Direct structure determination using residual dipolar couplings: reaction-site conformation of methionine sulfoxide reductase in solution

Investigating protein conformational energy landscapes and atomic resolution dynamics from NMR dipolar couplings: a review

Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy is exquisitely sensitive to protein dynamics. In particular inter-nuclear dipolar couplings, that become measurable in solution when the protein is dissolved in a dilute liquid crystalline solution, report on all conformations sampled up to millisecond timescales. As such they provide the opportunity to describe the Boltzmann distribution present in solution at atomic resolution, and thereby to map the conformational energy landscape in unprecedented detail. The development of analytical methods and approaches based on numerical simulation and their application to numerous biologically important systems is presented.

Modeling helical proteins using residual dipolar couplings, sparse long-range distance constraints and a simple residue-based force field

We present a fast and simple protocol to obtain moderate-resolution backbone structures of helical proteins. This approach utilizes a combination of sparse backbone NMR data (residual dipolar couplings and paramagnetic relaxation enhancements) or EPR data with a residue-based force field and Monte Carlo/simulated annealing protocol to explore the folding energy landscape of helical proteins. By using only backbone NMR data, which are relatively easy to collect and analyze, and strategically placed spin relaxation probes, we show that it is possible to obtain protein structures with correct helical topology and backbone RMS deviations well below 4 Å. This approach offers promising alternatives for the structural determination of proteins in which nuclear Overha-user effect data are difficult or impossible to assign and produces initial models that will speed up the high-resolution structure determination by NMR spectroscopy.

Nuclear magnetic resonance provides a quantitative description of protein conformational flexibility on physiologically important time scales

A complete description of biomolecular activity requires an understanding of the nature and the role of protein conformational dynamics. In recent years, novel nuclear magnetic resonance-based techniques that provide hitherto inaccessible detail concerning biomolecular motions occurring on physiologically important time scales have emerged. Residual dipolar couplings (RDCs) provide precise information about time- and ensemble-averaged structural and dynamic processes with correlation times up to the millisecond and thereby encode key information for understanding biological activity. In this review, we present the application of two very different approaches to the quantitative description of protein motion using RDCs. The first is purely analytical, describing backbone dynamics in terms of diffusive motions of each peptide plane, using extensive statistical analysis to validate the proposed dynamic modes. The second is based on restraint-free accelerated molecular dynamics simulation, providing statistically sampled free energy-weighted ensembles that describe conformational fluctuations occurring on time scales from pico- to milliseconds, at atomic resolution. Remarkably, the results from these two approaches converge closely in terms of distribution and absolute amplitude of motions, suggesting that this kind of combination of analytical and numerical models is now capable of providing a unified description of protein conformational dynamics in solution.

Simultaneous definition of high resolution protein structure and backbone conformational dynamics using NMR residual dipolar couplings

Despite the importance of molecular dynamics for biological activity, most approaches to protein structure determination, whether based on crystallographic or solution studies, propose three-dimensional atomic representations of a single configuration that take no account of conformational fluctuation. Non-averaged anisotropic NMR interactions, such as residual dipolar couplings, that become measurable under conditions of weak alignment, provide sensitive probes of both molecular structure and dynamics. Residual dipolar couplings are becoming increasingly powerful for the study of proteins in solution. In this minireview we present their use for the simultaneous determination of protein structure and dynamics.

Sensitivity-optimized experiment for the measurement of residual dipolar couplings between amide protons

High signal to noise is a necessity for the quantification of NMR spectral parameters to be translated into accurate and precise restraints on protein structure and dynamics. An important source of long-range structural information is obtained from (1)H-(1)H residual dipolar couplings (RDCs) measured for weakly aligned molecules. For sensitivity reasons, such measurements are generally performed on highly deuterated protein samples. Here we show that high sensitivity is also obtained for protonated protein samples if the pulse schemes are optimized in terms of longitudinal relaxation efficiency and J-mismatch compensated coherence transfer. The new sensitivity-optimized quantitative J-correlation experiment yields important signal gains reaching factors of 1.5 to 8 for individual correlation peaks when compared to previously proposed pulse schemes.

Solution Structure and Backbone Dynamics of the Reduced Form and an Oxidized Form of E. coli Methionine Sulfoxide Reductase A (MsrA): Structural Insight of the MsrA Catalytic Cycle

Methionine sulfoxide reductases (Msr) reduce methionine sulfoxide (MetSO)-containing proteins, back to methionine (Met). MsrAs are stereospecific for the S epimer whereas MsrBs reduce the R epimer of MetSO. Although structurally unrelated, the Msrs characterized so far display a similar catalytic mechanism with formation of a sulfenic intermediate on the catalytic cysteine and a concomitant release of Met, followed by formation of at least one intramolecular disulfide bond (between the catalytic and a recycling cysteine), which is then reduced by thioredoxin. In the case of the MsrA from Escherichia coli, two disulfide bonds are formed, i.e. first between the catalytic Cys51 and the recycling Cys198 and then between Cys198 and the second recycling Cys206. Three crystal structures including E. coli and Mycobacterium tuberculosis MsrAs, which, for the latter, possesses only the unique recycling Cys198, have been solved so far. In these structures, the distances between the cysteine residues involved in the catalytic mechanism are too large to allow formation of the intramolecular disulfide bonds. Here structural and dynamical NMR studies of the reduced wild-type and the oxidized (Cys51-Cys198) forms of C86S/C206S MsrA from E. coli have been carried out. The mapping of MetSO substrate-bound C51A MsrA has also been performed. The data support (1) a conformational switch occurring subsequently to sulfenic acid formation and/or Met release that would be a prerequisite to form the Cys51-Cys198 bond and, (2) a high mobility of the C-terminal part of the Cys51-Cys198 oxidized form that would favor formation of the second Cys198-Cys206 disulfide bond.

The three-dimensional structures of peptide methionine sulfoxide reductases: current knowledge and open questions

Methionine sulfoxides are easily formed in proteins exposed to reactive oxidative species commonly present in cells. Their reduction back to methionine residues is catalyzed by peptide methionine sulfoxide reductases. Although grouped in a unique family with respect to their biological function, these enzymes are divided in two classes named MsrA and MsrB, depending on the sulfoxide enantiomer of the substrate they reduce. This specificity-based classification differentiates enzymes which display no sequence homology. Several three-dimensional structures of peptide methionine sulfoxide reductases have been determined, so that members of both classes are known to date. These crystal structures are reviewed in this paper. The folds and active sites of MsrAs and MsrBs are discussed in the light of the methionine sulfoxide reductase sequence diversity.

Molecular Fragment Replacement Approach to Protein Structure Determination by Chemical Shift and Dipolar Homology Database Mining

A novel approach is described for determining backbone structures of proteins that is based on finding fragments in the protein data bank (PDB). For each fragment in the target protein, usually chosen to be 7-10 residues in length, PDB fragments are selected that best fit to experimentally determined one-bond heteronuclear dipolar couplings and that show agreement between chemical shifts predicted for the PDB fragment and experimental values for the target fragment. These fragments are subsequently refined by simulated annealing to improve agreement with the experimental data. If the lowest-energy refined fragments form a unique structural cluster, this structure is accepted and side chains are added on the basis of a conformational database potential. The sequential backbone assembly process extends the chain by translating an accepted fragment onto it. For several small proteins, with extensive sets of dipolar couplings measured in two alignment media, a unique final structure is obtained that agrees well with structures previously solved by conventional methods. With less dipolar input data, large, oriented fragments of each protein are obtained, but their relative positioning requires either a small set of translationally restraining nuclear Overhauser enhancements (NOEs) or a protocol that optimizes burial of hydrophobic groups and pairing of beta-strands.

Protein Structure Elucidation from Minimal NMR Data: The CLOUDS Approach

In this chapter we review automated methods of protein NMR data analysis and expand on the assignment-independent CLOUDS approach. As presented, given a set of reliable NOEs it is feasible to derive a spatial H-atom distribution that provides a low-resolution image of the protein structure. In order to generate such a list of unambiguous NOEs, a probabilistic assessment of the NOE identities (in terms of frequency-labeled H-atom sources) was developed on the basis of Bayesian inference. The methodology, encompassing programs SPI and BACUS, provides a list of "clean" NOEs that does not hinge on prior knowledge of sequence-specific resonance assignments or a preliminary structural model. As such, the combined SPI/BACUS approach, intrinsically adaptable to include 13C- and/or 15N-edited experiments, affords a useful tool for the analysis of NMR data irrespective of whether the adopted structure calculation protocol is assignment-dependent.

Determination of protein backbone structures from residual dipolar couplings

There are a number of circumstances in which a focus on determination of the backbone structure of a protein, as opposed to a complete all-atom structure, may be appropriate. This is particularly the case for structures determined as a part of a structural genomics initiative in which computational modeling of many sequentially related structures from the backbone of a single family representative is anticipated. It is, however, also the case when the backbone may be a stepping-stone to more targeted studies of ligand interaction or protein-protein interaction. Here an NMR protocol is described that can produce a backbone structure of a protein without the need for extensive experiments directed at side chain resonance assignment or the collection of structural information on side chains. The procedure relies primarily on orientational constraints from residual dipolar couplings as opposed to distance constraints from NOEs. Procedures for sample preparation, data acquisition, and data analysis are described, along with examples from application to small target proteins of a structural genomics project.

Weak alignment of membrane proteins in stressed polyacrylamide gels

Residual dipolar couplings are important as angular constraints for the structure determination of membrane proteins in micelles. Strained polyacrylamide gels are one of the few available mechanisms available for inducing the requisite weak alignment for these samples. However, their use is frequently limited by the ability to incorporate proteins and buffer solutions into the gel matrix. The implementation of several methods of incorporating membrane proteins into gels are described. Conditions for copolymerizing the protein in the absence of a change in pH are detailed. Electrophoresis is also shown to be a useful method to incorporate proteins. Weak alignment of the protein-micelle complex in the gel matrix is subsequently achieved using either vertical or radial compression. The magnitude of alignment can be controlled by altering the gel concentration, the acrylamide/bisacrylamide ratio, and the compression ratio. The alignment tensor can be altered relative to uncharged polyacrylamide gels by copolymerizing samples with acrylamide/acrylic acid to incorporate negative charges in the strained polyacrylamide gel to provide an alternate orientation.

Anisotropic small amplitude Peptide plane dynamics in proteins from residual dipolar couplings

The effect of small amplitude anisotropic peptide plane motion on residual dipolar couplings (RDC) measured in proteins has been investigated. RDC averaging effects in the presence of GAF (Gaussian axial fluctuation) motions are found to vary strongly depending on the peptide plane orientation. Even low amplitude dynamics can significantly affect derived alignment tensor parameters if this motion is not taken into account. An analytical description of averaged N-(N)H RDCs is introduced that includes basic GAF-like motion. The averaging depends on the orientation of the peptide plane (alpha, beta, gamma) in the alignment frame and on the motional amplitude (sigma). This expression is used to investigate the presence of anisotropic reorientational dynamics in proteins by incorporating sigma as an additional parameter into the alignment tensor analysis. Average GAF amplitudes (sigma(av)) are determined for secondary structural elements from single experimental N-(N)H RDC data sets from five different proteins, in combination with high-resolution structural models. This yields statistically significant improvement over the static description, and detects sigma(av) values ranging from 14.4 to 17.0 degrees for the different proteins. A higher value of sigma(av) = 20 degrees from loop regions was found using two independent sets of N-(N)H RDC in the protein lysozyme, for which a very high-resolution structure is available. Comparison of fitting behavior over 13 structures from lysozyme of crystal diffraction resolution ranging from 0.9 to 2.1A indicates a small spread of motional amplitudes, demonstrating that the method is robust up to this level of resolution. A combined definition of (alpha)C-C' and N-(N)H RDC under the influence of GAF motions allows simultaneous fitting of both RDC. Application to three proteins leads to similar sigma(av) values and a more significant improvement with respect to the static model. Using the GAF model to describe conformationally averaged RDC is important for two reasons: a more accurate definition of the alignment tensor magnitude can be derived, and the method can be used to detect average small amplitude motions in protein backbones from readily accessible data, on time scales not easily sampled by other NMR techniques.

Residual dipolar couplings in NMR structure analysis

Residual dipolar couplings (RDCs) have recently emerged as a new tool in nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) with which to study macromolecular structure and function in a solution environment. RDCs are complementary to the more conventional use of NOEs to provide structural information. While NOEs are local-distance restraints, RDCs provide long-range orientational information. RDCs are now widely utilized in structure calculations. Increasingly, they are being used in novel applications to address complex issues in structural biology such as the accurate determination of the global structure of oligonucleotides and the relative orientation of protein domains. This review briefly describes the theory and methods for obtaining RDCs and then describes the range of biological applications where RDCs have been used.

Protein structure prediction using sparse dipolar coupling data

Residual dipolar coupling (RDC) represents one of the most exciting emerging NMR techniques for protein structure studies. However, solving a protein structure using RDC data alone is still a highly challenging problem. We report here a computer program, RDC-PROSPECT, for protein structure prediction based on a structural homolog or analog of the target protein in the Protein Data Bank (PDB), which best aligns with the (15)N-(1)H RDC data of the protein recorded in a single ordering medium. Since RDC-PROSPECT uses only RDC data and predicted secondary structure information, its performance is virtually independent of sequence similarity between a target protein and its structural homolog/analog, making it applicable to protein targets beyond the scope of current protein threading techniques. We have tested RDC-PROSPECT on all (15)N-(1)H RDC data (representing 43 proteins) deposited in the BioMagResBank (BMRB) database. The program correctly identified structural folds for 83.7% of the target proteins, and achieved an average alignment accuracy of 98.1% residues within a four-residue shift.