[Cryo-microscopy, an alternative to the X-ray crystallography?]

Fluorescent analogues of BeKm-1 with high and specific activity against the hERG channel

Peptidic toxins that target specifically mammalian channels and receptors can be found in the venom of animals. These toxins are rarely used directly as tools for biochemical experiments, and need to be modified via the attachment of chemical groups (e.g., radioactive or fluorescent moieties). Ideally, such modifications should maintain the toxin specificity and affinity for its target. With the goal of obtaining fluorescent derivatives of BeKm-1, a toxin from the scorpion species Buthus eupeus that selectively inhibits the voltage-gated potassium ion channel hERG, we produced four active analogues using a model of BeKm-1 docking to the outer mouth of the channel. In these BeKm-1 analogues, the natural peptide was linked to the fluorescent cyanine 5 (Cy5) probe via four different linkers at Arg¹ or Arg/Lys²⁷. All analogues retained their specificity towards the hERG channel in electrophysiological experiments but displayed a lesser affinity. These results validate our strategy for designing toxin analogues and demonstrate that different chemical groups can be attached to different residues of BeKm-1.

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Recent structural data on the hERG ion channel allow modeling BeKm-1 docking to the outer mouth of the channel.

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The docking model identified solvent-exposed residues in BeKm-1 sequence for the attachment of chemical groups.

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Four BeKm-1 analogues were produced by labeling with a fluorescent dye the end of four different linkers.

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Electrophysiological recordings demonstrated that BeKm-1 analogues retain the toxin affinity and specificity towards hERG.

[Cell complexity should be placed at the heart of cancer research]

Genetic and most likely epigenetic alterations occurring during tumor progression and metastatic process lead to a broad deregulation of major cellular functions. However, the molecular mechanisms involved are still poorly understood. To understand them, the cell, the basic unit of life, remains more than ever the essential level to integrate the functional impact of genetics and epigenetics processes in the light of the global economy of the normal and cancerous cell, and of its interactions with its microenvironment.

Cryo-electron microscopy and X-ray crystallography: complementary approaches to structural biology and drug discovery

The invention of the electron microscope has greatly enhanced the view scientists have of small structural details. Since its implementation, this technology has undergone considerable evolution and the resolution that can be obtained for biological objects has been extended. In addition, the latest generation of cryo-electron microscopes equipped with direct electron detectors and software for the automated collection of images, in combination with the use of advanced image-analysis methods, has dramatically improved the performance of this technique in terms of resolution. While calculating a sub-10 Å resolution structure was an accomplishment less than a decade ago, it is now common to generate structures at sub-5 Å resolution and even better. It is becoming possible to relatively quickly obtain high-resolution structures of biological molecules, in particular large ones (>500 kDa) which, in some cases, have resisted more conventional methods such as X-ray crystallography or nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). Such newly resolved structures may, for the first time, shed light on the precise mechanisms that are essential for cellular physiological processes. The ability to attain atomic resolution may support the development of new drugs that target these proteins, allowing medicinal chemists to understand the intimacy of the relationship between their molecules and targets. In addition, recent developments in cryo-electron microscopy combined with image analysis can provide unique information on the conformational variability of macromolecular complexes. Conformational flexibility of macromolecular complexes can be investigated using cryo-electron microscopy and multiconformation reconstruction methods. However, the biochemical quality of the sample remains the major bottleneck to routine cryo-electron microscopy-based determination of structures at very high resolution.