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Momot KI. Hydrated Collagen: Where Physical Chemistry, Medical Imaging, and Bioengineering Meet. J Phys Chem B 2022; 126:10305-10316. [PMID: 36473185 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.2c06217] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
It is well-known that collagen is the most abundant protein in the human body; however, what is not often appreciated is its fascinating physical chemistry and molecular physics. In this Perspective, we aim to expose some of the physicochemical phenomena associated with the hydration of collagen and to examine the role collagen's hydration water plays in determining its biological function as well as applications ranging from radiology to bioengineering. The main focus is on the Magic-Angle Effect, a phenomenon observed in Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) of anisotropic collagenous tissues such as articular cartilage and tendon. While the effect has been known in NMR and MRI for decades, its exact molecular mechanism remains a topic of debate and continuing research in scientific literature. We survey some of the latest research aiming to develop a comprehensive molecular-level model of the Magic-Angle Effect. We also touch on other fields where understanding of collagen hydration is important, particularly nanomechanics and mechanobiology, biomaterials, and piezoelectric sensors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Konstantin I Momot
- School of Chemistry and Physics, Queensland University of Technology (QUT), Brisbane, QLD 4001, Australia
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2
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Karjalainen J, Henschel H, Nissi MJ, Nieminen MT, Hanni M. Dipolar Relaxation of Water Protons in the Vicinity of a Collagen-like Peptide. J Phys Chem B 2022; 126:2538-2551. [PMID: 35343227 PMCID: PMC8996236 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.2c00052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
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Quantitative magnetic
resonance imaging is one of the few available
methods for noninvasive diagnosis of degenerative changes in articular
cartilage. The clinical use of the imaging data is limited by the
lack of a clear association between structural changes at the molecular
level and the measured magnetic relaxation times. In anisotropic,
collagen-containing tissues, such as articular cartilage, the orientation
dependency of nuclear magnetic relaxation can obscure the content
of the images. Conversely, if the molecular origin of the phenomenon
would be better understood, it would provide opportunities for diagnostics
as well as treatment planning of degenerative changes in these tissues.
We study the magnitude and orientation dependence of the nuclear magnetic
relaxation due to dipole–dipole coupling of water protons in
anisotropic, collagenous structures. The water–collagen interactions
are modeled with molecular dynamics simulations of a small collagen-like
peptide dissolved in water. We find that in the vicinity of the collagen-like
peptide, the dipolar relaxation of water hydrogen nuclei is anisotropic,
which can result in orientation-dependent relaxation times if the
water remains close to the peptide. However, the orientation-dependency
of the relaxation is different from the commonly observed magic-angle
phenomenon in articular cartilage MRI.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jouni Karjalainen
- Research Unit of Medical Imaging Physics and Technology, University of Oulu, P.O. Box 5000, Oulu 90014, Finland
| | - Henning Henschel
- Research Unit of Medical Imaging Physics and Technology, University of Oulu, P.O. Box 5000, Oulu 90014, Finland
| | - Mikko J Nissi
- Research Unit of Medical Imaging Physics and Technology, University of Oulu, P.O. Box 5000, Oulu 90014, Finland.,Department of Applied Physics, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio 70210, Finland
| | - Miika T Nieminen
- Research Unit of Medical Imaging Physics and Technology, University of Oulu, P.O. Box 5000, Oulu 90014, Finland.,Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Oulu University Hospital, Oulu 90014, Finland.,Medical Research Center, University of Oulu and Oulu University Hospital, Oulu 90014, Finland
| | - Matti Hanni
- Research Unit of Medical Imaging Physics and Technology, University of Oulu, P.O. Box 5000, Oulu 90014, Finland.,Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Oulu University Hospital, Oulu 90014, Finland.,Medical Research Center, University of Oulu and Oulu University Hospital, Oulu 90014, Finland
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Madhavi WAM, Weerasinghe S, Fullerton GD, Momot KI. Structure and Dynamics of Collagen Hydration Water from Molecular Dynamics Simulations: Implications of Temperature and Pressure. J Phys Chem B 2019; 123:4901-4914. [PMID: 31117617 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.9b03078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Dynamics of water molecules in hydrated collagen plays an important role in determining the structural and functional properties of collagenous tissues. Experimental results suggest that collagen-bridging water molecules exhibit dynamic and thermodynamic properties of one-dimensional ice. However, molecular dynamics (MD) studies performed to date have failed to identify icelike water bridges. It has been hypothesized that this discrepancy is due to the experimental measurements and computational MD analysis having been performed on very different systems: complete tissues with large-scale collagen fiber assemblies and individual tropocollagen fragments, respectively. In this work, we explore ways of emulating a tissuelike macromolecular environment in MD simulations of hydrated collagen without increasing the size of the system to computationally prohibitive levels. We have investigated the effects of temperature and pressure on the dynamics of a small hydrated tropocollagen fragment. The occupancy and bond energies of interchain hydrogen bonds were relatively insensitive to temperature, suggesting that they play a key role in the stability of the collagen triple helix. The lifetimes of water bridges lengthened with decreasing temperature, but even at 280 K, no bridging water molecules exhibited icelike dynamics. We discuss the implications of these findings for the ability to emulate tissuelike conditions in hydrated collagen.
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Affiliation(s)
- W A Monika Madhavi
- School of Chemistry, Physics and Mechanical Engineering , Queensland University of Technology (QUT) , GPO Box 2434, Brisbane , QLD 4001 , Australia
| | | | - Gary D Fullerton
- Department of Radiology , University of Texas Health SA , San Antonio , Texas 78229-3900 , United States
| | - Konstantin I Momot
- School of Chemistry, Physics and Mechanical Engineering , Queensland University of Technology (QUT) , GPO Box 2434, Brisbane , QLD 4001 , Australia
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Tadimalla S, Tourell MC, Knott R, Momot KI. Assessment of collagen fiber orientation dispersion in articular cartilage by small-angle X-ray scattering and diffusion tensor imaging: Preliminary results. Magn Reson Imaging 2018; 48:115-121. [DOI: 10.1016/j.mri.2017.12.032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2017] [Accepted: 12/29/2017] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
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Shishmarev D, Momot KI, Kuchel PW. Anisotropic diffusion in stretched hydrogels containing erythrocytes: evidence of cell-shape distortion recorded by PGSE NMR spectroscopy. MAGNETIC RESONANCE IN CHEMISTRY : MRC 2017; 55:438-446. [PMID: 26914993 DOI: 10.1002/mrc.4416] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2015] [Revised: 12/29/2015] [Accepted: 01/07/2016] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
The remarkable flexibility of human red blood cells (RBCs) allows them to assume a range of shapes in normal and disease states. Biochemical mechanisms and energetic requirements associated with changes in RBC geometry are not well understood because of a lack of experimental procedures to fix and study cells in different morphological forms. By incorporating RBCs into stretchable gelatin hydrogels, we created conditions for adjustable elongation of their normal discocytic shape in all orientations. As the RBC-containing gels were stretched or compressed, the changes in the cell morphology were studied by using 1 H-PGSE-NMR spectroscopy. Measurements of the apparent diffusion coefficient of water along the three orthogonal directions revealed tuneable anisotropy in the environment of the hydrogel samples. Light microscopy was also used for recording the extent to which RBCs were distorted in a stretched gel that had been set around them. Having demonstrated the applicability of NMR diffusometry to detect morphological changes of immobilised cells, we have laid the groundwork for future investigations of controllably distorted RBCs. Specifically, we expect studies of metabolic and biophysical properties of the physically deformed cells, thus inferring the connection between intracellular physico-chemical processes and RBC morphology. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dmitry Shishmarev
- School of Molecular Bioscience, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2006,, Australia
| | - Konstantin I Momot
- School of Chemistry, Physics and Mechanical Engineering, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, QLD, 4001,, Australia
| | - Philip W Kuchel
- School of Molecular Bioscience, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2006,, Australia
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Tourell MC, Momot KI. Molecular Dynamics of a Hydrated Collagen Peptide: Insights into Rotational Motion and Residence Times of Single-Water Bridges in Collagen. J Phys Chem B 2016; 120:12432-12443. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.6b08499] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Monique C. Tourell
- School
of Chemistry, Physics and Mechanical Engineering and ‡Institute of
Health and Biomedical Innovation, Queensland University of Technology (QUT), GPO Box
2434, Brisbane, Queensland 4001, Australia
| | - Konstantin I. Momot
- School
of Chemistry, Physics and Mechanical Engineering and ‡Institute of
Health and Biomedical Innovation, Queensland University of Technology (QUT), GPO Box
2434, Brisbane, Queensland 4001, Australia
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