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Aguilar-Pineda JA, Paco-Coralla SG, Febres-Molina C, Gamero-Begazo PL, Shrivastava P, Vera-López KJ, Davila-Del-Carpio G, López-C P, Gómez B, Lino Cardenas CL. In Silico Analysis of the Antagonist Effect of Enoxaparin on the ApoE4–Amyloid-Beta (Aβ) Complex at Different pH Conditions. Biomolecules 2022; 12:biom12040499. [PMID: 35454088 PMCID: PMC9027285 DOI: 10.3390/biom12040499] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2021] [Revised: 03/18/2022] [Accepted: 03/23/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Apolipoprotein E4 (ApoE4) is thought to increase the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. Several studies have shown that ApoE4-Amyloid β (Aβ) interactions can increment amyloid depositions in the brain and that this can be augmented at low pH values. On the other hand, experimental studies in transgenic mouse models have shown that treatment with enoxaparin significantly reduces cortical Aβ levels, as well as decreases the number of activated astrocytes around Aβ plaques. However, the interactions between enoxaparin and the ApoE4-Aβ proteins have been poorly explored. In this work, we combine molecular dynamics simulations, molecular docking, and binding free energy calculations to elucidate the molecular properties of the ApoE4-Aβ interactions and the competitive binding affinity of the enoxaparin on the ApoE4 binding sites. In addition, we investigated the effect of the environmental pH levels on those interactions. Our results showed that under different pH conditions, the closed form of the ApoE4 protein, in which the C-terminal domain folds into the protein, remains stabilized by a network of hydrogen bonds. This closed conformation allowed the generation of six different ApoE4-Aβ interaction sites, which were energetically favorable. Systems at pH5 and 6 showed the highest energetic affinity. The enoxaparin molecule was found to have a strong energetic affinity for ApoE4-interacting sites and thus can neutralize or disrupt ApoE4-Aβ complex formation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jorge Alberto Aguilar-Pineda
- Laboratory of Genomics and Neurovascular Diseases, Vicerrectorado de Investigación, Universidad Católica de Santa María, Urb. San José s/n—Umacollo, Arequipa 04000, Peru; (S.G.P.-C.); (P.S.); (K.J.V.-L.); (G.D.-D.-C.)
- Centro de Investigación en Ingeniería Molecular—CIIM, Universidad Católica de Santa María, Urb. San José s/n—Umacollo, Arequipa 04000, Peru; (P.L.G.-B.); (B.G.)
- Correspondence: (J.A.A.-P.); (C.L.L.C.)
| | - Silvana G. Paco-Coralla
- Laboratory of Genomics and Neurovascular Diseases, Vicerrectorado de Investigación, Universidad Católica de Santa María, Urb. San José s/n—Umacollo, Arequipa 04000, Peru; (S.G.P.-C.); (P.S.); (K.J.V.-L.); (G.D.-D.-C.)
| | - Camilo Febres-Molina
- Doctorado en Fisicoquímica Molecular, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Universidad Andres Bello, Santiago 8370134, Chile;
| | - Pamela L. Gamero-Begazo
- Centro de Investigación en Ingeniería Molecular—CIIM, Universidad Católica de Santa María, Urb. San José s/n—Umacollo, Arequipa 04000, Peru; (P.L.G.-B.); (B.G.)
| | - Pallavi Shrivastava
- Laboratory of Genomics and Neurovascular Diseases, Vicerrectorado de Investigación, Universidad Católica de Santa María, Urb. San José s/n—Umacollo, Arequipa 04000, Peru; (S.G.P.-C.); (P.S.); (K.J.V.-L.); (G.D.-D.-C.)
| | - Karin J. Vera-López
- Laboratory of Genomics and Neurovascular Diseases, Vicerrectorado de Investigación, Universidad Católica de Santa María, Urb. San José s/n—Umacollo, Arequipa 04000, Peru; (S.G.P.-C.); (P.S.); (K.J.V.-L.); (G.D.-D.-C.)
- Facultad de Ciencias Farmacéuticas, Bioquímicas y Biotecnológicas, Universidad Católica de Santa María, Urb. San José s/n—Umacollo, Arequipa 04000, Peru
| | - Gonzalo Davila-Del-Carpio
- Laboratory of Genomics and Neurovascular Diseases, Vicerrectorado de Investigación, Universidad Católica de Santa María, Urb. San José s/n—Umacollo, Arequipa 04000, Peru; (S.G.P.-C.); (P.S.); (K.J.V.-L.); (G.D.-D.-C.)
- Vicerrectorado de Investigación, Universidad Católica de Santa María, Urb. San José s/n—Umacollo, Arequipa 04000, Peru;
| | - Patricia López-C
- Vicerrectorado de Investigación, Universidad Católica de Santa María, Urb. San José s/n—Umacollo, Arequipa 04000, Peru;
| | - Badhin Gómez
- Centro de Investigación en Ingeniería Molecular—CIIM, Universidad Católica de Santa María, Urb. San José s/n—Umacollo, Arequipa 04000, Peru; (P.L.G.-B.); (B.G.)
- Facultad de Ciencias Farmacéuticas, Bioquímicas y Biotecnológicas, Universidad Católica de Santa María, Urb. San José s/n—Umacollo, Arequipa 04000, Peru
| | - Christian L. Lino Cardenas
- Cardiovascular Research Center, Cardiology Division, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA
- Correspondence: (J.A.A.-P.); (C.L.L.C.)
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Poboinev VV, Khrustalev VV, Khrustaleva TA, Kasko TE, Popkov VD. The PentUnFOLD algorithm as a tool to distinguish the dark and the light sides of the structural instability of proteins. Amino Acids 2022; 54:1155-1171. [PMID: 35294674 PMCID: PMC8924573 DOI: 10.1007/s00726-022-03153-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2021] [Accepted: 02/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Intrinsically disordered proteins are frequently involved in important regulatory processes in the cell thanks to their ability to bind several different targets performing sometimes even opposite functions. The PentUnFOLD algorithm is a physicochemical method that is based on new propensity scales for disordered, nonstable and stable elements of secondary structure and on the counting of stabilizing and destabilizing intraprotein contacts. Unlike other methods, it works with a PDB file, and it can determine not only those fragments of alpha helices, beta strands, and random coils that can turn into disordered state (the “dark” side of the disorder), but also nonstable regions of alpha helices and beta strands which are able to turn into random coils (the “light” side), and vice versa (H ↔ C, E ↔ C). The scales have been obtained from structural data on disordered regions from the middle parts of amino acid sequences only, and not on their expectedly disordered N- and C-termini. Among other tendencies we have found that regions of both alpha helices and beta strands that can turn into the disordered state are relatively enriched in residues of Ala, Met, Asp, and Lys, while regions of both alpha helices and beta strands that can turn into random coil are relatively enriched in hydrophilic residues, and Cys, Pro, and Gly. Moreover, PentUnFOLD has the option to determine the effect of secondary structure transitions on the stability of a given region of a protein. The PentUnFOLD algorithm is freely available at http://3.17.12.213/pent-un-fold and http://chemres.bsmu.by/PentUnFOLD.htm.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Tatyana Aleksandrovna Khrustaleva
- Biochemical Group of the Multidisciplinary Diagnostic Laboratory, Institute of Physiology of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, Minsk, Belarus
| | - Tihon Evgenyevich Kasko
- Department of General Chemistry, Belarusian State Medical University, Dzerzinskogo 83, Minsk, Belarus
| | - Vadim Dmitrievich Popkov
- Department of General Chemistry, Belarusian State Medical University, Dzerzinskogo 83, Minsk, Belarus
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Ford LK, Fioriti L. Coiled-Coil Motifs of RNA-Binding Proteins: Dynamicity in RNA Regulation. Front Cell Dev Biol 2020; 8:607947. [PMID: 33330512 PMCID: PMC7710910 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2020.607947] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/18/2020] [Accepted: 10/30/2020] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Neuronal granules are biomolecular condensates that concentrate high quantities of RNAs and RNA-related proteins within neurons. These dense packets of information are trafficked from the soma to distal sites rich in polysomes, where local protein synthesis can occur. Movement of neuronal granules to distal sites, and local protein synthesis, play a critical role in synaptic plasticity. The formation of neuronal granules is intriguing; these granules lack a membrane and instead phase separate due to protein and RNA interactions. Low complexity motifs and RNA binding domains are highly prevalent in these proteins. Here, we introduce the role that coiled-coil motifs play in neuronal granule proteins, and investigate the structure-function relationship of coiled-coil proteins in RNA regulation. Interestingly, low complexity domains and coiled-coil motifs are highly dynamic, allowing for increased functional response to environmental influences. Finally, biomolecular condensates have been suggested to drive the formation of toxic, neurodegenerative proteins such as TDP-43 and tau. Here, we review the conversion of coiled-coil motifs to amyloid structures, and speculate a role that neuronal granules play in coiled-coil to amyloid conversions of neurodegenerative proteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lenzie K Ford
- Department of Neuroscience, Zuckerman Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
| | - Luana Fioriti
- Laboratory of Molecular Mechanisms of Polyglutamine Disorders, Department of Neuroscience, Dulbecco Telethon Institute, Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri (IRCCS), Milan, Italy
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Bhattacharya S, Xu L, Thompson D. Long-range Regulation of Partially Folded Amyloidogenic Peptides. Sci Rep 2020; 10:7597. [PMID: 32371882 PMCID: PMC7200734 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-64303-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/11/2019] [Accepted: 04/15/2020] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Neurodegeneration involves abnormal aggregation of intrinsically disordered amyloidogenic peptides (IDPs), usually mediated by hydrophobic protein-protein interactions. There is mounting evidence that formation of α-helical intermediates is an early event during self-assembly of amyloid-β42 (Aβ42) and α-synuclein (αS) IDPs in Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease pathogenesis, respectively. However, the driving force behind on-pathway molecular assembly of partially folded helical monomers into helical oligomers assembly remains unknown. Here, we employ extensive molecular dynamics simulations to sample the helical conformational sub-spaces of monomeric peptides of both Aβ42 and αS. Our computed free energies, population shifts, and dynamic cross-correlation network analyses reveal a common feature of long-range intra-peptide modulation of partial helical folds of the amyloidogenic central hydrophobic domains via concerted coupling with their charged terminal tails (N-terminus of Aβ42 and C-terminus of αS). The absence of such inter-domain fluctuations in both fully helical and completely unfolded (disordered) states suggests that long-range coupling regulates the dynamicity of partially folded helices, in both Aβ42 and αS peptides. The inter-domain coupling suggests a form of intra-molecular allosteric regulation of the aggregation trigger in partially folded helical monomers. This approach could be applied to study the broad range of amyloidogenic peptides, which could provide a new path to curbing pathogenic aggregation of partially folded conformers into oligomers, by inhibition of sites far from the hydrophobic core.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shayon Bhattacharya
- Department of Physics, Bernal Institute, University of Limerick, Limerick, V94 T9PX, Ireland
| | - Liang Xu
- Department of Physics, Bernal Institute, University of Limerick, Limerick, V94 T9PX, Ireland
| | - Damien Thompson
- Department of Physics, Bernal Institute, University of Limerick, Limerick, V94 T9PX, Ireland.
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Wille H, Dorosh L, Amidian S, Schmitt-Ulms G, Stepanova M. Combining molecular dynamics simulations and experimental analyses in protein misfolding. ADVANCES IN PROTEIN CHEMISTRY AND STRUCTURAL BIOLOGY 2020; 118:33-110. [PMID: 31928730 DOI: 10.1016/bs.apcsb.2019.10.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
The fold of a protein determines its function and its misfolding can result in loss-of-function defects. In addition, for certain proteins their misfolding can lead to gain-of-function toxicities resulting in protein misfolding diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, or the prion diseases. In all of these diseases one or more proteins misfold and aggregate into disease-specific assemblies, often in the form of fibrillar amyloid deposits. Most, if not all, protein misfolding diseases share a fundamental molecular mechanism that governs the misfolding and subsequent aggregation. A wide variety of experimental methods have contributed to our knowledge about misfolded protein aggregates, some of which are briefly described in this review. The misfolding mechanism itself is difficult to investigate, as the necessary timescale and resolution of the misfolding events often lie outside of the observable parameter space. Molecular dynamics simulations fill this gap by virtue of their intrinsic, molecular perspective and the step-by-step iterative process that forms the basis of the simulations. This review focuses on molecular dynamics simulations and how they combine with experimental analyses to provide detailed insights into protein misfolding and the ensuing diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Holger Wille
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada; Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada; Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
| | - Lyudmyla Dorosh
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
| | - Sara Amidian
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada; Centre for Prions and Protein Folding Diseases, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
| | - Gerold Schmitt-Ulms
- Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Maria Stepanova
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
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Liu F, Ma Z, Sang J, Lu F. Edaravone inhibits the conformational transition of amyloid-β42: insights from molecular dynamics simulations. J Biomol Struct Dyn 2019; 38:2377-2388. [PMID: 31234720 DOI: 10.1080/07391102.2019.1632225] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
Previous work has shown that edaravone inhibits fibrillogenesis of amyloid-β protein (Aβ). However, the detailed mechanism by which edaravone inhibits the conformational transition of the Aβ42 monomer is not known at the molecular level. Here, explicit-solvent molecular dynamics (MD) simulations were coupled with molecular mechanics-Poisson-Boltzmann surface area (MM-PBSA) method to address the issue. MD simulations confirmed that edaravone inhibits the conformational transition of the Aβ42 monomer in a dose-dependent manner. It was found that the direct interactions between edaravone and Aβ42 are responsible for its inhibiting effects. The analysis of binding free energy using the MM-PBSA method demonstrated that the nonpolar interactions provide favourable contributions (about -71.7 kcal/mol). Conversely, the polar interactions are unfavourable for the binding process. A total of 14 residues were identified as greatly contributing to the binding free energy between edaravone and the Aβ42 monomer. In addition, the intra-peptide hydrophobic interactions were weakened and the salt bridge D23-K28 was interrupted by edaravone. Therefore, the conformational transition was inhibited. Our studies provide molecular-level insights into how edaravone molecules inhibit the conformational transition of the Aβ42 monomer, which may be useful for designing amyloid inhibitors.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fufeng Liu
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Fermentation Microbiology, Tianjin University of Science & Technology, Ministry of Education, Tianjin, PR China.,Tianjin Key Laboratory of Industrial Microbiology, Tianjin University of Science & Technology, Tianjin, PR China.,College of Biotechnology, Tianjin University of Science & Technology, Tianjin, PR China
| | - Zheng Ma
- College of Biotechnology, Tianjin University of Science & Technology, Tianjin, PR China
| | - Jingcheng Sang
- College of Biotechnology, Tianjin University of Science & Technology, Tianjin, PR China
| | - Fuping Lu
- Key Laboratory of Industrial Fermentation Microbiology, Tianjin University of Science & Technology, Ministry of Education, Tianjin, PR China.,Tianjin Key Laboratory of Industrial Microbiology, Tianjin University of Science & Technology, Tianjin, PR China.,College of Biotechnology, Tianjin University of Science & Technology, Tianjin, PR China
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Gerstman BS, Chapagain PP, Gc J, Steckmann T. Molecular Dynamics Simulations of Conformational Conversions in Transformer Proteins. Methods Mol Biol 2019; 1958:297-311. [PMID: 30945225 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-9161-7_15] [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: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
A relatively recently discovered class of proteins known as transformer proteins undergo large-scale conformational conversions that change their supersecondary structure. These structural transformations lead to different configurations that perform different functions. We describe computational methods using molecular dynamics simulations that allow the determination of the specific amino acids that facilitate the conformational transformations. These investigations provide guidance on the location and type of amino acid mutations that can either enhance or inhibit the structural transitions that allow transformer proteins to perform multiple functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bernard S Gerstman
- Department of Physics, Florida International University, Miami, FL, USA.
| | - Prem P Chapagain
- Department of Physics, Florida International University, Miami, FL, USA
| | - Jeevan Gc
- Department of Physics, Florida International University, Miami, FL, USA
| | - Timothy Steckmann
- Department of Physics, Florida International University, Miami, FL, USA
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