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Zhu J, Xu L, Wang W, Xiao M, Li J, Wang L, Jiang X. Molecular Dynamics Simulations Reveal Octanoylated Hyaluronic Acid Enhances Liposome Stability, Stealth and Targeting. ACS OMEGA 2024; 9:33833-33844. [PMID: 39130542 PMCID: PMC11307277 DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.4c03526] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/13/2024]
Abstract
Liposome-based drug delivery systems have been widely used in drug and gene delivery. However, issues such as instability, immune clearance, and poor targeting have significantly limited their clinical utility. Consequently, there is an urgent need for innovative strategies to improve liposome performance. In this study, we explore the interaction mechanisms of hyaluronic acid (HA), a linear anionic polysaccharide composed of repeating disaccharide units of d-glucuronic acid and N-acetyl-d-glucosamine connected by alternating β-1,3 and β-1,4 glycosidic linkages, and its octanoylated derivates (OHA) with liposomes using extensive coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations. The octyl moieties of OHA spontaneously inserted into the phospholipid bilayer of liposomes, leading to their effective coating onto the surface of liposome and enhancing their structural stability. Furthermore, encapsulating liposome with OHA neutralized their surface potential, interfering with the formation of a protein corona known to contribute to liposomal immune clearance. Importantly, the encapsulated OHA maintained its selectivity and therefore targeting ability for CD44, which is often overexpressed in tumor cells. These molecular-scale findings shed light on the interaction mechanisms between HA and liposomes and will be useful for the development of next-generation liposome-based drug delivery systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jingyi Zhu
- State
Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology, National Glycoengineering
Research Center, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, China
| | - Limei Xu
- State
Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology, National Glycoengineering
Research Center, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, China
| | - Wenxin Wang
- Shandong
Institute for Food and Drug Control, Jinan 250000, China
| | - Min Xiao
- State
Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology, National Glycoengineering
Research Center, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, China
| | - Jian Li
- Biomedicine
Discovery Institute, Monash University, Melbourne 3800, Australia
| | - Lushan Wang
- State
Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology, National Glycoengineering
Research Center, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, China
| | - Xukai Jiang
- State
Key Laboratory of Microbial Technology, National Glycoengineering
Research Center, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, China
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2
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Srinivasan S, Di Luca A, Álvarez D, John Peter AT, Gehin C, Lone MA, Hornemann T, D’Angelo G, Vanni S. The conformational plasticity of structurally unrelated lipid transport proteins correlates with their mode of action. PLoS Biol 2024; 22:e3002737. [PMID: 39159271 PMCID: PMC11361750 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3002737] [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: 09/08/2023] [Revised: 08/29/2024] [Accepted: 07/05/2024] [Indexed: 08/21/2024] Open
Abstract
Lipid transfer proteins (LTPs) are key players in cellular homeostasis and regulation, as they coordinate the exchange of lipids between different cellular organelles. Despite their importance, our mechanistic understanding of how LTPs function at the molecular level is still in its infancy, mostly due to the large number of existing LTPs and to the low degree of conservation at the sequence and structural level. In this work, we use molecular simulations to characterize a representative dataset of lipid transport domains (LTDs) of 12 LTPs that belong to 8 distinct families. We find that despite no sequence homology nor structural conservation, the conformational landscape of LTDs displays common features, characterized by the presence of at least 2 main conformations whose populations are modulated by the presence of the bound lipid. These conformational properties correlate with their mechanistic mode of action, allowing for the interpretation and design of experimental strategies to further dissect their mechanism. Our findings indicate the existence of a conserved, fold-independent mechanism of lipid transfer across LTPs of various families and offer a general framework for understanding their functional mechanism.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Andrea Di Luca
- Department of Biology, University of Fribourg, Fribourg, Switzerland
| | - Daniel Álvarez
- Department of Biology, University of Fribourg, Fribourg, Switzerland
- Departamento de Química Física y Analítica, Universidad de Oviedo, Oviedo, Spain
| | | | - Charlotte Gehin
- Institute of Bioengineering (IBI) and Global Heath Institute (GHI), École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Museer A. Lone
- Institute of Clinical Chemistry, University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Thorsten Hornemann
- Institute of Clinical Chemistry, University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Giovanni D’Angelo
- Institute of Bioengineering (IBI) and Global Heath Institute (GHI), École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Stefano Vanni
- Department of Biology, University of Fribourg, Fribourg, Switzerland
- National Center of Competence in Research Bio-inspired Materials, University of Fribourg, Fribourg, Switzerland
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3
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Domanska M, Setny P. Exploring the Properties of Curved Lipid Membranes: Comparative Analysis of Atomistic and Coarse-Grained Force Fields. J Phys Chem B 2024; 128:7160-7171. [PMID: 38990314 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.4c02310] [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: 07/12/2024]
Abstract
Curvature emerges as a fundamental membrane characteristic crucial for diverse biological processes, including vesicle formation, cell signaling, and membrane trafficking. Increasingly valuable insights into atomistic details governing curvature-dependent membrane properties are provided by computer simulations. Nevertheless, the underlying force field models are conventionally calibrated and tested in relation to experimentally derived parameters of planar bilayers, thereby leaving uncertainties concerning their consistency in reproducing curved lipid systems. In this study we compare the depiction of buckled phosphatidylcholine (POPC) and POPC-cholesterol membranes by four popular force field models. Aside from agreement with respect to general trends in curvature dependence of a number of parameters, we observe a few qualitative differences. Among the most prominent ones is the difference between atomistic and coarse grained force fields in their representation of relative compressibility of the polar headgroup region and hydrophobic lipid core. Through a number of downstream effects, this discrepancy can influence the way in which curvature modulates the behavior of membrane bound proteins depending on the adopted simulation model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Domanska
- Centre of New Technologies, University of Warsaw, Banacha 2c, 02-097 Warsaw, Poland
| | - Piotr Setny
- Centre of New Technologies, University of Warsaw, Banacha 2c, 02-097 Warsaw, Poland
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Zhong Z, Ulmschneider MB, Lorenz CD. Unraveling the Molecular Dance: Insights into TREM2/DAP12 Complex Formation in Alzheimer's Disease through Molecular Dynamics Simulations. ACS OMEGA 2024; 9:28715-28725. [PMID: 38973875 PMCID: PMC11223195 DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.4c03060] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2024] [Revised: 06/07/2024] [Accepted: 06/11/2024] [Indexed: 07/09/2024]
Abstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a widespread neurodegenerative condition affecting millions globally. Recent research has implicated variants of the triggering receptor expressed in myeloid cells 2 (TREM2) as risk factors for AD. TREM2, an immunomodulatory receptor on microglial surfaces, plays a pivotal role in regulating microglial activation by association with DNAX-activation protein 12 (DAP12). Despite its significance, the mechanism underlying the formation of the complex between the transmembrane domains (TMDs) of TREM2 and DAP12 remains unclear. This study employs multiscale molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to investigate three TMD complex models, including two derived from experiments and one generated by AlphaFold2. Conducted within a lipid membrane consisting of an 80:20 mixture of phosphatidylcholine (POPC) and cholesterol, our analysis reveals hydrogen-bonding interactions between K26 of TREM2 and D16 of DAP12 in all three models, consistent with previous experimental findings. Our results elucidate the different spatial conformations observed in the models and offer insights into the structure of the TREM2/DAP12 TMD complex. Furthermore, we elucidate the role of charged residues in the assembly structure of the complex within the lipid membrane. These findings enhance our understanding of the molecular mechanism governing TREM2/DAP12 complex formation, providing a foundation for designing novel therapeutic strategies to address AD and other neurodegenerative diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhiwen Zhong
- Biological
Physics and Soft Matter Group, Department of Physics, King’s College London, London WC2R 2LS, U.K.
- Department
of Chemistry, King’s College London, London SE1 1DB, U.K.
| | | | - Christian D. Lorenz
- Biological
Physics and Soft Matter Group, Department of Physics, King’s College London, London WC2R 2LS, U.K.
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Kumar A, Mishra B, Konar AD, Mylonakis E, Basu A. Molecular Dynamics Simulations Help Determine the Molecular Mechanisms of Lasioglossin-III and Its Variant Peptides' Membrane Interfacial Interactions. J Phys Chem B 2024; 128:6049-6058. [PMID: 38840325 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.4c02387] [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: 06/07/2024]
Abstract
Lasioglossin-III (LL-III) is a potent broad-spectrum antimicrobial peptide used in diverse antimicrobial applications. In this work, coarse-grained and all-atom molecular dynamics simulation strategies were used in tandem to interpret the molecular mechanisms involved in the interfacial dynamics of LL-III and its recombinant variants during interactions with diverse cell membrane systems. Our results indicate that the membrane charges act as the driving force for initiating the membrane-peptide interactions, while the hydrophobic or van der Waals forces help to reinforce the membrane-peptide bindings. The optimized charge-hydrophobicity ratio of the LL-III peptides helps ensure their high specificity toward bacterial membranes compared to mammalian membrane systems, which also helps explain our experimental observations. Overall, we hope that our work gives new insight into the antimicrobial action of LL-III peptides and that the adopted simulation strategy will help other scientists and engineers extract maximal information from complex molecular simulations using minimal computational power.
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Affiliation(s)
- Atul Kumar
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Rajiv Gandhi Technological University, Airport Bypass Road, Gandhinagar, Bhopal 462033, India
| | - Biswajit Mishra
- Department of Medicine, Houston Methodist Hospital, Houston, Texas 77030, United States
| | - Anita Dutt Konar
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Rajiv Gandhi Technological University, Airport Bypass Road, Gandhinagar, Bhopal 462033, India
- Department of Applied Chemistry, Rajiv Gandhi Technological University, Bhopal 462033, India
| | - Eleftherios Mylonakis
- Department of Medicine, Houston Methodist Hospital, Houston, Texas 77030, United States
| | - Anindya Basu
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Rajiv Gandhi Technological University, Airport Bypass Road, Gandhinagar, Bhopal 462033, India
- School of Biomolecular Engineering and Biotechnology, Rajiv Gandhi Technological University, Bhopal 462033, India
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Khatun S, Dasgupta I, Islam R, Amin SA, Jha T, Dhaked DK, Gayen S. Unveiling critical structural features for effective HDAC8 inhibition: a comprehensive study using quantitative read-across structure-activity relationship (q-RASAR) and pharmacophore modeling. Mol Divers 2024:10.1007/s11030-024-10903-y. [PMID: 38871969 DOI: 10.1007/s11030-024-10903-y] [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: 03/17/2024] [Accepted: 05/20/2024] [Indexed: 06/15/2024]
Abstract
Histone deacetylases constitute a group of enzymes that participate in several biological processes. Notably, inhibiting HDAC8 has become a therapeutic strategy for various diseases. The current inhibitors for HDAC8 lack selectivity and target multiple HDACs. Consequently, there is a growing recognition of the need for selective HDAC8 inhibitors to enhance the effectiveness of therapeutic interventions. In our current study, we have utilized a multi-faceted approach, including Quantitative Structure-Activity Relationship (QSAR) combined with Quantitative Read-Across Structure-Activity Relationship (q-RASAR) modeling, pharmacophore mapping, molecular docking, and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. The developed q-RASAR model has a high statistical significance and predictive ability (Q2F1:0.778, Q2F2:0.775). The contributions of important descriptors are discussed in detail to gain insight into the crucial structural features in HDAC8 inhibition. The best pharmacophore hypothesis exhibits a high regression coefficient (0.969) and a low root mean square deviation (0.944), highlighting the importance of correctly orienting hydrogen bond acceptor (HBA), ring aromatic (RA), and zinc-binding group (ZBG) features in designing potent HDAC8 inhibitors. To confirm the results of q-RASAR and pharmacophore mapping, molecular docking analysis of the five potent compounds (44, 54, 82, 102, and 118) was performed to gain further insights into these structural features crucial for interaction with the HDAC8 enzyme. Lastly, MD simulation studies of the most active compound (54, mapped correctly with the pharmacophore hypothesis) and the least active compound (34, mapped poorly with the pharmacophore hypothesis) were carried out to validate the observations of the studies above. This study not only refines our understanding of essential structural features for HDAC8 inhibition but also provides a robust framework for the rational design of novel selective HDAC8 inhibitors which may offer insights to medicinal chemists and researchers engaged in the development of HDAC8-targeted therapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samima Khatun
- Laboratory of Drug Design and Discovery, Department of Pharmaceutical Technology, Jadavpur University, Kolkata, 700032, India
| | - Indrasis Dasgupta
- Laboratory of Drug Design and Discovery, Department of Pharmaceutical Technology, Jadavpur University, Kolkata, 700032, India
| | - Rakibul Islam
- Department of Pharmacoinformatics, National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER), Kolkata, West Bengal, 700054, India
| | - Sk Abdul Amin
- Department of Pharmaceutical Technology, JIS University, 81, Nilgunj Road, Agarpara, Kolkata, West Bengal, India
| | - Tarun Jha
- Natural Science Laboratory, Division of Medicinal and Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Department of Pharmaceutical Technology, Jadavpur University, Kolkata, 700032, India
| | - Devendra Kumar Dhaked
- Department of Pharmacoinformatics, National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER), Kolkata, West Bengal, 700054, India
| | - Shovanlal Gayen
- Laboratory of Drug Design and Discovery, Department of Pharmaceutical Technology, Jadavpur University, Kolkata, 700032, India.
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7
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Duran T, Naik S, Sharifi L, DiLuzio WR, Chanda A, Chaudhuri B. Studying the ssDNA loaded adeno-associated virus aggregation using coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations. Int J Pharm 2024; 655:123985. [PMID: 38484860 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpharm.2024.123985] [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: 11/11/2023] [Revised: 03/05/2024] [Accepted: 03/07/2024] [Indexed: 03/19/2024]
Abstract
The aggregation of adeno-associated viral (AAV) capsids in an aqueous environment was investigated via coarse-grained molecular dynamics (CG-MD) simulations. The primary driving force and mechanism of the aggregation were investigated with or without single-strand DNA (ssDNA) loaded at various process temperatures. Capsid aggregation appeared to involve multiple residue interactions (i.e., hydrophobic, polar and charged residues) leading to complex protein aggregation. In addition, two aggregation mechanisms (i.e., the fivefold face-to-face contact and the edge-to-edge contact) were identified from this study. The ssDNA with its asymmetric structure could be the reason for destabilizing protein subunits and enhancing the interaction between the charged residues, and further result in the non-reversible face-to-face contact. At higher temperature, the capsid structure was found to be unstable with the significant size expansion of the loaded ssDNA which could be attributed to reduced number of intramolecular hydrogen bonds, the increased conformational deviations of protein subunits and the higher residue fluctuations. The CG-MD model was further validated with previous experimental and simulation data, including the full capsid size measurement and the capsid internal pressure. Thus, a good understanding of AAV capsid aggregation, instability and the role of ssDNA were revealed by applying the developed computational model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tibo Duran
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA
| | - Shivangi Naik
- Technical Operations, Sarepta Therapeutics, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
| | - Leila Sharifi
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA
| | - Willow R DiLuzio
- Technical Operations, Sarepta Therapeutics, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
| | - Arani Chanda
- Technical Operations, Sarepta Therapeutics, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
| | - Bodhisattwa Chaudhuri
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA; Department of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA; Institute of Material Sciences (IMS), University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA.
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8
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Donkervoort S, van de Locht M, Ronchi D, Reunert J, McLean CA, Zaki M, Orbach R, de Winter JM, Conijn S, Hoomoedt D, Neto OLA, Magri F, Viaene AN, Foley AR, Gorokhova S, Bolduc V, Hu Y, Acquaye N, Napoli L, Park JH, Immadisetty K, Miles LB, Essawi M, McModie S, Ferreira LF, Zanotti S, Neuhaus SB, Medne L, ElBagoury N, Johnson KR, Zhang Y, Laing NG, Davis MR, Bryson-Richardson RJ, Hwee DT, Hartman JJ, Malik FI, Kekenes-Huskey PM, Comi GP, Sharaf-Eldin W, Marquardt T, Ravenscroft G, Bönnemann CG, Ottenheijm CAC. Pathogenic TNNI1 variants disrupt sarcomere contractility resulting in hypo- and hypercontractile muscle disease. Sci Transl Med 2024; 16:eadg2841. [PMID: 38569017 DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.adg2841] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2023] [Accepted: 03/11/2024] [Indexed: 04/05/2024]
Abstract
Troponin I (TnI) regulates thin filament activation and muscle contraction. Two isoforms, TnI-fast (TNNI2) and TnI-slow (TNNI1), are predominantly expressed in fast- and slow-twitch myofibers, respectively. TNNI2 variants are a rare cause of arthrogryposis, whereas TNNI1 variants have not been conclusively established to cause skeletal myopathy. We identified recessive loss-of-function TNNI1 variants as well as dominant gain-of-function TNNI1 variants as a cause of muscle disease, each with distinct physiological consequences and disease mechanisms. We identified three families with biallelic TNNI1 variants (F1: p.R14H/c.190-9G>A, F2 and F3: homozygous p.R14C), resulting in loss of function, manifesting with early-onset progressive muscle weakness and rod formation on histology. We also identified two families with a dominantly acting heterozygous TNNI1 variant (F4: p.R174Q and F5: p.K176del), resulting in gain of function, manifesting with muscle cramping, myalgias, and rod formation in F5. In zebrafish, TnI proteins with either of the missense variants (p.R14H; p.R174Q) incorporated into thin filaments. Molecular dynamics simulations suggested that the loss-of-function p.R14H variant decouples TnI from TnC, which was supported by functional studies showing a reduced force response of sarcomeres to submaximal [Ca2+] in patient myofibers. This contractile deficit could be reversed by a slow skeletal muscle troponin activator. In contrast, patient myofibers with the gain-of-function p.R174Q variant showed an increased force to submaximal [Ca2+], which was reversed by the small-molecule drug mavacamten. Our findings demonstrated that TNNI1 variants can cause muscle disease with variant-specific pathomechanisms, manifesting as either a hypo- or a hypercontractile phenotype, suggesting rational therapeutic strategies for each mechanism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sandra Donkervoort
- Neuromuscular and Neurogenetic Disorders of Childhood Section, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Martijn van de Locht
- Department of Physiology, Amsterdam UMC (location VUmc), Amsterdam, 1081 HV Netherlands
| | - Dario Ronchi
- Dino Ferrari Center, Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, University of Milan, Milan, 20135, Italy
| | - Janine Reunert
- Department of General Pediatrics, University of Münster, Münster, 48149, Germany
| | - Catriona A McLean
- Department of Anatomical Pathology, Alfred Hospital, Melbourne, Victoria, 3004, Australia
- Faculty of Medicine, Nursing, and Health Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, 3168, Australia
| | - Maha Zaki
- Clinical Genetics Department, Human Genetics and Genome Research Institute, National Research Centre, Cairo, 12622, Egypt
| | - Rotem Orbach
- Neuromuscular and Neurogenetic Disorders of Childhood Section, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Josine M de Winter
- Department of Physiology, Amsterdam UMC (location VUmc), Amsterdam, 1081 HV Netherlands
| | - Stefan Conijn
- Department of Physiology, Amsterdam UMC (location VUmc), Amsterdam, 1081 HV Netherlands
| | - Daan Hoomoedt
- Department of Physiology, Amsterdam UMC (location VUmc), Amsterdam, 1081 HV Netherlands
| | - Osorio Lopes Abath Neto
- Neuromuscular and Neurogenetic Disorders of Childhood Section, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Francesca Magri
- Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Neurology Unit, Milan, 20122, Italy
| | - Angela N Viaene
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, 19104 PA, USA
| | - A Reghan Foley
- Neuromuscular and Neurogenetic Disorders of Childhood Section, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Svetlana Gorokhova
- Neuromuscular and Neurogenetic Disorders of Childhood Section, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
- Department of Medical Genetics, Timone Children's Hospital, APHM, Marseille, 13005, France
- INSERM, U1251-MMG, Aix-Marseille Université, Marseille, 13009, France
| | - Véronique Bolduc
- Neuromuscular and Neurogenetic Disorders of Childhood Section, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Ying Hu
- Neuromuscular and Neurogenetic Disorders of Childhood Section, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Nicole Acquaye
- Neuromuscular and Neurogenetic Disorders of Childhood Section, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Laura Napoli
- Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Neuromuscular and Rare Disease Unit, Milan, 20122, Italy
| | - Julien H Park
- Department of General Pediatrics, University Hospital Münster, Münster, 48149 Germany
| | - Kalyan Immadisetty
- Department of Cell and Molecular Physiology, Loyola University, Chicago, IL 60153, USA
| | - Lee B Miles
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, 3800, Australia
| | - Mona Essawi
- Medical Molecular Genetics Department, Human Genetics and Genome Research Institute, National Research Centre, Cairo, 12622, Egypt
| | - Salar McModie
- Department of Neurology, Alfred Health, Melbourne, Victoria, 3004, Australia
| | - Leonardo F Ferreira
- Department of Physiology, Amsterdam UMC (location VUmc), Amsterdam, 1081 HV Netherlands
- Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Simona Zanotti
- Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Neuromuscular and Rare Disease Unit, Milan, 20122, Italy
| | - Sarah B Neuhaus
- Neuromuscular and Neurogenetic Disorders of Childhood Section, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Livija Medne
- Division of Human Genetics, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Nagham ElBagoury
- Medical Molecular Genetics Department, Human Genetics and Genome Research Institute, National Research Centre, Cairo, 12622, Egypt
| | - Kory R Johnson
- Bioinformatics Core, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Yong Zhang
- Bioinformatics Core, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Nigel G Laing
- Neurogenetics Unit, Department of Diagnostic Genomics, PathWest Laboratory Medicine, QEII Medical Centre, Nedlands, Western Australia, 6009, Australia
- Centre for Medical Research University of Western Australia, Harry Perkins Institute of Medical Research, QEII Medical Centre, Nedlands, Western Australia, 6009, Australia
| | - Mark R Davis
- Neurogenetics Unit, Department of Diagnostic Genomics, PathWest Laboratory Medicine, QEII Medical Centre, Nedlands, Western Australia, 6009, Australia
| | | | - Darren T Hwee
- Research and Development, Cytokinetics Inc., South San Francisco, CA 94080, USA
| | - James J Hartman
- Research and Development, Cytokinetics Inc., South San Francisco, CA 94080, USA
| | - Fady I Malik
- Research and Development, Cytokinetics Inc., South San Francisco, CA 94080, USA
| | | | - Giacomo Pietro Comi
- Dino Ferrari Center, Department of Pathophysiology and Transplantation, University of Milan, Milan, 20135, Italy
- Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Neuromuscular and Rare Disease Unit, Milan, 20122, Italy
| | - Wessam Sharaf-Eldin
- Medical Molecular Genetics Department, Human Genetics and Genome Research Institute, National Research Centre, Cairo, 12622, Egypt
| | - Thorsten Marquardt
- Department of General Pediatrics, University of Münster, Münster, 48149, Germany
| | - Gianina Ravenscroft
- Centre for Medical Research University of Western Australia, Harry Perkins Institute of Medical Research, QEII Medical Centre, Nedlands, Western Australia, 6009, Australia
| | - Carsten G Bönnemann
- Neuromuscular and Neurogenetic Disorders of Childhood Section, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Coen A C Ottenheijm
- Department of Physiology, Amsterdam UMC (location VUmc), Amsterdam, 1081 HV Netherlands
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9
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Arriagada-Diaz J, Flores-Muñoz C, Gómez-Soto B, Labraña-Allende M, Mattar-Araos M, Prado-Vega L, Hinostroza F, Gajardo I, Guerra-Fernández MJ, Bevilacqua JA, Cárdenas AM, Bitoun M, Ardiles AO, Gonzalez-Jamett AM. A centronuclear myopathy-causing mutation in dynamin-2 disrupts neuronal morphology and excitatory synaptic transmission in a murine model of the disease. Neuropathol Appl Neurobiol 2023; 49:e12918. [PMID: 37317811 DOI: 10.1111/nan.12918] [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: 09/12/2022] [Revised: 04/30/2023] [Accepted: 06/02/2023] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
AIMS Dynamin-2 is a large GTPase, a member of the dynamin superfamily that regulates membrane remodelling and cytoskeleton dynamics. Mutations in the dynamin-2 gene (DNM2) cause autosomal dominant centronuclear myopathy (CNM), a congenital neuromuscular disorder characterised by progressive weakness and atrophy of the skeletal muscles. Cognitive defects have been reported in some DNM2-linked CNM patients suggesting that these mutations can also affect the central nervous system (CNS). Here we studied how a dynamin-2 CNM-causing mutation influences the CNS function. METHODS Heterozygous mice harbouring the p.R465W mutation in the dynamin-2 gene (HTZ), the most common causing autosomal dominant CNM, were used as disease model. We evaluated dendritic arborisation and spine density in hippocampal cultured neurons, analysed excitatory synaptic transmission by electrophysiological field recordings in hippocampal slices, and evaluated cognitive function by performing behavioural tests. RESULTS HTZ hippocampal neurons exhibited reduced dendritic arborisation and lower spine density than WT neurons, which was reversed by transfecting an interference RNA against the dynamin-2 mutant allele. Additionally, HTZ mice showed defective hippocampal excitatory synaptic transmission and reduced recognition memory compared to the WT condition. CONCLUSION Our findings suggest that the dynamin-2 p.R465W mutation perturbs the synaptic and cognitive function in a CNM mouse model and support the idea that this GTPase plays a key role in regulating neuronal morphology and excitatory synaptic transmission in the hippocampus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jorge Arriagada-Diaz
- Centro Interdisciplinario de Neurociencia de Valparaíso, Universidad de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile
- Programa de Magister en Ciencias, Mención Neurociencia, Universidad de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile
| | - Carolina Flores-Muñoz
- Centro Interdisciplinario de Neurociencia de Valparaíso, Universidad de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile
| | - Bárbara Gómez-Soto
- Centro Interdisciplinario de Neurociencia de Valparaíso, Universidad de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile
- Programa de Magister en Ciencias Médicas, Mención Biología Celular y Molecular, Universidad de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile
| | - Marjorie Labraña-Allende
- Centro Interdisciplinario de Neurociencia de Valparaíso, Universidad de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile
- Programa de Magister en Ciencias Médicas, Mención Biología Celular y Molecular, Universidad de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile
| | - Michelle Mattar-Araos
- Centro Interdisciplinario de Neurociencia de Valparaíso, Universidad de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile
| | - Lorena Prado-Vega
- Centro Interdisciplinario de Neurociencia de Valparaíso, Universidad de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile
- Programa de Magister en Ciencias, Mención Neurociencia, Universidad de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile
| | - Fernando Hinostroza
- Centro de Investigación de Estudios Avanzados del Maule, CIEAM, Vicerrectoría de Investigación y Postgrado, Universidad Católica del Maule, Talca, Chile
- Centro de Investigación en Neuropsicología y Neurociencias Cognitivas, Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Católica del Maule, Talca, Chile
- Escuela de Química y Farmacia, Departamento de Medicina Traslacional, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Católica del Maule, Talca, Chile
| | - Ivana Gajardo
- Departamento de Biología Celular y Molecular, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | | | - Jorge A Bevilacqua
- Departamento de Neurología y Neurocirugía, Hospital Clínico Universidad de Chile, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Ana M Cárdenas
- Centro Interdisciplinario de Neurociencia de Valparaíso, Universidad de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile
| | - Marc Bitoun
- Sorbonne Université, Inserm, Institut de Myologie, Centre de Recherche en Myologie, Paris, F-75013, France
| | - Alvaro O Ardiles
- Centro Interdisciplinario de Neurociencia de Valparaíso, Universidad de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile
- Centro de Neurología Traslacional, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile
- Centro Interdisciplinario de Estudios en Salud, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Valparaíso, Viña del Mar, Chile
| | - Arlek M Gonzalez-Jamett
- Centro Interdisciplinario de Neurociencia de Valparaíso, Universidad de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile
- Escuela de Química y Farmacia, Facultad de Farmacia, Universidad de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile
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10
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Buckner J, Liu X, Chakravorty A, Wu Y, Cervantes LF, Lai TT, Brooks CL. pyCHARMM: Embedding CHARMM Functionality in a Python Framework. J Chem Theory Comput 2023; 19:3752-3762. [PMID: 37267404 PMCID: PMC10504603 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jctc.3c00364] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
CHARMM is rich in methodology and functionality as one of the first programs addressing problems of molecular dynamics and modeling of biological macromolecules and their partners, e.g., small molecule ligands. When combined with the highly developed CHARMM parameters for proteins, nucleic acids, small molecules, lipids, sugars, and other biologically relevant building blocks, and the versatile CHARMM scripting language, CHARMM has been a trendsetting platform for modeling studies of biological macromolecules. To further enhance the utility of accessing and using CHARMM functionality in increasingly complex workflows associated with modeling biological systems, we introduce pyCHARMM, Python bindings, functions, and modules to complement and extend the extensive set of modeling tools and methods already available in CHARMM. These include access to CHARMM function-generated variables associated with the system (psf), coordinates, velocities and forces, atom selection variables, and force field related parameters. The ability to augment CHARMM forces and energies with energy terms or methods derived from machine learning or other sources, written in Python, CUDA, or OpenCL and expressed as Python callable routines is introduced together with analogous functions callable during dynamics calculations. Integration of Python-based graphical engines for visualization of simulation models and results is also accessible. Loosely coupled parallelism is available for workflows such as free energy calculations, using MBAR/TI approaches or high-throughput multisite λ-dynamics (MSλD) free energy methods, string path optimization calculations, replica exchange, and molecular docking with a new Python-based CDOCKER module. CHARMM accelerated platform kernels through the CHARMM/OpenMM API, CHARMM/DOMDEC, and CHARMM/BLaDE API are also readily integrated into this Python framework. We anticipate that pyCHARMM will be a robust platform for the development of comprehensive and complex workflows utilizing Python and its extensive functionality as well as an optimal platform for users to learn molecular modeling methods and practices within a Python-friendly environment such as Jupyter Notebooks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joshua Buckner
- Department of Chemistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
| | - Xiaorong Liu
- Department of Chemistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
| | | | - Yujin Wu
- Department of Chemistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
| | - Luis F. Cervantes
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
| | - Thanh T. Lai
- Biophysics Program, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
| | - Charles L. Brooks
- Department of Chemistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
- Biophysics Program, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
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11
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Van Dinh Q, Liu J, Dutta P. Effect of Slp4-a on Membrane Bending During Prefusion of Vesicles in Blood-Brain Barrier. J Biomech Eng 2023; 145:011006. [PMID: 35838328 PMCID: PMC9445323 DOI: 10.1115/1.4054985] [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: 03/10/2022] [Revised: 07/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Vesicle exocytosis is a promising pathway for brain drug delivery through the blood-brain barrier to treat neurodegenerative diseases. In vesicle exocytosis, the membrane fusion process is initiated by the calcium sensor protein named synaptotagmin-like protein4-a (Slp4-a). Understanding conformational changes of Slp4-a during the prefusion stage of exocytosis will help to develop vesicle-based drug delivery to the brain. In this work, we use molecular dynamics (MD) simulations with a hybrid force field coupling united-atom protein model with MARTINI coarse-grained (CG) solvent to capture the conformational changes of Slp4-a during the prefusion stage. These hybrid coarse-grained simulations are more efficient than all-atom MD simulations and can capture protein interactions and conformational changes. Our simulation results show that the calcium ions play critical roles during the prefusion stage. Only one calcium ion can remain in each calcium-binding pocket of Slp4-a C2 domains. The C2B domain of calcium-unbound Slp4-a remains parallel to the endothelial membrane, while the C2B domain of calcium-bound Slp4-a rotates perpendicular to the endothelial membrane to approach the vesicular membrane. For the calcium-bound case, three Slp4-a proteins can effectively bend lipid membranes at the prefusion stage, which could later trigger lipid stalk between membranes. This work provides a better understanding how C2 domains of Slp4-a operate during vesicle exocytosis from an endothelial cell.
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Affiliation(s)
- Quyen Van Dinh
- School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-2920
| | - Jin Liu
- School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-2920
| | - Prashanta Dutta
- School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-2920
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12
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Pantaleão SQ, Camillo LDMB, Neves TC, Menezes IDG, Stangherlin LM, Batista HBDCR, Poole E, Nevels M, Philot EA, Scott AL, Carlan da Silva MC. Molecular modelling of the HCMV IL-10 protein isoforms and analysis of their interaction with the human IL-10 receptor. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0277953. [PMID: 36441804 PMCID: PMC9704672 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0277953] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2022] [Accepted: 11/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
The human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) UL111A gene encodes several homologs of the cellular interleukin 10 (cIL-10). Alternative splicing in the UL111A region produces two relatively well-characterized transcripts designated cmvIL-10 (isoform A) and LAcmvIL-10 (isoform B). The cmvIL-10 protein is the best characterized, both structurally and functionally, and has many immunosuppressive activities similar to cIL-10, while LAcmvIL-10 has more restricted biological activities. Alternative splicing also results in five less studied UL111A transcripts encoding additional proteins homologous to cIL-10 (isoforms C to G). These transcripts were identified during productive HCMV infection of MRC-5 cells with the high passage laboratory adapted AD169 strain, and the structure and properties of the corresponding proteins are largely unknown. Moreover, it is unclear whether these protein isoforms are able to bind the cellular IL-10 receptor and induce signalling. In the present study, we investigated the expression spectrum of UL111A transcripts in fully permissive MRC-5 cells and semi permissive U251 cells infected with the low passage HCMV strain TB40E. We identified a new spliced transcript (H) expressed during productive infection. Using computational methods, we carried out molecular modelling studies on the three-dimensional structures of the HCMV IL-10 proteins encoded by the transcripts detected in our work (cmvIL-10 (A), LAcmvIL-10 (B), E, F and H) and on their interaction with the human IL-10 receptor (IL-10R1). The modelling predicts clear differences between the isoform structures. Furthermore, the in silico simulations (molecular dynamics simulation and normal-mode analyses) allowed us to evaluate regions that contain potential receptor binding sites in each isoform. The analyses demonstrate that the complexes between the isoforms and IL-10R1 present different types of molecular interactions and consequently different affinities and stabilities. The knowledge about structure and expression of specific viral IL-10 isoforms has implications for understanding of their properties and role in HCMV immune evasion and pathogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Tainan Cerqueira Neves
- Center for Natural and Humanities Sciences, Federal University of ABC, São Bernardo do Campo, Brazil
| | - Isabela de Godoy Menezes
- Center for Natural and Humanities Sciences, Federal University of ABC, São Bernardo do Campo, Brazil
| | - Lucas Matheus Stangherlin
- Center for Natural and Humanities Sciences, Federal University of ABC, São Bernardo do Campo, Brazil
| | | | - Emma Poole
- Department of Medicine, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Michael Nevels
- School of Biology, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, United Kingdom
| | - Eric Alisson Philot
- Center for Mathematics, Computing and Cognition, Federal University of ABC, Santo André, Brazil
| | - Ana Ligia Scott
- Center for Mathematics, Computing and Cognition, Federal University of ABC, Santo André, Brazil
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13
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Aboukhatwa SM, Ibrahim AO, Aoyama H, Al-Behery AS, Shaldam MA, El-Ashmawy G, Tawfik HO. Nicotinonitrile-derived apoptotic inducers: Design, synthesis, X-ray crystal structure and Pim kinase inhibition. Bioorg Chem 2022; 129:106126. [PMID: 36108589 DOI: 10.1016/j.bioorg.2022.106126] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2022] [Revised: 08/24/2022] [Accepted: 09/01/2022] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Although a plethora of targeted anticancer small molecule drugs became available, the low response rate and drug resistance imply the continuous need for expanding the anticancer chemical space. In this study, a novel series of nicotinonitrile derivatives was designed, synthesized and evaluated for cytotoxic activities in HepG2 and MCF-7 cells. All derivatives showed high to moderate cytotoxic activity against both cell lines, with cell-type and chemotype-dependent cytotoxic potential. The normal HEK-293 T cells were ca. 50-fold less susceptible to the cytotoxic effect of the inhibitors. The in vitro enzyme inhibitory activity of selected active cytotoxic derivatives 8c, 8e, 9a, 9e and 12 showed that they have sub- to one digit micromolar 50 % inhibitory concentration (IC50) against the three Pim kinase isoforms, with 8e being the most potent (IC50 ≤ 0.28 μM against three Pim kinases), comparable to the pan kinase inhibitor, Staurosporine. In HepG2, 8e induced cell cycle arrest at the G2/M phase. Apoptotic mechanistic studies with 8c and 8e in HepG2 cells, indicated a significant upregulation in both P53 and caspase-3 relative gene expression, as well as increased Bax/Bcl-2 protein expression level. Further, docking studies combined with molecular dynamic simulation showed a stable complex with high binding affinity of 8e to Pim-1 kinase; exploiting a negative electrostatic potential surface interaction with the added dimethyl amino group in the new compounds. Moreover, in silico ADME profile prediction indicated that all compounds are orally bioavailable and most of them can penetrate the blood-brain barrier. This study presents novel nicotinonitrile derivatives as auspicious hits for further optimization as antiproliferative agents against liver cancer cells and promising pan Pim kinase inhibitors at submicromolar concentrations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shaimaa M Aboukhatwa
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Tanta University, Tanta 31527, Egypt.
| | - Amera O Ibrahim
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Tanta University, Tanta 31527, Egypt
| | - Hiroshi Aoyama
- Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University, 1-6 Yamadaoka, Suita, Osaka, 565-0871, Japan
| | - Ahmed S Al-Behery
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Tanta University, Tanta 31527, Egypt
| | - Moataz A Shaldam
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Kafrelsheikh University, Kafrelsheikh 33516, Egypt
| | - Ghada El-Ashmawy
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Tanta University, Tanta 31527, Egypt
| | - Haytham O Tawfik
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Tanta University, Tanta 31527, Egypt
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14
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Larsen AH. Molecular Dynamics Simulations of Curved Lipid Membranes. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:8098. [PMID: 35897670 PMCID: PMC9331392 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23158098] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2022] [Revised: 07/19/2022] [Accepted: 07/20/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Eukaryotic cells contain membranes with various curvatures, from the near-plane plasma membrane to the highly curved membranes of organelles, vesicles, and membrane protrusions. These curvatures are generated and sustained by curvature-inducing proteins, peptides, and lipids, and describing these mechanisms is an important scientific challenge. In addition to that, some molecules can sense membrane curvature and thereby be trafficked to specific locations. The description of curvature sensing is another fundamental challenge. Curved lipid membranes and their interplay with membrane-associated proteins can be investigated with molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. Various methods for simulating curved membranes with MD are discussed here, including tools for setting up simulation of vesicles and methods for sustaining membrane curvature. The latter are divided into methods that exploit scaffolding virtual beads, methods that use curvature-inducing molecules, and methods applying virtual forces. The variety of simulation tools allow researcher to closely match the conditions of experimental studies of membrane curvatures.
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15
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Marrink SJ, Monticelli L, Melo MN, Alessandri R, Tieleman DP, Souza PCT. Two decades of Martini: Better beads, broader scope. WIRES COMPUTATIONAL MOLECULAR SCIENCE 2022. [DOI: 10.1002/wcms.1620] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Siewert J. Marrink
- Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute & Zernike Institute for Advanced Materials University of Groningen Groningen The Netherlands
| | - Luca Monticelli
- Molecular Microbiology and Structural Biochemistry (MMSB ‐ UMR 5086) CNRS & University of Lyon Lyon France
| | - Manuel N. Melo
- Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica António Xavier, Universidade Nova de Lisboa Oeiras Portugal
| | - Riccardo Alessandri
- Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering University of Chicago Chicago Illinois USA
| | - D. Peter Tieleman
- Centre for Molecular Simulation and Department of Biological Sciences University of Calgary Alberta Canada
| | - Paulo C. T. Souza
- Molecular Microbiology and Structural Biochemistry (MMSB ‐ UMR 5086) CNRS & University of Lyon Lyon France
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16
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Hashemi M, Lyubchenko YL. Hybrid resolution molecular dynamics simulations of amyloid proteins interacting with membranes. Methods 2022; 197:89-96. [PMID: 33727072 PMCID: PMC8435541 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymeth.2021.03.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2021] [Accepted: 03/08/2021] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
A broad range of human diseases, including Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases, arise from or have as key players intrinsically disordered proteins. The aggregation of these amyloid proteins into fibrillar aggregates are the key events of such diseases. Characterizing the conformation dynamics of the proteins involved is crucial for understanding the molecular mechanisms of aggregation, which in turn is important for drug development efforts against these diseases. Computational approaches have provided extensive detail about some steps of the aggregation process, however the biologically relevant elements responsible for the aggregation and or aggregation propagation have not been fully characterized. Here we describe a hybrid resolution molecular dynamics simulation method that can be employed to investigate the interaction of amyloid proteins with lipid membranes, shown to dramatically accelerate the aggregation propensity of amyloid proteins. The hybrid resolution method enables routine and accurate simulation of multi-protein and complex membrane systems, mimicking biologically relevant lipid membranes, on microsecond time scales. The hybrid resolution method was applied to computer modeling of the interactions of α -synuclein protein with a mixed lipid bilayer.
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17
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Prates ET, Garvin MR, Jones P, Miller JI, Sullivan KA, Cliff A, Gazolla JGFM, Shah MB, Walker AM, Lane M, Rentsch CT, Justice A, Pavicic M, Romero J, Jacobson D. Antiviral Strategies Against SARS-CoV-2: A Systems Biology Approach. Methods Mol Biol 2022; 2452:317-351. [PMID: 35554915 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-2111-0_19] [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: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
The unprecedented scientific achievements in combating the COVID-19 pandemic reflect a global response informed by unprecedented access to data. We now have the ability to rapidly generate a diversity of information on an emerging pathogen and, by using high-performance computing and a systems biology approach, we can mine this wealth of information to understand the complexities of viral pathogenesis and contagion like never before. These efforts will aid in the development of vaccines, antiviral medications, and inform policymakers and clinicians. Here we detail computational protocols developed as SARS-CoV-2 began to spread across the globe. They include pathogen detection, comparative structural proteomics, evolutionary adaptation analysis via network and artificial intelligence methodologies, and multiomic integration. These protocols constitute a core framework on which to build a systems-level infrastructure that can be quickly brought to bear on future pathogens before they evolve into pandemic proportions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erica T Prates
- Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Computational Systems Biology, Oak Ridge, TN, USA
- National Virtual Biotechnology Laboratory, US Department of Energy, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Michael R Garvin
- Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Computational Systems Biology, Oak Ridge, TN, USA
- National Virtual Biotechnology Laboratory, US Department of Energy, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Piet Jones
- The Bredesen Center for Interdisciplinary Research and Graduate Education, University of Tennessee Knoxville, Knoxville, TN, USA
| | - J Izaak Miller
- Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Computational Systems Biology, Oak Ridge, TN, USA
- National Virtual Biotechnology Laboratory, US Department of Energy, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Kyle A Sullivan
- Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Computational Systems Biology, Oak Ridge, TN, USA
- National Virtual Biotechnology Laboratory, US Department of Energy, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Ashley Cliff
- The Bredesen Center for Interdisciplinary Research and Graduate Education, University of Tennessee Knoxville, Knoxville, TN, USA
| | - Joao Gabriel Felipe Machado Gazolla
- Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Computational Systems Biology, Oak Ridge, TN, USA
- National Virtual Biotechnology Laboratory, US Department of Energy, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Manesh B Shah
- Genome Science and Technology, University of Tennessee Knoxville, Knoxville, TN, USA
| | - Angelica M Walker
- The Bredesen Center for Interdisciplinary Research and Graduate Education, University of Tennessee Knoxville, Knoxville, TN, USA
| | - Matthew Lane
- The Bredesen Center for Interdisciplinary Research and Graduate Education, University of Tennessee Knoxville, Knoxville, TN, USA
| | - Christopher T Rentsch
- Faculty of Epidemiology and Population Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK
- VA Connecticut Healthcare/General Internal Medicine, West Haven, CT, USA
| | - Amy Justice
- VA Connecticut Healthcare/General Internal Medicine, West Haven, CT, USA
- Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Mirko Pavicic
- Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Computational Systems Biology, Oak Ridge, TN, USA
- National Virtual Biotechnology Laboratory, US Department of Energy, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Jonathon Romero
- The Bredesen Center for Interdisciplinary Research and Graduate Education, University of Tennessee Knoxville, Knoxville, TN, USA
| | - Daniel Jacobson
- Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Computational Systems Biology, Oak Ridge, TN, USA.
- National Virtual Biotechnology Laboratory, US Department of Energy, Washington, DC, USA.
- The Bredesen Center for Interdisciplinary Research and Graduate Education, University of Tennessee Knoxville, Knoxville, TN, USA.
- Genome Science and Technology, University of Tennessee Knoxville, Knoxville, TN, USA.
- Department of Psychology, NeuroNet Research Center, University of Tennessee Knoxville, Knoxville, TN, USA.
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18
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Quantum Calculations on Ion Channels: Why Are They More Useful Than Classical Calculations, and for Which Processes Are They Essential? Symmetry (Basel) 2021. [DOI: 10.3390/sym13040655] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
There are reasons to consider quantum calculations to be necessary for ion channels, for two types of reasons. The calculations must account for charge transfer, and the possible switching of hydrogen bonds, which are very difficult with classical force fields. Without understanding charge transfer and hydrogen bonding in detail, the channel cannot be understood. Thus, although classical approximations to the correct force fields are possible, they are unable to reproduce at least some details of the behavior of a system that has atomic scale. However, there is a second class of effects that is essentially quantum mechanical. There are two types of such phenomena: exchange and correlation energies, which have no classical analogues, and tunneling. Tunneling, an intrinsically quantum phenomenon, may well play a critical role in initiating a proton cascade critical to gating. As there is no classical analogue of tunneling, this cannot be approximated classically. Finally, there are energy terms, exchange and correlation energy, whose values can be approximated classically, but these approximations must be subsumed within classical terms, and as a result, will not have the correct dependence on interatomic distances. Charge transfer, and tunneling, require quantum calculations for ion channels. Some results of quantum calculations are shown.
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Lee J, Hitzenberger M, Rieger M, Kern NR, Zacharias M, Im W. CHARMM-GUI supports the Amber force fields. J Chem Phys 2021; 153:035103. [PMID: 32716185 DOI: 10.1063/5.0012280] [Citation(s) in RCA: 158] [Impact Index Per Article: 52.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
As part of our ongoing efforts to support diverse force fields and simulation programs in CHARMM-GUI, this work presents the development of FF-Converter to prepare Amber simulation inputs with various Amber force fields within the current CHARMM-GUI workflow. The currently supported Amber force fields are ff14SB/ff19SB (protein), Bsc1 (DNA), OL3 (RNA), GLYCAM06 (carbohydrate), Lipid17 (lipid), GAFF/GAFF2 (small molecule), TIP3P/TIP4P-EW/OPC (water), and 12-6-4 ions, and more will be added if necessary. The robustness and usefulness of this new CHARMM-GUI extension are demonstrated by two exemplary systems: a protein/N-glycan/ligand/membrane system and a protein/DNA/RNA system. Currently, CHARMM-GUI supports the Amber force fields only for the Amber program, but we will expand the FF-Converter functionality to support other simulation programs that support the Amber force fields.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jumin Lee
- Departments of Biological Sciences, Chemistry, and Bioengineering, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18015, USA
| | - Manuel Hitzenberger
- Physics Department (T38), Technical University of Munich, James-Franck-Str. 1, 85748 Garching, Germany
| | - Manuel Rieger
- Physics Department (T38), Technical University of Munich, James-Franck-Str. 1, 85748 Garching, Germany
| | - Nathan R Kern
- Departments of Biological Sciences, Chemistry, and Bioengineering, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18015, USA
| | - Martin Zacharias
- Physics Department (T38), Technical University of Munich, James-Franck-Str. 1, 85748 Garching, Germany
| | - Wonpil Im
- Departments of Biological Sciences, Chemistry, and Bioengineering, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18015, USA
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20
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Van Dinh Q, Liu J, Dutta P. Effect of Calcium ion on synaptotagmin-like protein during pre-fusion of vesicle for exocytosis in blood-brain barrier. Biochem Biophys Rep 2020; 24:100845. [PMID: 33235924 PMCID: PMC7670242 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbrep.2020.100845] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2020] [Revised: 10/13/2020] [Accepted: 10/27/2020] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Calcium signaling and membrane fusion play key roles in exocytosis of drug-containing vesicles through the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Identifying the role of synaptotagmin-like protein4-a (Slp4-a) in the presence of Ca2+ ions, at the pre-fusion stage of a vesicle with the basolateral membrane of endothelial cell, can reveal brain drug transportation across BBB. Methods We utilized molecular dynamics (MD) simulations with a coarse-grained PACE force field to investigate the behaviors of Slp4-a with vesicular and endothelial membranes at the pre-fusion stage of exocytosis since all-atom MD simulation or experiments are more time-consuming and expensive to capture these behaviors. Results The Slp4-a pulls lipid membranes (vesicular and endothelial) into close proximity and disorganizes lipid arrangement at contact points, which are predictors for initiation of fusion. Our MD results also indicate that Slp4-a needs Ca2+ to bind with weakly-charged POPE lipids (phosphatidylethanolamine). Conclusions Slp4-a is an important trigger for membrane fusion in BBB exocytosis. It binds to lipid membranes at multiple binding sites and triggers membrane disruption for fusion in calcium-dependent case. General significance Understanding the prefusion process of the vesicle will help to design better drug delivery mechanisms to the brain through formidable BBB. Role of Ca2+ on Slp4-a is studied for vesicle pre-fusion in EC to initiate exocytosis. Coarse-grained MD is used to study large scale conformation change of Slp-4a. Interaction between C2A domain and lipids is much stronger than that of C2B. Slp4-a can bind to bilayer membrane in Ca2+-bound case to close membrane gap.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Prashanta Dutta
- Corresponding author. School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, 99164, USA.
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21
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Faya M, Hazzah HA, Omolo CA, Agrawal N, Maji R, Walvekar P, Mocktar C, Nkambule B, Rambharose S, Albericio F, de la Torre BG, Govender T. Novel formulation of antimicrobial peptides enhances antimicrobial activity against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Amino Acids 2020; 52:1439-1457. [PMID: 33074344 DOI: 10.1007/s00726-020-02903-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2020] [Accepted: 10/12/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) have the ability to penetrate as well as transport cargo across bacterial cell membranes, and they have been labeled as exceptional candidates to function in drug delivery. The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of novel formulation of AMPs for enhanced MRSA activity. The strategy was carried out through the formulation of liposomes by thin-layer film hydration methodology, containing phosphatidylcholine, cholesterol, oleic acid, the novel AMP, as well as vancomycin (VCM). Characterization of the AMPs and liposomes included HPLC and LCMS for peptide purity and mass determination; DLS (size, polydispersity, zeta potential), TEM (surface morphology), dialysis (drug release), broth dilution, and flow cytometry (antibacterial activity); MTT assay, haemolysis and intracellular antibacterial studies. The size, PDI, and zeta potential of the drug-loaded AMP2-Lipo-1 were 102.6 ± 1.81 nm, 0.157 ± 0.01, and - 9.81 ± 1.69 mV, respectively, while for AMP3-Lipo-2 drug-loaded formulation, it was 146.4 ± 1.90 nm, 0.412 ± 0.05, and - 4.27 ± 1.25 mV respectively at pH 7.4. However, in acidic pH for both formulations, we observed an increase in size, PDI, and a switch to positive zeta potential, which indicated the pH responsiveness of our liposomal systems. The in vitro drug release studies demonstrated that liposomal formulations released VCM-HCl at a faster rate at pH 6.0 compared to pH 7.4. In vitro antibacterial activity against S. aureus and MRSA revealed that liposomes had enhanced activity at pH 6 compared to pH 7.4. The study revealed that the formulation can potentially be used to enhance activity and penetration of AMPs, thereby improving the treatment of bacterial infections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mbuso Faya
- Discipline of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Health Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Private Bag, Durban, X54001, South Africa
| | - Heba A Hazzah
- Peptide Science Laboratory, School of Chemistry and Physics, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 4001, South Africa.,KwaZulu-Natal Research Innovation and Sequencing Platform (KRISP), School of Laboratory Medicine and Medical Sciences, College of Health Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal Durban, Durban, 4041, South Africa
| | - Calvin A Omolo
- Discipline of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Health Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Private Bag, Durban, X54001, South Africa.,Department of Pharmaceutics, School of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, United States International University-Africa, P. O. Box 14634-00800, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Nikhi Agrawal
- Discipline of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Health Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Private Bag, Durban, X54001, South Africa
| | - Ruma Maji
- Discipline of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Health Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Private Bag, Durban, X54001, South Africa
| | - Pavan Walvekar
- Discipline of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Health Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Private Bag, Durban, X54001, South Africa
| | - Chunderika Mocktar
- Discipline of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Health Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Private Bag, Durban, X54001, South Africa
| | - Bongani Nkambule
- School of Laboratory Medicine and Medical Sciences, College of Health Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Private Bag, Durban, X54001, South Africa
| | - Sanjeev Rambharose
- Department of Surgery, Division of Emergency Medicine, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Fernando Albericio
- Peptide Science Laboratory, School of Chemistry and Physics, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 4001, South Africa
| | - Beatriz G de la Torre
- KwaZulu-Natal Research Innovation and Sequencing Platform (KRISP), School of Laboratory Medicine and Medical Sciences, College of Health Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal Durban, Durban, 4041, South Africa
| | - Thirumala Govender
- Discipline of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Health Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Private Bag, Durban, X54001, South Africa.
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22
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Lam K, Tajkhorshid E. Membrane Interactions of Cy3 and Cy5 Fluorophores and Their Effects on Membrane-Protein Dynamics. Biophys J 2020; 119:24-34. [PMID: 32533943 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpj.2020.05.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2020] [Revised: 04/28/2020] [Accepted: 05/11/2020] [Indexed: 10/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Organic fluorophores, such as Cy3 and Cy5, have been widely used as chemical labels to probe the structure and dynamics of membrane proteins. Although a number of previous studies have reported on the possibility of some of the water-soluble fluorophores to interact with lipid bilayers, detailed fluorophore-lipid interactions and, more importantly, the potential effect of such interactions on the natural dynamics of the labeled membrane proteins have not been well studied. We have performed a large set of all-atom molecular dynamics simulations employing the highly mobile membrane mimetic model to describe spontaneous partitioning of the fluorophores into lipid bilayers with different lipid compositions. Spontaneous membrane partitioning of Cy3 and Cy5 fluorophores captured in these simulations proceeds in two steps. Electrostatic interaction between the fluorophores and the lipid headgroups facilitates the initial, fast membrane association of the fluorophores, followed by slow insertion of hydrophobic moieties into the lipid bilayer core. After the conversion of the resulting membrane-bound systems to full-membrane representations, biased-exchange umbrella sampling simulations are performed for free energy calculations, revealing a higher energy barrier for partitioning into negatively charged (phosphatidylserine or phosphatidylcholine) membranes than purely zwitterionic (phosphatidylcholine or phosphatidylethanolamine) ones. Furthermore, the potential effect of fluorophore-lipid interactions on membrane proteins has been examined by covalently linking Cy5 to single- and multipass transmembrane helical proteins. Equilibrium simulations show strong position-dependent effects of Cy5-tagging on the structure and natural dynamics of membrane proteins. Interactions between the tagged protein and Cy5 were also observed. Our results suggest that fluorophore-lipid interactions can affect the structure and dynamics of membrane proteins to various extents, especially in systems with higher structural flexibility.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kin Lam
- Department of Physics, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois; Department of Biochemistry, NIH Center for Macromolecular Modeling and Bioinformatics, Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois
| | - Emad Tajkhorshid
- Center for Biophysics and Quantitative Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois; Department of Biochemistry, NIH Center for Macromolecular Modeling and Bioinformatics, Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois.
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23
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Jewel Y, Van Dinh Q, Liu J, Dutta P. Substrate-dependent transport mechanism in AcrB of multidrug resistant bacteria. Proteins 2020; 88:853-864. [PMID: 31998988 DOI: 10.1002/prot.25877] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2019] [Revised: 01/07/2020] [Accepted: 01/25/2020] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
The multidrug resistance (MDR) system effectively expels antibiotics out of bacteria causing serious issues during bacterial infection. In addition to drug, indole, a common metabolic waste of bacteria, is expelled by MDR system of gram-negative bacteria for their survival. Experimental results suggest that AcrB, one of the key components of MDR system, undergoes large scale conformation changes during the pumping due to proton-motive process. However, due to extremely short time scale, it is difficult to observe (experimentally) those changes in the AcrB, which might facilitate the pumping process. Molecular simulations can shed light to understand the conformational changes for transport of indole in AcrB. Examination of conformational changes using all-atom simulation is, however, impractical. Here, we develop a hybrid coarse-grained force field to study the conformational changes of AcrB in presence of indole in the porter domain of monomer II. Using the coarse-grained force field, we investigated the conformational changes of AcrB for a number of model systems considering the effect of protonation in aspartic acid (Asp) residues Asp407 and Asp408 in the transmembrane domain of monomer II. Our results show that in the presence of indole, protonation of Asp408 or Asp407 residue causes conformational changes from binding state to extrusion state in monomer II, while remaining two monomers (I and III) approach access state in AcrB protein. We also observed that all three AcrB monomers prefer to go back to access state in the absence of indole. Steered molecular dynamics simulations were performed to demonstrate the feasibility of indole transport mechanism for protonated systems. Identification of indole transport pathway through AcrB can be very helpful in understanding the drug efflux mechanism used by the MDR bacteria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yead Jewel
- School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington
| | - Quyen Van Dinh
- School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington
| | - Jin Liu
- School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington
| | - Prashanta Dutta
- School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington
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24
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Hashemzadeh H, Javadi H, Darvishi MH. Study of Structural stability and formation mechanisms in DSPC and DPSM liposomes: A coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulation. Sci Rep 2020; 10:1837. [PMID: 32020000 PMCID: PMC7000798 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-58730-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2019] [Accepted: 01/19/2020] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Liposomes or biological vesicles can be created from cholesterol, phospholipid, and water. Their stability is affected by their phospholipid composition which can influence disease treatment and drug delivery efficacy. In this study, the effect of phospholipid type on the formation and stability of liposomes using coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations is investigated. For this purpose, the simulation study of the DSPC (1,2-distearoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine) and DPSM (Egg sphingomyelin) lipids were considered. All simulations were carried out using the Gromacs software and Martini force field 2.2. Energy minimization (3000 steps) model, equilibrium at constant volume to adjust the temperature at 400 Kelvin and equilibrium at constant pressure to adjust the pressure, at atmospheric pressure (1 bar) have been validated. Microsecond simulations, as well as formation analysis including density, radial distribution function, and solvent accessible surface area, demonstrated spherical nanodisc structures for the DPSM and DSPC liposomes. The results revealed that due to the cylindrical geometric structure and small-size head group, the DSPC lipid maintained its perfectly spherical structure. However, the DPSM lipid showed a conical geometric structure with larger head group than other lipids, which allows the liposome to form a micelle structure. Although the DSPC and DPSM lipids used in the laboratory tests exhibit liposome and micelle behaviors, the simulation results revealed their nanodisc structures. Energy analysis including overall energy, Van der Waals interaction energy, and electrostatic interaction energy showed that DPSM liposome is more stable than DSPC liposome.
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Affiliation(s)
- H Hashemzadeh
- Nanobiotechnology Department, Faculty of Bioscience, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran
| | - H Javadi
- Nanobiotechnology Research Center, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - M H Darvishi
- Nanobiotechnology Research Center, Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
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25
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Wang J, Tang X, Zhang Y, Li Y, Zhu L, Zhang Q, Wang W. How to complete the tautomerization and substrate-assisted activation prior to C–C bond fission by meta-cleavage product hydrolase LigY? Catal Sci Technol 2020. [DOI: 10.1039/d0cy01102a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Two feasible binding modes could complete the C–C bond fission of the substrate. One is the bidentate mode and five-coordination, and the other is the monodentate mode and five-coordination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junjie Wang
- Environment Research Institute
- Shandong University
- Qingdao 266237
- P. R. China
| | - Xiaowen Tang
- School of Pharmaceutical Sciences
- Sun Yat-sen University
- Guangzhou 510006
- P. R. China
| | - Yixin Zhang
- Environment Research Institute
- Shandong University
- Qingdao 266237
- P. R. China
| | - Yanwei Li
- Environment Research Institute
- Shandong University
- Qingdao 266237
- P. R. China
| | - Ledong Zhu
- Environment Research Institute
- Shandong University
- Qingdao 266237
- P. R. China
| | - Qingzhu Zhang
- Environment Research Institute
- Shandong University
- Qingdao 266237
- P. R. China
| | - Wenxing Wang
- Environment Research Institute
- Shandong University
- Qingdao 266237
- P. R. China
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26
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Exploration of the Misfolding Mechanism of Transthyretin Monomer: Insights from Hybrid-Resolution Simulations and Markov State Model Analysis. Biomolecules 2019; 9:biom9120889. [PMID: 31861226 PMCID: PMC6995605 DOI: 10.3390/biom9120889] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2019] [Revised: 12/13/2019] [Accepted: 12/15/2019] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Misfolding and aggregation of transthyretin (TTR) is widely known to be responsible for a progressive systemic disorder called amyloid transthyretin (ATTR) amyloidosis. Studies suggest that TTR aggregation is initiated by a rate-limiting dissociation of the homo-tetramer into its monomers, which can rapidly misfold and self-assemble into amyloid fibril. Thus, exploring conformational change involved in TTR monomer misfolding is of vital importance for understanding the pathogenesis of ATTR amyloidosis. In this work, microsecond timescale hybrid-resolution molecular dynamics (MD) simulations combined with Markov state model (MSM) analysis were performed to investigate the misfolding mechanism of the TTR monomer. The results indicate that a macrostate with partially unfolded conformations may serve as the misfolded state of the TTR monomer. This misfolded state was extremely stable with a very large equilibrium probability of about 85.28%. With secondary structure analysis, we found the DAGH sheet in this state to be significantly destroyed. The CBEF sheet was relatively stable and sheet structure was maintained. However, the F-strand in this sheet was likely to move away from E-strand and reform a new β-sheet with the H-strand. This observation is consistent with experimental finding that F and H strands in the outer edge drive the misfolding of TTR. Finally, transition pathways from a near native state to this misfolded macrostate showed that the conformational transition can occur either through a native-like β-sheet intermediates or through partially unfolded intermediates, while the later appears to be the main pathway. As a whole, we identified a potential misfolded state of the TTR monomer and elucidated the misfolding pathway for its conformational transition. This work can provide a valuable theoretical basis for understanding of TTR aggregation and the pathogenesis of ATTR amyloidosis at the atomic level.
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27
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Bouvier B. Curvature as a Collective Coordinate in Enhanced Sampling Membrane Simulations. J Chem Theory Comput 2019; 15:6551-6561. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.jctc.9b00716] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin Bouvier
- Laboratoire de Glycochimie, des Antimicrobiens et des Agroressources, CNRS UMR7378/Université de Picardie Jules Verne, 10, rue Baudelocque, 80039 Amiens Cedex, France
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28
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Qi Y, Lee J, Klauda JB, Im W. CHARMM-GUI Nanodisc Builder for modeling and simulation of various nanodisc systems. J Comput Chem 2019; 40:893-899. [PMID: 30677169 DOI: 10.1002/jcc.25773] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2018] [Revised: 12/05/2018] [Accepted: 12/11/2018] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
Nanodiscs are discoidal protein-lipid complexes that have wide applications in membrane protein studies. Modeling and simulation of nanodiscs are challenging due to the absence of structures of many membrane scaffold proteins (MSPs) that wrap around the membrane bilayer. We have developed CHARMM-GUI Nanodisc Builder (http://www.charmm-gui.org/input/nanodisc) to facilitate the setup of nanodisc simulation systems by modeling the MSPs with defined size and known structural features. A total of 11 different nanodiscs with a diameter from 80 to 180 Å are made available in both the all-atom CHARMM and two coarse-grained (PACE and Martini) force fields. The usage of the Nanodisc Builder is demonstrated with various simulation systems. The structures and dynamics of proteins and lipids in these systems were analyzed, showing similar behaviors to those from previous all-atom and coarse-grained nanodisc simulations. We expect the Nanodisc Builder to be a convenient and reliable tool for modeling and simulation of nanodisc systems. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yifei Qi
- Shanghai Engineering Research Center of Molecular Therapeutics and New Drug Development, School of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, East China Normal University, Shanghai, 200062, China
| | - Jumin Lee
- Departments of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania
| | - Jeffery B Klauda
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and the Biophysics Program, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland
| | - Wonpil Im
- Departments of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania
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29
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Choi MK, Kim H, Lee BH, Kim T, Rho J, Kim MK, Kim K. Understanding carbon nanotube channel formation in the lipid membrane. NANOTECHNOLOGY 2018; 29:115702. [PMID: 29332844 DOI: 10.1088/1361-6528/aaa77b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have been considered a prominent nano-channel in cell membranes because of their prominent ion-conductance and ion-selectivity, offering agents for a biomimetic channel platform. Using a coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulation, we clarify a construction mechanism of vertical CNT nano-channels in a lipid membrane for a long period, which has been difficult to observe in previous CNT-lipid interaction simulations. The result shows that both the lipid coating density and length of CNT affect the suitable fabrication condition for a vertical and stable CNT channel. Also, simulation elucidated that a lipid coating on the surface of the CNT prevents the CNT from burrowing into the lipid membrane and the vertical channel is stabilized by the repulsion force between the lipids in the coating and membrane. Our study provides an essential understanding of how CNTs can form stable and vertical channels in the membrane, which is important for designing new types of artificial channels as biosensors for bio-fluidic studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Moon-Ki Choi
- School of Mechanical Engineering, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon 16419, Republic of Korea
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30
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Jewel Y, Liu J, Dutta P. Coarse-grained simulations of conformational changes in the multidrug efflux transporter AcrB. MOLECULAR BIOSYSTEMS 2017; 13:2006-2014. [PMID: 28770910 PMCID: PMC5614849 DOI: 10.1039/c7mb00276a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
The multidrug resistance (MDR) system actively pumps antibiotics out of cells causing serious health problems. During the pumping, AcrB (one of the key components of MDR) undergoes a series of large-scale and proton-motive conformational changes. Capturing the conformational changes through all-atom simulations is challenging. Here, we implement a hybrid coarse-grained force field to investigate the conformational changes of AcrB in the porter domain under different protonation states of Asp407/Asp408 in the trans-membrane domain. Our results show that protonation of Asp408 in monomer III (extrusion) stabilizes the asymmetric structure of AcrB; deprotonation of Asp408 induces clear opening of the entrance and closing of the exit leading to the transition from extrusion to access state. The structural changes in the porter domain of AcrB are strongly coupled with the proton translocation stoichiometry in the trans-membrane domain. Moreover, our simulations support the postulation that AcrB should adopt the symmetric resting state in a substrate-free situation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yead Jewel
- School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-2920
| | - Jin Liu
- School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-2920
| | - Prashanta Dutta
- School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-2920
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31
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Jewel Y, Dutta P, Liu J. Exploration of conformational changes in lactose permease upon sugar binding and proton transfer through coarse-grained simulations. Proteins 2017. [PMID: 28639287 DOI: 10.1002/prot.25340] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
Escherichia coli lactose permease (LacY) actively transports lactose and other galactosides across cell membranes through lactose/H+ symport process. Lactose/H+ symport is a highly complex process that involves sugar translocation, H+ transfer, and large-scale protein conformational changes. The complete picture of lactose/H+ symport is largely unclear due to the complexity and multiscale nature of the process. In this work, we develop the force field for sugar molecules compatible with PACE, a hybrid and coarse-grained force field that couples the united-atom protein models with the coarse-grained MARTINI water/lipid. After validation, we implement the new force field to investigate the binding of a β-d-galactopyranosyl-1-thio- β-d-galactopyranoside (TDG) molecule to a wild-type LacY. Results show that the local interactions between TDG and LacY at the binding pocket are consistent with the X-ray experiment. Transitions from inward-facing to outward-facing conformations upon TDG binding and protonation of Glu269 have been achieved from ∼5.5 µs simulations. Both the opening of the periplasmic side and closure of the cytoplasmic side of LacY are consistent with double electron-electron resonance and thiol cross-linking experiments. Our analysis suggests that the conformational changes of LacY are a cumulative consequence of interdomain H-bonds breaking at the periplasmic side, interdomain salt-bridge formation at the cytoplasmic side, and the TDG orientational changes during the transition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yead Jewel
- School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, 99164
| | - Prashanta Dutta
- School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, 99164
| | - Jin Liu
- School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, 99164
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32
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Ward MD, Nangia S, May ER. Evaluation of the hybrid resolution PACE model for the study of folding, insertion, and pore formation of membrane associated peptides. J Comput Chem 2017; 38:1462-1471. [PMID: 28102001 PMCID: PMC5407926 DOI: 10.1002/jcc.24694] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2016] [Revised: 10/20/2016] [Accepted: 11/17/2016] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
The PACE force field presents an attractive model for conducting molecular dynamics simulations of membrane-protein systems. PACE is a hybrid model, in which lipids and solvents are coarse-grained consistent with the MARTINI mapping, while proteins are described by a united atom model. However, given PACE is linked to MARTINI, which is widely used to study membranes, the behavior of proteins interacting with membranes has only been limitedly examined in PACE. In this study, PACE is used to examine the behavior of several peptides in membrane environments, namely WALP peptides, melittin and influenza hemagglutinin fusion peptide (HAfp). Overall, we find PACE provides an improvement over MARTINI for modeling helical peptides, based on the membrane insertion energetics for WALP16 and more realistic melittin pore dynamics. Our studies on HAfp, which forms a helical hairpin structure, do not show the hairpin structure to be stable, which may point toward a deficiency in the model. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael D. Ward
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269
| | - Shivangi Nangia
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269
| | - Eric R. May
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269
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33
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Jo S, Cheng X, Lee J, Kim S, Park SJ, Patel DS, Beaven AH, Lee KI, Rui H, Park S, Lee HS, Roux B, MacKerell AD, Klauda JB, Qi Y, Im W. CHARMM-GUI 10 years for biomolecular modeling and simulation. J Comput Chem 2017; 38:1114-1124. [PMID: 27862047 PMCID: PMC5403596 DOI: 10.1002/jcc.24660] [Citation(s) in RCA: 186] [Impact Index Per Article: 26.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2016] [Revised: 10/04/2016] [Accepted: 10/18/2016] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
CHARMM-GUI, http://www.charmm-gui.org, is a web-based graphical user interface that prepares complex biomolecular systems for molecular simulations. CHARMM-GUI creates input files for a number of programs including CHARMM, NAMD, GROMACS, AMBER, GENESIS, LAMMPS, Desmond, OpenMM, and CHARMM/OpenMM. Since its original development in 2006, CHARMM-GUI has been widely adopted for various purposes and now contains a number of different modules designed to set up a broad range of simulations: (1) PDB Reader & Manipulator, Glycan Reader, and Ligand Reader & Modeler for reading and modifying molecules; (2) Quick MD Simulator, Membrane Builder, Nanodisc Builder, HMMM Builder, Monolayer Builder, Micelle Builder, and Hex Phase Builder for building all-atom simulation systems in various environments; (3) PACE CG Builder and Martini Maker for building coarse-grained simulation systems; (4) DEER Facilitator and MDFF/xMDFF Utilizer for experimentally guided simulations; (5) Implicit Solvent Modeler, PBEQ-Solver, and GCMC/BD Ion Simulator for implicit solvent related calculations; (6) Ligand Binder for ligand solvation and binding free energy simulations; and (7) Drude Prepper for preparation of simulations with the CHARMM Drude polarizable force field. Recently, new modules have been integrated into CHARMM-GUI, such as Glycolipid Modeler for generation of various glycolipid structures, and LPS Modeler for generation of lipopolysaccharide structures from various Gram-negative bacteria. These new features together with existing modules are expected to facilitate advanced molecular modeling and simulation thereby leading to an improved understanding of the structure and dynamics of complex biomolecular systems. Here, we briefly review these capabilities and discuss potential future directions in the CHARMM-GUI development project. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sunhwan Jo
- Leadership Computing Facility, Argonne National Laboratory, 9700 Cass Ave, Argonne, Illinois
| | - Xi Cheng
- Drug Discovery and Design Center, State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica Chinese Academy of Sciences, 555 Zuchongzhi Road, Pudong, Shanghai, 201203, China
| | - Jumin Lee
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering Program, Lehigh University, Pennsylvania
| | - Seonghoon Kim
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering Program, Lehigh University, Pennsylvania
| | - Sang-Jun Park
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering Program, Lehigh University, Pennsylvania
| | - Dhilon S Patel
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering Program, Lehigh University, Pennsylvania
| | - Andrew H Beaven
- Department of Chemistry, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas
| | - Kyu Il Lee
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering Program, Lehigh University, Pennsylvania
| | - Huan Rui
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Soohyung Park
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering Program, Lehigh University, Pennsylvania
| | - Hui Sun Lee
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering Program, Lehigh University, Pennsylvania
| | - Benoît Roux
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Alexander D MacKerell
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences School of Pharmacy, University of Maryland, Baltimore, Maryland
| | - Jeffrey B Klauda
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and the Biophysics Program, University of Maryland College Park, Maryland
| | - Yifei Qi
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering Program, Lehigh University, Pennsylvania
| | - Wonpil Im
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering Program, Lehigh University, Pennsylvania
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Kim S, Lee J, Jo S, Brooks CL, Lee HS, Im W. CHARMM-GUI ligand reader and modeler for CHARMM force field generation of small molecules. J Comput Chem 2017; 38:1879-1886. [PMID: 28497616 DOI: 10.1002/jcc.24829] [Citation(s) in RCA: 283] [Impact Index Per Article: 40.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2017] [Revised: 04/10/2017] [Accepted: 04/12/2017] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Reading ligand structures into any simulation program is often nontrivial and time consuming, especially when the force field parameters and/or structure files of the corresponding molecules are not available. To address this problem, we have developed Ligand Reader & Modeler in CHARMM-GUI. Users can upload ligand structure information in various forms (using PDB ID, ligand ID, SMILES, MOL/MOL2/SDF file, or PDB/mmCIF file), and the uploaded structure is displayed on a sketchpad for verification and further modification. Based on the displayed structure, Ligand Reader & Modeler generates the ligand force field parameters and necessary structure files by searching for the ligand in the CHARMM force field library or using the CHARMM general force field (CGenFF). In addition, users can define chemical substitution sites and draw substituents in each site on the sketchpad to generate a set of combinatorial structure files and corresponding force field parameters for throughput or alchemical free energy simulations. Finally, the output from Ligand Reader & Modeler can be used in other CHARMM-GUI modules to build a protein-ligand simulation system for all supported simulation programs, such as CHARMM, NAMD, GROMACS, AMBER, GENESIS, LAMMPS, Desmond, OpenMM, and CHARMM/OpenMM. Ligand Reader & Modeler is available as a functional module of CHARMM-GUI at http://www.charmm-gui.org/input/ligandrm. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seonghoon Kim
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering Program, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania
| | - Jumin Lee
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering Program, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania
| | - Sunhwan Jo
- Leadership Computing Facility, Argonne National Laboratory, 9700 Cass Ave, Argonne, Illinois
| | - Charles L Brooks
- Department of Chemistry and the Biophysics Program, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan
| | - Hui Sun Lee
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering Program, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania
| | - Wonpil Im
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering Program, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania
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Qi Y, Lee J, Singharoy A, McGreevy R, Schulten K, Im W. CHARMM-GUI MDFF/xMDFF Utilizer for Molecular Dynamics Flexible Fitting Simulations in Various Environments. J Phys Chem B 2016; 121:3718-3723. [PMID: 27936734 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.6b10568] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
X-ray crystallography and cryo-electron microscopy are two popular methods for the structure determination of biological molecules. Atomic structures are derived through the fitting and refinement of an initial model into electron density maps constructed by both experiments. Two computational approaches, MDFF and xMDFF, have been developed to facilitate this process by integrating the experimental data with molecular dynamics simulation. However, the setup of an MDFF/xMDFF simulation requires knowledge of both experimental and computational methods, which is not straightforward for nonexpert users. In addition, sometimes it is desirable to include realistic environments, such as explicit solvent and lipid bilayers during the simulation, which poses another challenge even for expert users. To alleviate these difficulties, we have developed MDFF/xMDFF Utilizer in CHARMM-GUI that helps users to set up an MDFF/xMDFF simulation. The capability of MDFF/xMDFF Utilizer is greatly enhanced by integration with other CHARMM-GUI modules, including protein structure manipulation, a diverse set of lipid types, and all-atom CHARMM and coarse-grained PACE force fields. With this integration, various simulation environments are available for MDFF Utilizer (vacuum, implicit/explicit solvent, and bilayers) and xMDFF Utilizer (vacuum and solution). In this work, three examples are shown to demonstrate the usage of MDFF/xMDFF Utilizer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yifei Qi
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering Program, Lehigh University , 111 Research Drive, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18015, United States
| | - Jumin Lee
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering Program, Lehigh University , 111 Research Drive, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18015, United States
| | - Abhishek Singharoy
- Beckman Institute and Center for Biophysics and Computational Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign , Urbana, Illinois 61801, United States
| | - Ryan McGreevy
- Beckman Institute and Center for Biophysics and Computational Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign , Urbana, Illinois 61801, United States
| | - Klaus Schulten
- Beckman Institute and Center for Biophysics and Computational Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign , Urbana, Illinois 61801, United States
| | - Wonpil Im
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering Program, Lehigh University , 111 Research Drive, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18015, United States
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Immadisetty K, Hettige J, Moradi M. What Can and Cannot Be Learned from Molecular Dynamics Simulations of Bacterial Proton-Coupled Oligopeptide Transporter GkPOT? J Phys Chem B 2016; 121:3644-3656. [PMID: 27959539 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.6b09733] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
We have performed an extensive set of all-atom molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of a bacterial proton-coupled oligopeptide transporter (POT) in an explicit membrane environment. We have characterized both the local and global conformational dynamics of the transporter upon the proton and/or substrate binding, within a statistical framework. Our results reveal a clearly distinct behavior for local conformational dynamics in the absence and presence of the proton at the putative proton binding residue E310. Particularly, we find that the substrate binding conformation is drastically different in the two conditions, where the substrate binds to the protein in a lateral/vertical manner, in the presence/absence of the proton. We do not observe any statistically significant distinctive behavior in terms of the global conformational changes in different simulation conditions, within the time scales of our simulations. Our extensive simulations and analyses call into question the implicit assumption of many MD studies that local conformational changes observed in short simulations could provide clues to the global conformational changes that occur on much longer time scales. The linear regression analysis of quantities associated with the global conformational fluctuations, however, provides an indication of a mechanism involving the concerted motion of the transmembrane helices, consistent with the rocker-switch mechanism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kalyan Immadisetty
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Arkansas , Fayetteville, Arkansas 72701, United States
| | - Jeevapani Hettige
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Arkansas , Fayetteville, Arkansas 72701, United States
| | - Mahmoud Moradi
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Arkansas , Fayetteville, Arkansas 72701, United States
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37
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Qi Y, Cheng X, Lee J, Vermaas JV, Pogorelov TV, Tajkhorshid E, Park S, Klauda JB, Im W. CHARMM-GUI HMMM Builder for Membrane Simulations with the Highly Mobile Membrane-Mimetic Model. Biophys J 2016; 109:2012-22. [PMID: 26588561 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpj.2015.10.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 78] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2015] [Revised: 10/06/2015] [Accepted: 10/09/2015] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Slow diffusion of the lipids in conventional all-atom simulations of membrane systems makes it difficult to sample large rearrangements of lipids and protein-lipid interactions. Recently, Tajkhorshid and co-workers developed the highly mobile membrane-mimetic (HMMM) model with accelerated lipid motion by replacing the lipid tails with small organic molecules. The HMMM model provides accelerated lipid diffusion by one to two orders of magnitude, and is particularly useful in studying membrane-protein associations. However, building an HMMM simulation system is not easy, as it requires sophisticated treatment of the lipid tails. In this study, we have developed CHARMM-GUI HMMM Builder (http://www.charmm-gui.org/input/hmmm) to provide users with ready-to-go input files for simulating HMMM membrane systems with/without proteins. Various lipid-only and protein-lipid systems are simulated to validate the qualities of the systems generated by HMMM Builder with focus on the basic properties and advantages of the HMMM model. HMMM Builder supports all lipid types available in CHARMM-GUI and also provides a module to convert back and forth between an HMMM membrane and a full-length membrane. We expect HMMM Builder to be a useful tool in studying membrane systems with enhanced lipid diffusion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yifei Qi
- Department of Molecular Biosciences and Center for Computational Biology, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas
| | - Xi Cheng
- Department of Molecular Biosciences and Center for Computational Biology, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas
| | - Jumin Lee
- Department of Molecular Biosciences and Center for Computational Biology, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas
| | - Josh V Vermaas
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois; Center for Biophysics and Computational Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois; Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois
| | - Taras V Pogorelov
- Department of Chemistry, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois; School of Chemical Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois; National Center for Supercomputing Applications, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois; Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois
| | - Emad Tajkhorshid
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois; Center for Biophysics and Computational Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois; Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois
| | - Soohyung Park
- Department of Molecular Biosciences and Center for Computational Biology, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas
| | - Jeffery B Klauda
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and the Biophysics Program, The University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland
| | - Wonpil Im
- Department of Molecular Biosciences and Center for Computational Biology, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas.
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Im W, Liang J, Olson A, Zhou HX, Vajda S, Vakser IA. Challenges in structural approaches to cell modeling. J Mol Biol 2016; 428:2943-64. [PMID: 27255863 PMCID: PMC4976022 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2016.05.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2016] [Revised: 05/19/2016] [Accepted: 05/24/2016] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Computational modeling is essential for structural characterization of biomolecular mechanisms across the broad spectrum of scales. Adequate understanding of biomolecular mechanisms inherently involves our ability to model them. Structural modeling of individual biomolecules and their interactions has been rapidly progressing. However, in terms of the broader picture, the focus is shifting toward larger systems, up to the level of a cell. Such modeling involves a more dynamic and realistic representation of the interactomes in vivo, in a crowded cellular environment, as well as membranes and membrane proteins, and other cellular components. Structural modeling of a cell complements computational approaches to cellular mechanisms based on differential equations, graph models, and other techniques to model biological networks, imaging data, etc. Structural modeling along with other computational and experimental approaches will provide a fundamental understanding of life at the molecular level and lead to important applications to biology and medicine. A cross section of diverse approaches presented in this review illustrates the developing shift from the structural modeling of individual molecules to that of cell biology. Studies in several related areas are covered: biological networks; automated construction of three-dimensional cell models using experimental data; modeling of protein complexes; prediction of non-specific and transient protein interactions; thermodynamic and kinetic effects of crowding; cellular membrane modeling; and modeling of chromosomes. The review presents an expert opinion on the current state-of-the-art in these various aspects of structural modeling in cellular biology, and the prospects of future developments in this emerging field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wonpil Im
- Center for Computational Biology and Department of Molecular Biosciences, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS 66047, United States.
| | - Jie Liang
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60607, United States.
| | - Arthur Olson
- Department of Integrative Structural and Computational Biology, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, United States.
| | - Huan-Xiang Zhou
- Department of Physics and Institute of Molecular Biophysics, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306, United States.
| | - Sandor Vajda
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Boston University, Boston, MA 02215, United States.
| | - Ilya A Vakser
- Center for Computational Biology and Department of Molecular Biosciences, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS 66047, United States.
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Poudel KR, Dong Y, Yu H, Su A, Ho T, Liu Y, Schulten K, Bai J. A time course of orchestrated endophilin action in sensing, bending, and stabilizing curved membranes. Mol Biol Cell 2016; 27:2119-32. [PMID: 27170174 PMCID: PMC4927284 DOI: 10.1091/mbc.e16-04-0264] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2016] [Accepted: 05/06/2016] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Endophilin is a founding member of the membrane-bending protein family. It promotes rapid endocytosis on a milliseconds-to-seconds time scale. The short duration of rapid endocytosis requires endophilin to act quickly. High-resolution kinetic measurements show the sequential action that endophilin takes to quickly deform membranes. Numerous proteins act in concert to sculpt membrane compartments for cell signaling and metabolism. These proteins may act as curvature sensors, membrane benders, and scaffolding molecules. Here we show that endophilin, a critical protein for rapid endocytosis, quickly transforms from a curvature sensor into an active bender upon membrane association. We find that local membrane deformation does not occur until endophilin inserts its amphipathic helices into lipid bilayers, supporting an active bending mechanism through wedging. Our time-course studies show that endophilin continues to drive membrane changes on a seconds-to-minutes time scale, indicating that the duration of endocytosis events constrains the mode of endophilin action. Finally, we find a requirement of coordinated activities between wedging and scaffolding for endophilin to produce stable membrane tubules in vitro and to promote synaptic activity in vivo. Together these data demonstrate that endophilin is a multifaceted molecule that precisely integrates activities of sensing, bending, and stabilizing curvature to sculpt membranes with speed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kumud R Poudel
- Basic Sciences Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109 Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195
| | - Yongming Dong
- Basic Sciences Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109 Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195
| | - Hang Yu
- Beckman Institute, University of Illinois, Urbana, IL 61801
| | - Allen Su
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195
| | - Thuong Ho
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195
| | - Yan Liu
- Basic Sciences Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109 Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195
| | - Klaus Schulten
- Beckman Institute, University of Illinois, Urbana, IL 61801 Department of Physics, University of Illinois, Urbana, IL 61801
| | - Jihong Bai
- Basic Sciences Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109 Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195
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Javanainen M, Martinez-Seara H. Efficient preparation and analysis of membrane and membrane protein systems. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA-BIOMEMBRANES 2016; 1858:2468-2482. [PMID: 26947184 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbamem.2016.02.036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2015] [Revised: 02/23/2016] [Accepted: 02/25/2016] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations have become a highly important technique to consider lipid membrane systems, and quite often they provide considerable added value to laboratory experiments. Rapid development of both software and hardware has enabled the increase of time and size scales reachable by MD simulations to match those attainable by several accurate experimental techniques. However, until recently, the quality and maturity of software tools available for building membrane models for simulations as well as analyzing the results of these simulations have seriously lagged behind. Here, we discuss the recent developments of such tools from the end-users' point of view. In particular, we review the software that can be employed to build lipid bilayers and other related structures with or without embedded membrane proteins to be employed in MD simulations. Additionally, we provide a brief critical insight into force fields and MD packages commonly used for membrane and membrane protein simulations. Finally, we list analysis tools that can be used to study the properties of membrane and membrane protein systems. In all these points we comment on the respective compatibility of the covered tools. We also share our opinion on the current state of the available software. We briefly discuss the most commonly employed tools and platforms on which new software can be built. We conclude the review by providing a few ideas and guidelines on how the development of tools can be further boosted to catch up with the rapid pace at which the field of membrane simulation progresses. This includes improving the compatibility between software tools and promoting the openness of the codes on which these applications rely. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Biosimulations edited by Ilpo Vattulainen and Tomasz Róg.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matti Javanainen
- Department of Physics, Tampere University of Technology, Tampere, Finland.
| | - Hector Martinez-Seara
- Department of Physics, Tampere University of Technology, Tampere, Finland; Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Prague, Czech Republic.
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41
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Zheng W, Qin F. A combined coarse-grained and all-atom simulation of TRPV1 channel gating and heat activation. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2016; 145:443-56. [PMID: 25918362 PMCID: PMC4411258 DOI: 10.1085/jgp.201411335] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
Abstract
Coarse-grained modeling and all-atom molecular dynamics simulation provide insight into the mechanism for heat activation of TRPV1 gating. The transient receptor potential (TRP) channels act as key sensors of various chemical and physical stimuli in eukaryotic cells. Despite years of study, the molecular mechanisms of TRP channel activation remain unclear. To elucidate the structural, dynamic, and energetic basis of gating in TRPV1 (a founding member of the TRPV subfamily), we performed coarse-grained modeling and all-atom molecular dynamics (MD) simulation based on the recently solved high resolution structures of the open and closed form of TRPV1. Our coarse-grained normal mode analysis captures two key modes of collective motions involved in the TRPV1 gating transition, featuring a quaternary twist motion of the transmembrane domains (TMDs) relative to the intracellular domains (ICDs). Our transition pathway modeling predicts a sequence of structural movements that propagate from the ICDs to the TMDs via key interface domains (including the membrane proximal domain and the C-terminal domain), leading to sequential opening of the selectivity filter followed by the lower gate in the channel pore (confirmed by modeling conformational changes induced by the activation of ICDs). The above findings of coarse-grained modeling are robust to perturbation by lipids. Finally, our MD simulation of the ICD identifies key residues that contribute differently to the nonpolar energy of the open and closed state, and these residues are predicted to control the temperature sensitivity of TRPV1 gating. These computational predictions offer new insights to the mechanism for heat activation of TRPV1 gating, and will guide our future electrophysiology and mutagenesis studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenjun Zheng
- Department of Physics and Department of Physiology and Biophysical Sciences, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY 14260
| | - Feng Qin
- Department of Physics and Department of Physiology and Biophysical Sciences, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY 14260
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42
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Louros NN, Baltoumas FA, Hamodrakas SJ, Iconomidou VA. A β-solenoid model of the Pmel17 repeat domain: insights to the formation of functional amyloid fibrils. J Comput Aided Mol Des 2016; 30:153-64. [PMID: 26754844 DOI: 10.1007/s10822-015-9892-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2015] [Accepted: 12/21/2015] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Abstract
Pmel17 is a multidomain protein involved in biosynthesis of melanin. This process is facilitated by the formation of Pmel17 amyloid fibrils that serve as a scaffold, important for pigment deposition in melanosomes. A specific luminal domain of human Pmel17, containing 10 tandem imperfect repeats, designated as repeat domain (RPT), forms amyloid fibrils in a pH-controlled mechanism in vitro and has been proposed to be essential for the formation of the fibrillar matrix. Currently, no three-dimensional structure has been resolved for the RPT domain of Pmel17. Here, we examine the structure of the RPT domain by performing sequence threading. The resulting model was subjected to energy minimization and validated through extensive molecular dynamics simulations. Structural analysis indicated that the RPT model exhibits several distinct properties of β-solenoid structures, which have been proposed to be polymerizing components of amyloid fibrils. The derived model is stabilized by an extensive network of hydrogen bonds generated by stacking of highly conserved polar residues of the RPT domain. Furthermore, the key role of invariant glutamate residues is proposed, supporting a pH-dependent mechanism for RPT domain assembly. Conclusively, our work attempts to provide structural insights into the RPT domain structure and to elucidate its contribution to Pmel17 amyloid fibril formation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nikolaos N Louros
- Department of Cell Biology and Biophysics, Faculty of Biology, University of Athens, Panepistimiopolis, 157 01, Athens, Greece
| | - Fotis A Baltoumas
- Department of Cell Biology and Biophysics, Faculty of Biology, University of Athens, Panepistimiopolis, 157 01, Athens, Greece
| | - Stavros J Hamodrakas
- Department of Cell Biology and Biophysics, Faculty of Biology, University of Athens, Panepistimiopolis, 157 01, Athens, Greece
| | - Vassiliki A Iconomidou
- Department of Cell Biology and Biophysics, Faculty of Biology, University of Athens, Panepistimiopolis, 157 01, Athens, Greece.
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43
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Mori T, Miyashita N, Im W, Feig M, Sugita Y. Molecular dynamics simulations of biological membranes and membrane proteins using enhanced conformational sampling algorithms. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA-BIOMEMBRANES 2016; 1858:1635-51. [PMID: 26766517 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbamem.2015.12.032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 99] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2015] [Revised: 12/24/2015] [Accepted: 12/29/2015] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
This paper reviews various enhanced conformational sampling methods and explicit/implicit solvent/membrane models, as well as their recent applications to the exploration of the structure and dynamics of membranes and membrane proteins. Molecular dynamics simulations have become an essential tool to investigate biological problems, and their success relies on proper molecular models together with efficient conformational sampling methods. The implicit representation of solvent/membrane environments is reasonable approximation to the explicit all-atom models, considering the balance between computational cost and simulation accuracy. Implicit models can be easily combined with replica-exchange molecular dynamics methods to explore a wider conformational space of a protein. Other molecular models and enhanced conformational sampling methods are also briefly discussed. As application examples, we introduce recent simulation studies of glycophorin A, phospholamban, amyloid precursor protein, and mixed lipid bilayers and discuss the accuracy and efficiency of each simulation model and method. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Membrane Proteins edited by J.C. Gumbart and Sergei Noskov.
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Affiliation(s)
- Takaharu Mori
- iTHES Research Group and Theoretical Molecular Science Laboratory, RIKEN, 2-1 Hirosawa, Wako, Saitama 351-0198, Japan
| | - Naoyuki Miyashita
- Laboratory for Biomolecular Function Simulation, RIKEN Quantitative Biology Center, Integrated Innovation Building 7F, 6-7-1 Minatojima-minamimachi, Chuo-ku, Kobe, Hyogo 650-0047, Japan; Faculty of Biology-Oriented Science and Technology, KINDAI University, 930 Nishimitani, Kinokawa, Wakayama 649-6493, Japan
| | - Wonpil Im
- Department of Molecular Sciences and Center for Computational Biology, The University of Kansas, 2030 Becker Drive, Lawrence, KS 66047, United States
| | - Michael Feig
- Laboratory for Biomolecular Function Simulation, RIKEN Quantitative Biology Center, Integrated Innovation Building 7F, 6-7-1 Minatojima-minamimachi, Chuo-ku, Kobe, Hyogo 650-0047, Japan; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, United States; Department of Chemistry, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, United States
| | - Yuji Sugita
- iTHES Research Group and Theoretical Molecular Science Laboratory, RIKEN, 2-1 Hirosawa, Wako, Saitama 351-0198, Japan; Laboratory for Biomolecular Function Simulation, RIKEN Quantitative Biology Center, Integrated Innovation Building 7F, 6-7-1 Minatojima-minamimachi, Chuo-ku, Kobe, Hyogo 650-0047, Japan; Department of Chemistry, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, United States; Computational Biophysics Research Team, RIKEN Advanced Institute for Computational Science, 7-1-26 Minatojima-minamimachi, Chuo-ku, Kobe, Hyogo 650-0047, Japan.
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Yu H, Han W, Ma W, Schulten K. Transient β-hairpin formation in α-synuclein monomer revealed by coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulation. J Chem Phys 2015; 143:243142. [PMID: 26723627 PMCID: PMC4684271 DOI: 10.1063/1.4936910] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2015] [Accepted: 11/18/2015] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Parkinson's disease, originating from the intrinsically disordered peptide α-synuclein, is a common neurodegenerative disorder that affects more than 5% of the population above age 85. It remains unclear how α-synuclein monomers undergo conformational changes leading to aggregation and formation of fibrils characteristic for the disease. In the present study, we perform molecular dynamics simulations (over 180 μs in aggregated time) using a hybrid-resolution model, Proteins with Atomic details in Coarse-grained Environment (PACE), to characterize in atomic detail structural ensembles of wild type and mutant monomeric α-synuclein in aqueous solution. The simulations reproduce structural properties of α-synuclein characterized in experiments, such as secondary structure content, long-range contacts, chemical shifts, and (3)J(HNHCα )-coupling constants. Most notably, the simulations reveal that a short fragment encompassing region 38-53, adjacent to the non-amyloid-β component region, exhibits a high probability of forming a β-hairpin; this fragment, when isolated from the remainder of α-synuclein, fluctuates frequently into its β-hairpin conformation. Two disease-prone mutations, namely, A30P and A53T, significantly accelerate the formation of a β-hairpin in the stated fragment. We conclude that the formation of a β-hairpin in region 38-53 is a key event during α-synuclein aggregation. We predict further that the G47V mutation impedes the formation of a turn in the β-hairpin and slows down β-hairpin formation, thereby retarding α-synuclein aggregation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hang Yu
- Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois 61801, USA
| | - Wei Han
- Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois 61801, USA
| | - Wen Ma
- Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois 61801, USA
| | - Klaus Schulten
- Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois 61801, USA
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45
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Qi Y, Ingólfsson HI, Cheng X, Lee J, Marrink SJ, Im W. CHARMM-GUI Martini Maker for Coarse-Grained Simulations with the Martini Force Field. J Chem Theory Comput 2015; 11:4486-94. [PMID: 26575938 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jctc.5b00513] [Citation(s) in RCA: 277] [Impact Index Per Article: 30.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
Coarse-grained simulations are widely used to study large biological systems. Nonetheless, building such simulation systems becomes nontrivial, especially when membranes with various lipid types are involved. Taking advantage of the frameworks in all-atom CHARMM-GUI modules, we have developed CHARMM-GUI Martini Maker for building solution, micelle, bilayer, and vesicle systems as well as systems with randomly distributed lipids using the Martini force field. Martini Maker supports 82 lipid types and different flavors of the Martini force field, including polar and nonpolar Martini, Dry Martini, and ElNeDyn (an elastic network model for proteins). The qualities of the systems generated by Martini Maker are validated by simulations of various examples involving proteins and lipids. We expect Martini Maker to be a useful tool for modeling large, complicated biomolecular systems in a user-friendly way.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yifei Qi
- Department of Molecular Biosciences and Center for Computational Biology, The University of Kansas , 2030 Becker Drive, Lawrence, Kansas 66047, United States
| | - Helgi I Ingólfsson
- Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute and Zernike Institute for Advanced Materials, University of Groningen , Nijenborgh 7, 9747 AG Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Xi Cheng
- Department of Molecular Biosciences and Center for Computational Biology, The University of Kansas , 2030 Becker Drive, Lawrence, Kansas 66047, United States
| | - Jumin Lee
- Department of Molecular Biosciences and Center for Computational Biology, The University of Kansas , 2030 Becker Drive, Lawrence, Kansas 66047, United States
| | - Siewert J Marrink
- Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute and Zernike Institute for Advanced Materials, University of Groningen , Nijenborgh 7, 9747 AG Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Wonpil Im
- Department of Molecular Biosciences and Center for Computational Biology, The University of Kansas , 2030 Becker Drive, Lawrence, Kansas 66047, United States
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Chi G, Rohde PR, Ridone P, Hankamer B, Martinac B, Landsberg MJ. Functional similarities between heterogeneously and homogenously expressed MscL constructs. EUROPEAN BIOPHYSICS JOURNAL: EBJ 2015; 44:589-98. [PMID: 26233759 DOI: 10.1007/s00249-015-1062-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2015] [Revised: 06/29/2015] [Accepted: 07/14/2015] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
The mechanosensitive channel of large conductance MscL is a well-characterized mechanically gated non-selective ion channel, which often serves as a prototype mechanosensitive channel for mechanotransduction studies. However, there are some discrepancies between MscL constructs used in these studies, most notably unintended heterogeneous expression from some MscL expression constructs. In this study we investigate the possible cause of this expression pattern, and compare the original non-homogenously expressing constructs with our new homogeneously expressing one to confirm that there is little functional difference between them. In addition, a new MscL construct has been developed with an improved molar extinction coefficient at 280 nm, enabling more accurate protein quantification.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gamma Chi
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, 4072, Australia
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Jo S, Cheng X, Islam SM, Huang L, Rui H, Zhu A, Lee HS, Qi Y, Han W, Vanommeslaeghe K, MacKerell AD, Roux B, Im W. CHARMM-GUI PDB manipulator for advanced modeling and simulations of proteins containing nonstandard residues. ADVANCES IN PROTEIN CHEMISTRY AND STRUCTURAL BIOLOGY 2014; 96:235-65. [PMID: 25443960 DOI: 10.1016/bs.apcsb.2014.06.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 172] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
Abstract
CHARMM-GUI, http://www.charmm-gui.org, is a web-based graphical user interface to prepare molecular simulation systems and input files to facilitate the usage of common and advanced simulation techniques. Since it is originally developed in 2006, CHARMM-GUI has been widely adopted for various purposes and now contains a number of different modules designed to setup a broad range of simulations including free energy calculation and large-scale coarse-grained representation. Here, we describe functionalities that have recently been integrated into CHARMM-GUI PDB Manipulator, such as ligand force field generation, incorporation of methanethiosulfonate spin labels and chemical modifiers, and substitution of amino acids with unnatural amino acids. These new features are expected to be useful in advanced biomolecular modeling and simulation of proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sunhwan Jo
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Gordon Center for Integrative Science, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | - Xi Cheng
- Department of Molecular Biosciences and Center for Bioinformatics, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, USA
| | - Shahidul M Islam
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Gordon Center for Integrative Science, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | - Lei Huang
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Gordon Center for Integrative Science, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | - Huan Rui
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Gordon Center for Integrative Science, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | - Allen Zhu
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Gordon Center for Integrative Science, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | - Hui Sun Lee
- Department of Molecular Biosciences and Center for Bioinformatics, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, USA
| | - Yifei Qi
- Department of Molecular Biosciences and Center for Bioinformatics, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, USA
| | - Wei Han
- Beckman Institute and Center for Biophysics and Computational Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, USA
| | - Kenno Vanommeslaeghe
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Maryland, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Alexander D MacKerell
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy, University of Maryland, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Benoît Roux
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Gordon Center for Integrative Science, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA.
| | - Wonpil Im
- Department of Molecular Biosciences and Center for Bioinformatics, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, USA.
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