Catalytic strategy used by the myosin motor to hydrolyze ATP

Myosin is a molecular motor responsible for biological motions such as muscle contraction and intracellular cargo transport, for which it hydrolyzes adenosine 5'-triphosphate (ATP). Early steps of the mechanism by which myosin catalyzes ATP hydrolysis have been investigated, but still missing are the structure of the final ADP·inorganic phosphate (Pi) product and the complete pathway leading to it. Here, a comprehensive description of the catalytic strategy of myosin is formulated, based on combined quantum-classical molecular mechanics calculations. A full exploration of catalytic pathways was performed and a final product structure was found that is consistent with all experiments. Molecular movies of the relevant pathways show the different reorganizations of the H-bond network that lead to the final product, whose γ-phosphate is not in the previously reported HPγO4(2-) state, but in the H2PγO4(-) state. The simulations reveal that the catalytic strategy of myosin employs a three-pronged tactic: (i) Stabilization of the γ-phosphate of ATP in a dissociated metaphosphate (PγO3(-)) state. (ii) Polarization of the attacking water molecule, to abstract a proton from that water. (iii) Formation of multiple proton wires in the active site, for efficient transfer of the abstracted proton to various product precursors. The specific role played in this strategy by each of the three loops enclosing ATP is identified unambiguously. It explains how the precise timing of the ATPase activation during the force generating cycle is achieved in myosin. The catalytic strategy described here for myosin is likely to be very similar in most nucleotide hydrolyzing enzymes.

Isomerization mechanism of the HcRed fluorescent protein chromophore

To understand how the protein achieves fluorescence, the isomerization mechanism of the HcRed chromophore is studied both under vacuum and in the solvated red fluorescent protein. Quantum mechanical (QM) and quantum mechanical/molecular mechanical (QM/MM) methods are applied both for the ground and the first excited state. The photoinduced processes in the chromophore mainly involve torsions around the imidazolinone-bridge bond (τ) and the phenoxy-bridge bond (φ). Under vacuum, the isomerization of the cis-trans chromophore essentially proceeds by τ twisting, while the radiationless decay requires φ torsion. By contrast, the isomerization of the cis-trans chromophore in HcRed occurs via simultaneous τ and φ twisting. The protein environment significantly reduces the barrier of this hula twist motion compared with vacuum. The excited-state isomerization barrier via the φ rotation of the cis-coplanar conformer in HcRed is computed to be significantly higher than that of the trans-non-coplanar conformer. This is consistent with the experimental observation that the cis-coplanar-conformation of the chromophore is related to the fluorescent properties of HcRed, while the trans-non-planar conformation is weakly fluorescent or non-fluorescent. Our study shows how the protein modifies the isomerization mechanism, notably by interactions involving the nearby residue Ile197, which keeps the chromophore coplanar and blocks the twisting motion that leads to photoinduced radiationless decay.

Theoretical studies of chromophore maturation in the wild-type green fluorescent protein: ONIOM(DFT:MM) investigation of the mechanism of cyclization

The availability of a gene encoding green fluorescence immediately stimulates interest in the puzzle of autocatalytic formation of the green fluorescent protein (GFP) chromophore. Numerous experimental and theoretical studies have indicated that cyclization is the first and most important step in the maturation process of the GFP. In our previous paper based on cluster models [J. Phys. Chem. B2010, 114, 9698-9705], two possible mechanisms have been investigated with the conclusion that the backbone condensation initiated by deprotonation of the Gly67 amide nitrogen is easier than deprotonation of the Tyr66 α-carbon. However, the impact of the protein environment on the reaction mechanism remains to be explored. In this paper, we investigated the two possible mechanisms with inclusion of protein environmental effects by using molecular dynamics (MD) and combined quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics (QM/MM) calculations. Our calculations reveal no hydrogen bonding network that would facilitate deprotonation of the amide nitrogen of Gly67, although it is the lower energy pathway in the cluster model system. Contrastingly, there is a hydrogen bonding network between Tyr66 α-carbon and Glu222, which is in good agreement with X-ray data. The ONIOM studies show that proton transfer from Tyr66 α-carbon to Glu222 is a long-distance charge transfer process. The charge distribution of the MM region has a significant perturbation to the wave function for the QM region, with the QM energy for the proton transfer product being increased under the influence of the electrostatic protein environment. The barrier for the rate-limiting step in cyclization is quite high, about 40.0 kcal/mol in the case of ONIOM-EE.

The mechanism of cyclization in chromophore maturation of green fluorescent protein: a theoretical study

An intriguing aspect of the green fluorescent protein (GFP) is the autocatalytic post-translational modification that results in the formation of its chromophore. Numerous experimental and theoretical studies indicate that cyclization is the first and the most important step in the maturation process. In this work, two proposed mechanisms for the cyclization were investigated by using the hybrid density functional theory method B3LYP. Cluster models corresponding to the two mechanisms proposed by Wachter et al. [J. Biol. Chem. 2005, 280, 26248-26255] are constructed on the basis of the X-ray crystal structure (PDB entry 2AWJ) and corresponding reaction path potential energy profiles for the two cyclization mechanisms are presented. Our results suggest that the backbone condensation initiated by deprotonation of the Gly67 amide nitrogen is easier than deprotonation of the Tyr66 alpha-carbon. Moreover, Arg96 fulfills the role of stabilizing the enolate moiety, and Glu222 plays the role of a general base. The formation of the cyclized product is found to be 16.0 and 18.6 kcal/mol endothermic with respect to the two models, which is in agreement with experimental observation.