Hydrogen exchange of individual amide protons in the F helix of cyanometmyoglobin

Amide proton hydrogen exchange rates for sperm whale myoglobin obtained from 15N-1H NMR spectra

The hydrogen exchange behavior of exchangeable protons in proteins can provide important information for understanding the principles of protein structure and function. The positions and exchange rates of the slowly-exchanging amide protons in sperm whale myoglobin have been mapped using 15N-1H NMR spectroscopy. The slowest-exchanging amide protons are those that are hydrogen bonded in the longest helices, including members of the B, E, and H helices. Significant protection factors were observed also in the A, C, and G helices, and for a few residues in the D and F helices. Knowledge of the identity of slowly-exchanging amide protons forms the basis for the extensive quench-flow kinetic folding experiments that have been performed for myoglobin, and gives insights into the tertiary interactions and dynamics in the protein.

Hydrogen exchange kinetics in a membrane protein determined by 15N NMR spectroscopy: use of the INEPT experiment to follow individual amides in detergent-solubilized M13 coat protein

The coat protein of the filamentous coliphage M13 is a 50-residue polypeptide which spans the inner membrane of the Escherichia coli host upon infection. Amide hydrogen exchange kinetics have been used to probe the structure and dynamics of M13 coat protein which has been solubilized in sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) micelles. In a previous 1H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) study [O'Neil, J. D. J., & Sykes, B. D. (1988) Biochemistry 27, 2753-2762], multiple exponential analysis of the unresolved amide proton envelope revealed the existence of two slow "kinetic sets" containing a total of about 30 protons. The slower set (15-20 amides) originates from the hydrophobic membrane-spanning region and exchanges at least 10(5)-fold slower than the unstructured, non-H-bonded model polypeptide poly(DL-alanine). Herein we use 15N NMR spectroscopy of biosynthetically labeled coat protein to follow individual, assigned, slowly exchanging amides in or near the hydrophobic segment. The INEPT (insensitive nucleus enhancement by polarization transfer) experiment [Morris, G. A., & Freeman, R. (1979) J. Am. Chem. Soc. 101, 760-762] can be used to transfer magnetization to the 15N nucleus from a coupled proton; when 15N-labeled protonated protein is dissolved in 2H2O, the INEPT signal disappears with time as the amide protons are replaced by solvent deuterons. Amide hydrogen exchange is catalyzed by both H+ and OH- ions. Base catalysis is significantly more effective, resulting in a characteristic minimum rate in model peptides at pH approximately equal to 3. Rate versus pH profiles have been obtained by using the INEPT experiment for the amides of leucine-14, leucine-41, tyrosine-21, tyrosine-24, and valines-29, -30, -31, and -33 in M13 coat protein. The valine residues exchange most slowly and at very similar rates, showing an apparent 10(6)-fold retardation over poly(DL-alanine). A substantial basic shift in the pH of the minimum rate (up to 1.5 pH units) was also observed for some residues. Possible reasons for the shift include accumulation of catalytic H+ ions at the negatively charged micelle surface or destabilization of the negatively charged transition state of the base-catalyzed reaction by either charge or hydrophobic effects within the micelle. The time-dependent exchange-out experiment is suitable for slow exchange rates (kex), i.e., less than (1-2) x 10(-4) s-1.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Solution structural characteristics of cyanometmyoglobin: resonance assignment of heme cavity residues by two-dimensional NMR

Steady-state nuclear Overhauser effects (NOE), two-dimensional (2D) nuclear Overhauser effect spectroscopy (NOESY), and 2D spin correlation spectroscopy (COSY) have been applied to the fully paramagnetic low-spin, cyanide-ligated complex of sperm whale ferric myoglobin to assign the majority of the heme pocket side-chain proton signals and the remainder of the heme signals. It is shown that the 2D NOESY map reveals essentially all dipolar connectivities observed in ordinary 1D NOE experiments and expected on the basis of crystal coordinates, albeit often more weakly than in a diamagnetic analogue. For extremely broad (approximately 600-Hz) and rapidly relaxing (Tf1 approximately 3 ms) signals which show no NEOSY peaks, we demonstrate that conventional steady-state NOEs obtained under very rapid pulsing conditions still allow detection of the critical dipoar connectivities that allow unambiguous assignments. The COSY map was found to be generally less useful for the hyperfine-shifted residues, with cross peaks detected only for protons greater than 6 A from the iron. Nevertheless, numerous critical COSY cross peaks between strongly hyperfine-shifted peaks were resolved and assigned. In all, 95% (53 of 56 signals) of the total proton sets within approximately 7.5 A of the iron, the region experiencing the strongest hyperfine shifts and paramagnetic relaxation, are now unambiguously assigned. Hence it is clear that the 2D methods can be profitably applied to paramagnetic proteins. The scope and limitations of such application are discussed. The resulting hyperfine shift pattern for the heme confirmed expectations based on model compounds. In contrast, while exhibiting fortuitous 1H NMR spectral similarities, a major discrepancy was uncovered between the hyperfine shift pattern of the axially bound (F8 histidyl) imidazole in the protein and that of the imidazole in a relevant model compound [Chacko, V.P., & La Mar, G. N. (1982) J. Am. Chem. Soc. 104, 7002-7007], providing direct evidence for a protein-based deformation of axial bonding in the protein.

NMR determination of the orientation of the magnetic susceptibility tensor in cyanometmyoglobin: a new probe of steric tilt of bound ligand

The experimentally determined paramagnetic dipolar shifts for noncoordinated amino acid side-chain protons in the heme pocket of sperm whale cyanometmyoglobin [Emerson, S. d., & La Mar, G. N. (1990) Biochemistry (preceding paper in this issue]) were used to determine in solution the orientation of the principal axes for the paramagnetic susceptibility tensor relative to the heme iron molecular coordinates. The determination was made by a least-squares search for the unique Euler rotation angles which convert the geometric factors in the molecular (crystal) coordinates to ones that correctly predict each of 41 known dipolar shifts by using the magnetic anisotropies computed previously [Horrocks, W. D., Jr., & Greenberg, E. S. (973) Biochim. Biophys. Acta 322, 38-44]. An excellent fit to experimental shifts was obtained, which also provided predictions that allowed subsequent new assignments to be made. The magnetic axes are oriented so that the z axis is tipped approximately 15 degrees from the heme normal toward the hem delta-meso-H and coincides approximately with the characterized FeCO tilt axis in the isostructural MbCO complex [Kuriyan, J., Wilz, S., Karplus, M., & Petsko, G. A. (1986) J. Mol. Biol. 192, 133-154]. Since the FeCO and FeCN units are isostructural, we propose that the dominant protein constraints that tips the magnetic z axis from the heme normal is the tilt of the FeCN by steric interactions with the distal residues. The rhombic magnetic axes were found to align closely with the projection of the proximal His imidazole plane on the heme, confirming that the His-Fe bonding provides the protein constraints that orients the in-plane anisotrophy. The tipped magnetic z axis is shown to account quantitatively for the previously noted major discrepancy between the hyperfine shift patterns for the bound imidazole side chain in models and protein. Moreover, it is shown that the proximal His ring nolabile proton hyperfine shifts provide direct and exquisitely sensitive indicators of the degree of the z axis tilt that may serve as a valuable probe for characterizing variable steric interactions in the distal pocket of both point mutants and natural genetic variants of myoglobin.