Dynamics of coordination of H3O+ and NH4+ in crown ether cavities.

Crown ethers stand out for their ability to form inclusion complexes with metal cations and positively charged molecular moieties. Hydronium and ammonium interact strongly with crown ethers and potentially modulate their ionophoric activity in protic solvents and physiological environments commonly involved in (bio)technological applications. In this work, Born-Oppenheimer molecular dynamics (BOMD) computations are employed to gain insights into the coordination arrangements of H3O+ and NH4+ in the complexes with the native crown ethers 15-crown-5 (15c5) and 18-crown-6 (18c6). Both cations display dynamic changes in coordination inside the cavities of the crown ethers. On the one hand, hydronium explores different coordination arrangements, through rotation around its C3 axis in the 15c5 complex, and through breathing motions, involving rapid inversions of the O atom along the C3 axis in the 18c6 complex. On the other hand, ammonium undergoes a facile rotation in three dimensional space, leading to frequent changes in the NH bonds involved in the coordination with the crown ether. The reduced host-guest symmetry matching of the 15c5 macrocycle enhances the reorientation dynamics and, in the case of H3O+, it promotes short H-bonding distances yielding events of proton transfer to the crown ether. The infrared vibrational spectra predicted by the BOMD computations within this dynamic framework reproduce with remarkable accuracy the action spectra of the isolated complexes obtained in previous infrared laser spectroscopy experiments. The experimentally observed band positions and broadening can then be rationalized in terms of orientational diffusion of the cations, changes in the coordinating H-bonding pairs sustaining the complex and eventual proton bridge formation.

Structure and dynamics of the peptide strand KRFK from the thrombospondin TSP-1 in water.

Theoretical investigations of a solute in liquid water at normal temperature and pressure can be performed at different levels of theory. Static quantum calculations as well as classical and ab initio molecular dynamics are used to completely explore the conformational space for large solvated molecular systems. In the classical approach, it is essential to describe all of the interactions of the solute and the solvent in detail. Water molecules are very often described as rigid bodies when the most commonly used interaction potentials, such as the SPCE and the TIP4P models, are employed. Recently, a physical model based upon a cluster of rigid water molecules with a tetrahedral architecture (AB4) was proposed that describes liquid water as a mixture of both TIP4P and SPCE molecular species that occur in the proportions implied by the tetrahedral architecture (one central molecule versus four outer molecules; i.e., 20% TIP4P versus 80% SPCE molecules). In this work, theoretical spectroscopic data for a peptide strand were correlated with the structural properties of the peptide strand solvated in water, based on data calculated using different theoretical approaches and physical models. We focused on a particular peptide strand, KRFK (lysine-arginine-phenylalanine-lysine), found in the thrombospondin TSP-1, due to its interesting properties. As the activity and electronic structure of this system is strongly linked to its structure, we correlated its structure with charge-density maps obtained using different semi-empirical charge Qeq equations. The structural and thermodynamic properties obtained from classical simulations were correlated with ab initio molecular dynamics (AIMD) data. Structural changes in the peptide strand were rationalized in terms of the motions of atoms and groups of atoms. To achieve this, conformational changes were investigated using calculated infrared spectra for the peptide in the gas phase and in water solvent. The calculated AIMD infrared spectrum for the peptide was correlated with static quantum calculations of the molecular system based on a harmonic approach as well as the VDOS (vibrational density of states) spectra obtained using various classical solvent models (SPCE, TIP4P, and AB4) and charge maps.

Molecular dynamics of the salt dependence of a cold-adapted enzyme: endonuclease I.

The effects of salt on the stability of globular proteins have been known for a long time. In the present investigations, we shall focus on the effect of the salt ions upon the structure and the activity of the endonuclease I enzyme. In the present work, we shall focus on the relationship between ion position and the structural features of the Vibrio salmonicida (VsEndA) enzyme. We will concentrate on major questions such as: how can salt ions affect the molecular structure? What is the activity of the enzyme and which specific regions are directly involved? For that purpose, we will study the behaviour of the VsEndA over different salt concentrations using molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. We report the results of MD simulations of the endonuclease I enzyme at five different salt concentrations. Analysis of trajectories in terms of the root mean square fluctuation (RMSF), radial distribution function, contact numbers and hydrogen bonding lifetimes, indicate distinct differences when changing the concentration of NaCl. Results are found to be in good agreement with experimental data, where we have noted an optimum salt concentration for activity equal to 425 mM. Under this salt concentration, the VsEndA exhibits two more flexible loop regions, compared to the other salt concentrations. When analysing the RMSF of these two specific regions, three residues were selected for their higher mobility. We find a correlation between the structural properties studied here such as the radial distribution function, the contact numbers and the hydrogen bonding lifetimes, and the structural flexibility of only two polar residues. Finally, in the light of the present work, the molecular basis of the salt adaptation of VsEndA enzyme has been explored by mean of explicit solvent and salt treatment. Our results reveal that modulation of the sodium/chloride ions interaction with some specific loop regions of the protein is the strategy followed by this type of psychrophilic enzyme to enhance catalytic activity at the physiological conditions.