different effects, depending on the location of the individual mutants. We believe that this has important implications for O-GlcNAc and other PTMs in the context of polymorphisms or diseases with high levels of protein mutation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stuart
P. Moon
- Departments
of Chemistry and Biological Sciences, University of Southern
California, Los Angeles, California 90089, United States
| | - Binyou Wang
- Departments
of Chemistry and Biological Sciences, University of Southern
California, Los Angeles, California 90089, United States
| | - Benjamin S. Ahn
- Departments
of Chemistry and Biological Sciences, University of Southern
California, Los Angeles, California 90089, United States
| | - Andrew H. Ryu
- Departments
of Chemistry and Biological Sciences, University of Southern
California, Los Angeles, California 90089, United States
| | - Eldon R. Hard
- Departments
of Chemistry and Biological Sciences, University of Southern
California, Los Angeles, California 90089, United States
| | - Afraah Javed
- Departments
of Chemistry and Biological Sciences, University of Southern
California, Los Angeles, California 90089, United States
| | - Matthew R. Pratt
- Departments
of Chemistry and Biological Sciences, University of Southern
California, Los Angeles, California 90089, United States
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30
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Hong ZZ, Yu RR, Zhang X, Webb AM, Burge NL, Poirier MG, Ottesen JJ. Development of Convergent Hybrid Phase Ligation for Efficient and Convenient Total Synthesis of Proteins. Pept Sci (Hoboken) 2023; 115:e24323. [PMID: 37692919 PMCID: PMC10488053 DOI: 10.1002/pep2.24323] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2023] [Accepted: 05/16/2023] [Indexed: 09/12/2023]
Abstract
Simple and efficient total synthesis of homogeneous and chemically modified protein samples remains a significant challenge. Here, we report development of a convergent hybrid phase native chemical ligation (CHP-NCL) strategy for facile preparation of proteins. In this strategy, proteins are split into ~100-residue blocks, and each block is assembled on solid support from synthetically accessible peptide fragments before ligated together into full-length protein in solution. With the new method, we increase the yield of CENP-A synthesis by 2.5-fold compared to the previous hybrid phase ligation approach. We further extend the new strategy to the total chemical synthesis of 212-residue linker histone H1.2 in unmodified, phosphorylated, and citrullinated forms, each from eight peptide segments with only one single purification. We demonstrate that fully synthetic H1.2 replicates the binding interactions of linker histones to intact mononucleosomes, as a proxy for the essential function of linker histones in the formation and regulation of higher order chromatin structure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ziyong Z. Hong
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, 43210
| | - Ruixuan R. Yu
- Ohio State Biochemistry Graduate Program, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, 43210
| | - Xiaoyu Zhang
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, 43210
| | - Allison M. Webb
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, 43210
| | - Nathaniel L. Burge
- Ohio State Biochemistry Graduate Program, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, 43210
| | - Michael G. Poirier
- Ohio State Biochemistry Graduate Program, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, 43210
- Department of Physics, Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, 43210
| | - Jennifer J. Ottesen
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, 43210
- Ohio State Biochemistry Graduate Program, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, 43210
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31
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Pan B, Gardner SM, Schultz K, Perez RM, Deng S, Shimogawa M, Sato K, Rhoades E, Marmorstein R, Petersson EJ. Semi-Synthetic CoA-α-Synuclein Constructs Trap N-Terminal Acetyltransferase NatB for Binding Mechanism Studies. J Am Chem Soc 2023; 145:14019-14030. [PMID: 37319422 PMCID: PMC10728591 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.3c03887] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
N-terminal acetylation is a chemical modification carried out by N-terminal acetyltransferases. A major member of this enzyme family, NatB, acts on much of the human proteome, including α-synuclein (αS), a synaptic protein that mediates vesicle trafficking. NatB acetylation of αS modulates its lipid vesicle binding properties and amyloid fibril formation, which underlies its role in the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease. Although the molecular details of the interaction between human NatB (hNatB) and the N-terminus of αS have been resolved, whether the remainder of the protein plays a role in interacting with the enzyme is unknown. Here, we execute the first synthesis, by native chemical ligation, of a bisubstrate inhibitor of NatB consisting of coenzyme A and full-length human αS, additionally incorporating two fluorescent probes for studies of conformational dynamics. We use cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) to characterize the structural features of the hNatB/inhibitor complex and show that, beyond the first few residues, αS remains disordered when in complex with hNatB. We further probe changes in the αS conformation by single molecule Förster resonance energy transfer (smFRET) to reveal that the C-terminus expands when bound to hNatB. Computational models based on the cryo-EM and smFRET data help to explain the conformational changes as well as their implications for hNatB substrate recognition and specific inhibition of the interaction with αS. Beyond the study of αS and NatB, these experiments illustrate valuable strategies for the study of challenging structural biology targets through a combination of protein semi-synthesis, cryo-EM, smFRET, and computational modeling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Buyan Pan
- Department of Chemistry; University of Pennsylvania; 231 South 34th Street; Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Sarah M. Gardner
- Graduate Group in Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, 421 Curie Boulevard, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Abramson Family Cancer Research Institute, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Kollin Schultz
- Graduate Group in Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, 421 Curie Boulevard, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Abramson Family Cancer Research Institute, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Ryann M. Perez
- Department of Chemistry; University of Pennsylvania; 231 South 34th Street; Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Sunbin Deng
- Department of Chemistry; University of Pennsylvania; 231 South 34th Street; Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Abramson Family Cancer Research Institute, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Marie Shimogawa
- Department of Chemistry; University of Pennsylvania; 231 South 34th Street; Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Kohei Sato
- Department of Chemistry; University of Pennsylvania; 231 South 34th Street; Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Department of Engineering, Graduate School of Integrated Science and Technology, Shizuoka University, 3-5-1 Johoku, Hamamatsu, Shizuoka 432-8561, Japan
| | - Elizabeth Rhoades
- Department of Chemistry; University of Pennsylvania; 231 South 34th Street; Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Graduate Group in Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, 421 Curie Boulevard, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, 421 Curie Boulevard, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Ronen Marmorstein
- Department of Chemistry; University of Pennsylvania; 231 South 34th Street; Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Graduate Group in Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, 421 Curie Boulevard, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Abramson Family Cancer Research Institute, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, 421 Curie Boulevard, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - E. James Petersson
- Department of Chemistry; University of Pennsylvania; 231 South 34th Street; Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Graduate Group in Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, 421 Curie Boulevard, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, 421 Curie Boulevard, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
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32
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Harrison K, Mackay AS, Kambanis L, Maxwell JWC, Payne RJ. Synthesis and applications of mirror-image proteins. Nat Rev Chem 2023; 7:383-404. [PMID: 37173596 DOI: 10.1038/s41570-023-00493-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/20/2023] [Indexed: 05/15/2023]
Abstract
The homochirality of biomolecules in nature, such as DNA, RNA, peptides and proteins, has played a critical role in establishing and sustaining life on Earth. This chiral bias has also given synthetic chemists the opportunity to generate molecules with inverted chirality, unlocking valuable new properties and applications. Advances in the field of chemical protein synthesis have underpinned the generation of numerous 'mirror-image' proteins (those comprised entirely of D-amino acids instead of canonical L-amino acids), which cannot be accessed using recombinant expression technologies. This Review seeks to highlight recent work on synthetic mirror-image proteins, with a focus on modern synthetic strategies that have been leveraged to access these complex biomolecules as well as their applications in protein crystallography, drug discovery and the creation of mirror-image life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katriona Harrison
- School of Chemistry, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Innovations in Peptide and Protein Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Angus S Mackay
- School of Chemistry, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Innovations in Peptide and Protein Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Lucas Kambanis
- School of Chemistry, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Innovations in Peptide and Protein Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Joshua W C Maxwell
- School of Chemistry, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Innovations in Peptide and Protein Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Richard J Payne
- School of Chemistry, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Innovations in Peptide and Protein Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
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33
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Pasch T, Schröder A, Kattelmann S, Eisenstein M, Pietrokovski S, Kümmel D, Mootz HD. Structural and biochemical analysis of a novel atypically split intein reveals a conserved histidine specific to cysteine-less inteins. Chem Sci 2023; 14:5204-5213. [PMID: 37206380 PMCID: PMC10189870 DOI: 10.1039/d3sc01200j] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2023] [Accepted: 04/23/2023] [Indexed: 05/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Protein trans-splicing mediated by a split intein reconstitutes a protein backbone from two parts. This virtually traceless autoprocessive reaction provides the basis for numerous protein engineering applications. Protein splicing typically proceeds through two thioester or oxyester intermediates involving the side chains of cysteine or serine/threonine residues. A cysteine-less split intein has recently attracted particular interest as it can splice under oxidizing conditions and is orthogonal to disulfide or thiol bioconjugation chemistries. Here, we report the split PolB16 OarG intein, a second such cysteine-independent intein. As a unique trait, it is atypically split with a short intein-N precursor fragment of only 15 amino acids, the shortest characterized to date, which was chemically synthesized to enable protein semi-synthesis. By rational engineering we obtained a high-yielding, improved split intein mutant. Structural and mutational analysis revealed the dispensability of the usually crucial conserved motif N3 (block B) histidine as an obvious peculiar property. Unexpectedly, we identified a previously unnoticed histidine in hydrogen-bond forming distance to the catalytic serine 1 as critical for splicing. This histidine has been overlooked so far in multiple sequence alignments and is highly conserved only in cysteine-independent inteins as a part of a newly discovered motif NX. The motif NX histidine is thus likely of general importance to the specialized environment in the active site required in this intein subgroup. Together, our study advances the toolbox as well as the structural and mechanistic understanding of cysteine-less inteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tim Pasch
- Institute of Biochemistry, University of Münster Corrensstr. 36 48149 Münster Germany
| | - Alexander Schröder
- Institute of Biochemistry, University of Münster Corrensstr. 36 48149 Münster Germany
| | - Sabrina Kattelmann
- Institute of Biochemistry, University of Münster Corrensstr. 36 48149 Münster Germany
| | - Miriam Eisenstein
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Weizmann Institute of Science Rehovot 76100 Israel
| | - Shmuel Pietrokovski
- Department of Molecular Genetics, Weizmann Institute of Science Rehovot 76100 Israel
| | - Daniel Kümmel
- Institute of Biochemistry, University of Münster Corrensstr. 36 48149 Münster Germany
| | - Henning D Mootz
- Institute of Biochemistry, University of Münster Corrensstr. 36 48149 Münster Germany
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34
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Niu W, Guo J. Co-translational Installation of Posttranslational Modifications by Non-canonical Amino Acid Mutagenesis. Chembiochem 2023; 24:e202300039. [PMID: 36853967 PMCID: PMC10202221 DOI: 10.1002/cbic.202300039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2023] [Revised: 02/26/2023] [Accepted: 02/28/2023] [Indexed: 03/02/2023]
Abstract
Protein posttranslational modifications (PTMs) play critical roles in regulating cellular activities. Here we provide a survey of genetic code expansion (GCE) methods that were applied in the co-translational installation and studies of PTMs through noncanonical amino acid (ncAA) mutagenesis. We begin by reviewing types of PTM that have been installed by GCE with a focus on modifications of tyrosine, serine, threonine, lysine, and arginine residues. We also discuss examples of applying these methods in biological studies. Finally, we end the piece with a short discussion on the challenges and the opportunities of the field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Niu
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, N-68588, USA
- The Nebraska Center for Integrated Biomolecular Communication (NCIBC), University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE-68588, USA
| | - Jiantao Guo
- Department of Chemistry, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE-68588, USA
- The Nebraska Center for Integrated Biomolecular Communication (NCIBC), University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE-68588, USA
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35
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Obeng EM, Fulcher AJ, Wagstaff KM. Harnessing sortase A transpeptidation for advanced targeted therapeutics and vaccine engineering. Biotechnol Adv 2023; 64:108108. [PMID: 36740026 DOI: 10.1016/j.biotechadv.2023.108108] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2022] [Revised: 01/29/2023] [Accepted: 01/31/2023] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
The engineering of potent prophylactic and therapeutic complexes has always required careful protein modification techniques with seamless capabilities. In this light, methods that favor unobstructed multivalent targeting and correct antigen presentations remain essential and very demanding. Sortase A (SrtA) transpeptidation has exhibited these attributes in various settings over the years. However, its applications for engineering avidity-inspired therapeutics and potent vaccines have yet to be significantly noticed, especially in this era where active targeting and multivalent nanomedications are in great demand. This review briefly presents the SrtA enzyme and its associated transpeptidation activity and describes interesting sortase-mediated protein engineering and chemistry approaches for achieving multivalent therapeutic and antigenic responses. The review further highlights advanced applications in targeted delivery systems, multivalent therapeutics, adoptive cellular therapy, and vaccine engineering. These innovations show the potential of sortase-mediated techniques in facilitating the development of simple plug-and-play nanomedicine technologies against recalcitrant diseases and pandemics such as cancer and viral infections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eugene M Obeng
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Biomedicine Discovery Institute, Monash University, Clayton, VIC 3800, Australia.
| | - Alex J Fulcher
- Monash Micro Imaging, Monash University, Clayton, VIC 3800, Australia
| | - Kylie M Wagstaff
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Biomedicine Discovery Institute, Monash University, Clayton, VIC 3800, Australia.
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36
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Pan B, Gardner S, Schultz K, Perez RM, Deng S, Shimogawa M, Sato K, Rhoades E, Marmorstein R, Petersson EJ. Semi-synthetic CoA-α-Synuclein Constructs Trap N-terminal Acetyltransferase NatB for Binding Mechanism Studies. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.04.03.535351. [PMID: 37066334 PMCID: PMC10104007 DOI: 10.1101/2023.04.03.535351] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/18/2023]
Abstract
N-terminal acetylation is a chemical modification carried out by N-terminal acetyltransferases (NATs). A major member of this enzyme family, NatB, acts on much of the human proteome, including α-synuclein (αS), a synaptic protein that mediates vesicle trafficking. NatB acetylation of αS modulates its lipid vesicle binding properties and amyloid fibril formation, which underlies its role in the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease. Although the molecular details of the interaction between human NatB (hNatB) and the N-terminus of αS have been resolved, whether the remainder of the protein plays a role in interacting with the enzyme is unknown. Here we execute the first synthesis, by native chemical ligation, of a bisubstrate inhibitor of NatB consisting of coenzyme A and full-length human αS, additionally incorporating two fluorescent probes for studies of conformational dynamics. We use cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) to characterize the structural features of the hNatB/inhibitor complex and show that, beyond the first few residues, αS remains disordered when in complex with hNatB. We further probe changes in the αS conformation by single molecule Förster resonance energy transfer (smFRET) to reveal that the C-terminus expands when bound to hNatB. Computational models based on the cryo-EM and smFRET data help to explain the conformational changes and their implications for hNatB substrate recognition and specific inhibition of the interaction with αS. Beyond the study of αS and NatB, these experiments illustrate valuable strategies for the study of challenging structural biology targets through a combination of protein semi-synthesis, cryo-EM, smFRET, and computational modeling.
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37
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Liu Y, Nomura K, Abe J, Kajihara Y. Recent advances on the synthesis of N-linked glycoprotein for the elucidation of glycan functions. Curr Opin Chem Biol 2023; 73:102263. [PMID: 36746076 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2023.102263] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2022] [Revised: 12/05/2022] [Accepted: 12/30/2022] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
Glycoproteins play roles in many biological events, while, the glycan structure-function relationship has remained to be studied. In order to understand glycan function, homogeneous glycoproteins have been synthesized. This review introduced recent progress of their synthetic approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yanbo Liu
- Department of Chemistry Osaka University, 1-1 Machikaneyama, Toyonaka, 560-0043 Japan
| | - Kota Nomura
- Department of Chemistry Osaka University, 1-1 Machikaneyama, Toyonaka, 560-0043 Japan
| | - Junpei Abe
- Department of Chemistry Osaka University, 1-1 Machikaneyama, Toyonaka, 560-0043 Japan
| | - Yasuhiro Kajihara
- Department of Chemistry Osaka University, 1-1 Machikaneyama, Toyonaka, 560-0043 Japan.
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38
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Abstract
The ability to manipulate the chemical composition of proteins and peptides has been central to the development of improved polypeptide-based therapeutics and has enabled researchers to address fundamental biological questions that would otherwise be out of reach. Protein ligation, in which two or more polypeptides are covalently linked, is a powerful strategy for generating semisynthetic products and for controlling polypeptide topology. However, specialized tools are required to efficiently forge a peptide bond in a chemoselective manner with fast kinetics and high yield. Fortunately, nature has addressed this challenge by evolving enzymatic mechanisms that can join polypeptides using a diverse set of chemical reactions. Here, we summarize how such nature-inspired protein ligation strategies have been repurposed as chemical biology tools that afford enhanced control over polypeptide composition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rasmus Pihl
- Chemical Biology Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA
- Department of Biomedicine, Aarhus University, Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - Qingfei Zheng
- Department of Radiation Oncology, College of Medicine, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA.
- Center for Cancer Metabolism, James Comprehensive Cancer Center, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA.
- Department of Biological Chemistry and Pharmacology, College of Medicine, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA.
| | - Yael David
- Chemical Biology Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA.
- Department of Pharmacology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA.
- Department of Physiology, Biophysics and Systems Biology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA.
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39
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Wang Y, Yu L, Shao J, Zhu Z, Zhang L. Structure-driven protein engineering for production of valuable natural products. TRENDS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2023; 28:460-470. [PMID: 36473772 DOI: 10.1016/j.tplants.2022.11.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2022] [Revised: 09/25/2022] [Accepted: 11/11/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Proteins are the most frequently used biocatalysts, and their structures determine their functions. Modifying the functions of proteins on the basis of their structures lies at the heart of protein engineering, opening a new horizon for metabolic engineering by efficiently generating stable enzymes. Many attempts at classical metabolic engineering have focused on improving specific metabolic fluxes and producing more valuable natural products by increasing gene expression levels and enzyme concentrations. However, most naturally occurring enzymes show limitations, and such limitations have hindered practical applications. Here we review recent advances in protein engineering in synthetic biology, chemoenzymatic synthesis, and plant metabolic engineering and describe opportunities for designing and constructing novel enzymes or proteins with desirable properties to obtain more active natural products.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yun Wang
- Institute of Interdisciplinary Integrative Medicine Research, Medical School of Nantong University, Nantong 226001, China; Biomedical Innovation R&D Centre, School of Medicine, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, China
| | - Luyao Yu
- Department of Pharmaceutical Botany, School of Pharmacy, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China
| | - Jie Shao
- Department of Pharmaceutical Botany, School of Pharmacy, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China
| | - Zhanpin Zhu
- Department of Pharmaceutical Botany, School of Pharmacy, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China
| | - Lei Zhang
- Institute of Interdisciplinary Integrative Medicine Research, Medical School of Nantong University, Nantong 226001, China; Biomedical Innovation R&D Centre, School of Medicine, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, China; Department of Pharmaceutical Botany, School of Pharmacy, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 200433, China; Innovative Drug R&D Center, College of Life Sciences, Huaibei Normal University, Huaibei 235000, China.
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40
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Harel O, Jbara M. Chemical Synthesis of Bioactive Proteins. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl 2023; 62:e202217716. [PMID: 36661212 DOI: 10.1002/anie.202217716] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2022] [Revised: 01/18/2023] [Accepted: 01/20/2023] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Nature has developed a plethora of protein machinery to operate and maintain nearly every task of cellular life. These processes are tightly regulated via post-expression modifications-transformations that modulate intracellular protein synthesis, folding, and activation. Methods to prepare homogeneously and precisely modified proteins are essential to probe their function and design new bioactive modalities. Synthetic chemistry has contributed remarkably to protein science by allowing the preparation of novel biomacromolecules that are often challenging or impractical to prepare via common biological means. The ability to chemically build and precisely modify proteins has enabled the production of new molecules with novel physicochemical properties and programmed activity for biomedical research, diagnostic, and therapeutic applications. This minireview summarizes recent developments in chemical protein synthesis to produce bioactive proteins, with emphasis on novel analogs with promising in vitro and in vivo activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Omer Harel
- School of Chemistry, Raymond and Beverly Sackler Faculty of Exact Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, 69978, Israel
| | - Muhammad Jbara
- School of Chemistry, Raymond and Beverly Sackler Faculty of Exact Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, 69978, Israel
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41
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Sun Z, Wei T, Cao Y, Li X. Protocol for semisynthesis of serotonylated histone H3 by rapid protein desulfurization in tandem with native chemical ligation. STAR Protoc 2023; 4:102042. [PMID: 36825812 PMCID: PMC9867976 DOI: 10.1016/j.xpro.2022.102042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2022] [Revised: 11/30/2022] [Accepted: 12/28/2022] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Here, we present a protocol of rapid protein desulfurization in tandem with native chemical ligation for facile syntheses of proteins with site-specific modifications. We describe using sodium tetraethylborate (NaBEt4) to carry out this desulfurization in an add-and-done manner under ambient conditions without requirement of inert atmosphere protection, UV irradiation, heating, or exogenous thiol additives. Specifically, we detail the semisynthesis of serotonylated histone H3(H3Q5ser) via one-pot ligation desulfurization. This protocol can be applied to synthesize proteins of interest with homogenous post-translational modifications. For complete information on the generation and use of this protocol, please refer to Sun et al. (2022).1.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhenquan Sun
- Department of Chemistry, University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong SAR, P. R. China.
| | - Tongyao Wei
- Department of Chemistry, University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong SAR, P. R. China
| | - Yihui Cao
- Department of Chemistry, University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong SAR, P. R. China
| | - Xuechen Li
- Department of Chemistry, University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong SAR, P. R. China.
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42
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Antonenko A, Singh AK, Mosna K, Krężel A. OaAEP1 Ligase-Assisted Chemoenzymatic Synthesis of Full Cysteine-Rich Metal-Binding Cyanobacterial Metallothionein SmtA. Bioconjug Chem 2023. [PMID: 36921066 PMCID: PMC10119931 DOI: 10.1021/acs.bioconjchem.3c00037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/17/2023]
Abstract
Among all approaches used for the semisynthesis of natural or chemically modified products, enzyme-assisted ligation is among the most promising and dynamically developing approaches. Applying an efficient C247A mutant of Oldenlandia affinis plant ligase OaAEP1 and solid-phase peptide synthesis chemistry, we present the chemoenzymatic synthesis of a complete sequence of the cysteine-rich and metal-binding cyanobacterial metallothionein Synechococcus metallothionein A (SmtA). Zn(II) and Cd(II) binding to the newly synthesized SmtA showed identical properties to the protein expressed in Escherichia coli. The presented approach is the first example of the use of OaAEP1 mutant for total protein synthesis of metallothionein, which occurs in mild conditions preventing cysteine thiol oxidation. The recognition motif of the applied enzyme could naturally occur in the protein structure or be synthetically or genetically incorporated in some loops or secondary structure elements. Therefore, we envision that this strategy can be used for efficiently obtaining SmtA and for a wide range of proteins and their derivatives.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anastasiia Antonenko
- Department of Chemical Biology, Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Wrocław, F. Joliot-Curie 14a, Wrocław 50-383, Poland
| | - Avinash Kumar Singh
- Department of Chemical Biology, Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Wrocław, F. Joliot-Curie 14a, Wrocław 50-383, Poland
| | - Karolina Mosna
- Department of Chemical Biology, Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Wrocław, F. Joliot-Curie 14a, Wrocław 50-383, Poland
| | - Artur Krężel
- Department of Chemical Biology, Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Wrocław, F. Joliot-Curie 14a, Wrocław 50-383, Poland
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43
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Kuschert S, Stroet M, Chin YKY, Conibear AC, Jia X, Lee T, Bartling CRO, Strømgaard K, Güntert P, Rosengren KJ, Mark AE, Mobli M. Facilitating the structural characterisation of non-canonical amino acids in biomolecular NMR. MAGNETIC RESONANCE (GOTTINGEN, GERMANY) 2023; 4:57-72. [PMID: 37904802 PMCID: PMC10583272 DOI: 10.5194/mr-4-57-2023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2022] [Accepted: 02/07/2023] [Indexed: 11/01/2023]
Abstract
Peptides and proteins containing non-canonical amino acids (ncAAs) are a large and important class of biopolymers. They include non-ribosomally synthesised peptides, post-translationally modified proteins, expressed or synthesised proteins containing unnatural amino acids, and peptides and proteins that are chemically modified. Here, we describe a general procedure for generating atomic descriptions required to incorporate ncAAs within popular NMR structure determination software such as CYANA, CNS, Xplor-NIH and ARIA. This procedure is made publicly available via the existing Automated Topology Builder (ATB) server (https://atb.uq.edu.au, last access: 17 February 2023) with all submitted ncAAs stored in a dedicated database. The described procedure also includes a general method for linking of side chains of amino acids from CYANA templates. To ensure compatibility with other systems, atom names comply with IUPAC guidelines. In addition to describing the workflow, 3D models of complex natural products generated by CYANA are presented, including vancomycin. In order to demonstrate the manner in which the templates for ncAAs generated by the ATB can be used in practice, we use a combination of CYANA and CNS to solve the structure of a synthetic peptide designed to disrupt Alzheimer-related protein-protein interactions. Automating the generation of structural templates for ncAAs will extend the utility of NMR spectroscopy to studies of more complex biomolecules, with applications in the rapidly growing fields of synthetic biology and chemical biology. The procedures we outline can also be used to standardise the creation of structural templates for any amino acid and thus have the potential to impact structural biology more generally.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah Kuschert
- Centre for Advanced Imaging, Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Martin Stroet
- School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Yanni Ka-Yan Chin
- Centre for Advanced Imaging, Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Anne Claire Conibear
- Institute of Applied Synthetic Chemistry, Technische Universität Wien, Getreidemarkt 9/163, Wien 1060, Vienna, Austria
| | - Xinying Jia
- Centre for Advanced Imaging, Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Thomas Lee
- School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia
| | | | - Kristian Strømgaard
- Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 2, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Peter Güntert
- Laboratory of Physical Chemistry, ETH Zürich, 8093 Zurich, Switzerland
- Institute of Biophysical Chemistry, Center for Biomolecular Magnetic Resonance, Goethe University Frankfurt, 60438 Frankfurt am Main, Germany
- Department of Chemistry, Tokyo Metropolitan University, Hachiōji, Tokyo 192-0397, Japan
| | - Karl Johan Rosengren
- School of Biomedical Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Alan Edward Mark
- School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Mehdi Mobli
- Centre for Advanced Imaging, Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia
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44
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Insertion of unnatural metal ligand in the heme pocket of nitrophorin through protein semi-synthesis: toward biomimicking binuclear active sites. CHINESE CHEM LETT 2023. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cclet.2023.108251] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/03/2023]
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45
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Hua X, Guo Y, Wang Y, Chu GC, Li P, Shi J. Acyl azide modification of the ubiquitin C-terminus enables DUB capture. Chem Commun (Camb) 2023; 59:1333-1336. [PMID: 36645155 DOI: 10.1039/d2cc06496k] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Deubiquitinating enzyme (DUB) abnormalities are associated with many diseases. Previous attempts have been made to introduce various chemical groups such as alkynes, unsaturated olefins and alkyl halides to the C-terminus of ubiquitin (Ub) to capture the active-site cysteine residue in DUBs for structural and biochemical studies. Here, we find that a Ub C-terminal acyl azide can capture DUBs, thereby forming thioester bonds in buffers and cell lysates. This finding not only makes ubiquitin acyl azide a chemical probe for capturing DUBs, but also extends the utility of azide groups in biological applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiao Hua
- Department of Chemistry, Center for BioAnalytical Chemistry, Hefei National Laboratory of Physical Science at Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China.
| | - Yanyan Guo
- Department of Chemistry, Center for BioAnalytical Chemistry, Hefei National Laboratory of Physical Science at Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China.
| | - Yu Wang
- Department of Chemistry, Center for BioAnalytical Chemistry, Hefei National Laboratory of Physical Science at Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China.
| | - Guo-Chao Chu
- Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China
| | - Pincheng Li
- School of Food and Biological Engineering, Engineering Research Center of Bio-process, Ministry of Education, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei, 230009, China
| | - Jing Shi
- Department of Chemistry, Center for BioAnalytical Chemistry, Hefei National Laboratory of Physical Science at Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China.
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46
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Ge Y, Lu H, Yang B, Woo CM. Small Molecule-Activated O-GlcNAcase for Spatiotemporal Removal of O-GlcNAc in Live Cells. ACS Chem Biol 2023; 18:193-201. [PMID: 36598936 DOI: 10.1021/acschembio.2c00894] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
The nutrient sensor O-linked N-acetylglucosamine (O-GlcNAc) is a post-translational modification found on thousands of nucleocytoplasmic proteins. O-GlcNAc levels in cells dynamically respond to environmental cues in a temporal and spatial manner, leading to altered signal transduction and functional effects. The spatiotemporal regulation of O-GlcNAc levels would accelerate functional interrogation of O-GlcNAc and manipulation of cell behaviors for desired outcomes. Here, we report a strategy for spatiotemporal reduction of O-GlcNAc in live cells by designing an O-GlcNAcase (OGA) fused to an intein triggered by 4-hydroxytamoxifen (4-HT). After rational protein engineering and optimization, we identified an OGA-intein variant whose deglycosidase activity can be triggered in the desired subcellular compartments by 4-HT in a time- and dose-dependent manner. Finally, we demonstrated that 4-HT activation of the OGA-intein fusion can likewise potentiate inhibitory effects in breast cancer cells by virtue of the reduction of O-GlcNAc. The spatiotemporal control of O-GlcNAc through the chemically activatable OGA-intein fusion will facilitate the manipulation and functional understanding of O-GlcNAc in live cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yun Ge
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, United States.,Institute of Chemical Biology, Shenzhen Bay Laboratory, Shenzhen 518107, China
| | - Hailin Lu
- Institute of Chemical Biology, Shenzhen Bay Laboratory, Shenzhen 518107, China
| | - Bo Yang
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, United States
| | - Christina M Woo
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, United States
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47
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Adelakun N, Parrish J, Chu N. Analyzing protein posttranslational modifications using enzyme-catalyzed expressed protein ligation. Methods Enzymol 2023; 682:319-350. [PMID: 36948706 DOI: 10.1016/bs.mie.2022.12.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
Expressed protein ligation (EPL) allows for the attachment of a synthetic peptide into the N- or C-terminus of a recombinant protein fragment to generate a site-specifically modified protein with substantial yields for biochemical and biophysical studies. In this method, multiple posttranslational modifications (PTMs) can be incorporated into a synthetic peptide containing an N-terminal Cysteine, which selectively reacts with a protein C-terminal thioester to afford an amide bond formation. However, the requirement of a Cysteine at the ligation site can limit EPL's potential applications. Here, we describe a method called enzyme-catalyzed EPL, which uses subtiligase to ligate protein thioesters with Cysteine-free peptides. The procedure includes generating protein C-terminal thioester and peptide, performing the enzymatic EPL reaction, and purifying the protein ligation product. We exemplify this method by generating phospholipid phosphatase PTEN with site-specific phosphorylations installed onto its C-terminal tail for biochemical assays.
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Affiliation(s)
- Niyi Adelakun
- Department of Cancer Biology and Genetics, the Comprehensive Cancer Center, College of Medicine, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, United States
| | - Jordan Parrish
- Department of Cancer Biology and Genetics, the Comprehensive Cancer Center, College of Medicine, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, United States
| | - Nam Chu
- Department of Cancer Biology and Genetics, the Comprehensive Cancer Center, College of Medicine, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, United States.
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48
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Berkeley RF, Debelouchina GT. Chemical tools for study and modulation of biomolecular phase transitions. Chem Sci 2022; 13:14226-14245. [PMID: 36545140 PMCID: PMC9749140 DOI: 10.1039/d2sc04907d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2022] [Accepted: 11/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Biomolecular phase transitions play an important role in organizing cellular processes in space and time. Methods and tools for studying these transitions, and the intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) that often drive them, are typically less developed than tools for studying their folded protein counterparts. In this perspective, we assess the current landscape of chemical tools for studying IDPs, with a specific focus on protein liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS). We highlight methodologies that enable imaging and spectroscopic studies of these systems, including site-specific labeling with small molecules and the diverse range of capabilities offered by inteins and protein semisynthesis. We discuss strategies for introducing post-translational modifications that are central to IDP and LLPS function and regulation. We also investigate the nascent field of noncovalent small-molecule modulators of LLPS. We hope that this review of the state-of-the-art in chemical tools for interrogating IDPs and LLPS, along with an associated perspective on areas of unmet need, can serve as a valuable and timely resource for these rapidly expanding fields of study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raymond F. Berkeley
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California San DiegoLa JollaCAUSA
| | - Galia T. Debelouchina
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California San DiegoLa JollaCAUSA
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49
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Haji Abbasi Somehsaraie M, Fathi Vavsari V, Kamangar M, Balalaie S. Chemical Wastes in the Peptide Synthesis Process and Ways to Reduce Them. IRANIAN JOURNAL OF PHARMACEUTICAL RESEARCH : IJPR 2022; 21:e123879. [PMID: 36942077 PMCID: PMC10024322 DOI: 10.5812/ijpr-123879] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2022] [Revised: 05/25/2022] [Accepted: 05/28/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
In recent decades, a growing interest has been observed among pharmaceutical companies in producing and selling 80 FDA-approved therapeutic peptides. However, there are many drawbacks to peptide synthesis at the academic and industrial scales, involving the use of large amounts of highly hazardous coupling reagents and solvents. This review focuses on hideous and observant wastes produced before, during, and after peptide synthesis and proposes some solutions to reduce them.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Vaezeh Fathi Vavsari
- Peptide Chemistry Research Institute, K. N. Toosi University of Technology, Tehran, Iran
| | - Mohammad Kamangar
- Peptide Chemistry Research Institute, K. N. Toosi University of Technology, Tehran, Iran
| | - Saeed Balalaie
- Peptide Chemistry Research Institute, K. N. Toosi University of Technology, Tehran, Iran
- Corresponding Author: Peptide Chemistry Research Institute, K. N. Toosi University of Technology, Tehran, Iran.
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50
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Dowman LJ, Kulkarni SS, Alegre-Requena JV, Giltrap AM, Norman AR, Sharma A, Gallegos LC, Mackay AS, Welegedara AP, Watson EE, van Raad D, Niederacher G, Huhmann S, Proschogo N, Patel K, Larance M, Becker CFW, Mackay JP, Lakhwani G, Huber T, Paton RS, Payne RJ. Site-selective photocatalytic functionalization of peptides and proteins at selenocysteine. Nat Commun 2022; 13:6885. [PMID: 36371402 PMCID: PMC9653470 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-34530-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2022] [Accepted: 10/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
The importance of modified peptides and proteins for applications in drug discovery, and for illuminating biological processes at the molecular level, is fueling a demand for efficient methods that facilitate the precise modification of these biomolecules. Herein, we describe the development of a photocatalytic method for the rapid and efficient dimerization and site-specific functionalization of peptide and protein diselenides. This methodology, dubbed the photocatalytic diselenide contraction, involves irradiation at 450 nm in the presence of an iridium photocatalyst and a phosphine and results in rapid and clean conversion of diselenides to reductively stable selenoethers. A mechanism for this photocatalytic transformation is proposed, which is supported by photoluminescence spectroscopy and density functional theory calculations. The utility of the photocatalytic diselenide contraction transformation is highlighted through the dimerization of selenopeptides, and by the generation of two families of protein conjugates via the site-selective modification of calmodulin containing the 21st amino acid selenocysteine, and the C-terminal modification of a ubiquitin diselenide.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luke J. Dowman
- grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XSchool of Chemistry, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006 Australia ,grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XAustralian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Innovations in Peptide and Protein Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006 Australia
| | - Sameer S. Kulkarni
- grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XSchool of Chemistry, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006 Australia ,grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XAustralian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Innovations in Peptide and Protein Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006 Australia
| | - Juan V. Alegre-Requena
- grid.47894.360000 0004 1936 8083Department of Chemistry, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523-1872 USA
| | - Andrew M. Giltrap
- grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XSchool of Chemistry, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006 Australia ,grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XAustralian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Innovations in Peptide and Protein Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006 Australia
| | - Alexander R. Norman
- grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XSchool of Chemistry, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006 Australia ,grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XAustralian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Innovations in Peptide and Protein Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006 Australia
| | - Ashish Sharma
- grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XSchool of Chemistry, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006 Australia ,grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XAustralian Research Council Centre of Excellence in Exciton Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006 Australia
| | - Liliana C. Gallegos
- grid.47894.360000 0004 1936 8083Department of Chemistry, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523-1872 USA
| | - Angus S. Mackay
- grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XSchool of Chemistry, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006 Australia ,grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XAustralian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Innovations in Peptide and Protein Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006 Australia
| | - Adarshi P. Welegedara
- grid.1001.00000 0001 2180 7477Research School of Chemistry, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 2601 Australia
| | - Emma E. Watson
- grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XSchool of Chemistry, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006 Australia ,grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XAustralian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Innovations in Peptide and Protein Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006 Australia
| | - Damian van Raad
- grid.1001.00000 0001 2180 7477Research School of Chemistry, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 2601 Australia
| | - Gerhard Niederacher
- grid.10420.370000 0001 2286 1424Institute of Biological Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Susanne Huhmann
- grid.10420.370000 0001 2286 1424Institute of Biological Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Nicholas Proschogo
- grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XSchool of Chemistry, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006 Australia
| | - Karishma Patel
- grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XSchool of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006 Australia
| | - Mark Larance
- grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XCharles Perkins Centre and School of Medical Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006 Australia
| | - Christian F. W. Becker
- grid.10420.370000 0001 2286 1424Institute of Biological Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Joel P. Mackay
- grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XSchool of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006 Australia
| | - Girish Lakhwani
- grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XSchool of Chemistry, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006 Australia ,grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XAustralian Research Council Centre of Excellence in Exciton Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006 Australia
| | - Thomas Huber
- grid.1001.00000 0001 2180 7477Research School of Chemistry, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 2601 Australia
| | - Robert S. Paton
- grid.47894.360000 0004 1936 8083Department of Chemistry, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523-1872 USA
| | - Richard J. Payne
- grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XSchool of Chemistry, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006 Australia ,grid.1013.30000 0004 1936 834XAustralian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Innovations in Peptide and Protein Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006 Australia
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