Identification of Distinct Soluble States During Fibril Formation Using Multilinear Analysis of NMR Diffusion Data.

Protein misfolding and self-assembling into amyloid structures are associated with a number of diseases. Characterization of protein amyloid formation reactions is a challenging task as transient populations of multiple species are involved. Here we outline a method for identification and characterization of the individual soluble states during protein amyloid formation. The method combines NMR translational diffusion measurements with multilinear data analysis.

Measuring and Analyzing Binding Kinetics of Coupled Folding and Binding Reactions Under Pseudo-First-Order Conditions.

Many intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) adopt a well-defined structure upon binding to their interaction partners. Kinetic characterization is a requirement for the investigation of the dynamics and mechanisms of these folding-upon-binding reactions. Here a protocol is described for the investigation of binding kinetics of bimolecular binding and folding reactions of IDPs to their ligand partner under pseudo-first-order conditions using stopped-flow mixing and fluorescence detection.

Revealing Well-Defined Soluble States during Amyloid Fibril Formation by Multilinear Analysis of NMR Diffusion Data.

Amyloid fibril formation is a hallmark of neurodegenerative disease caused by protein aggregation. Oligomeric protein states that arise during the process of fibril formation often coexist with mature fibrils and are known to cause cell death in disease model systems. Progress in this field depends critically on development of analytical methods that can provide information about the mechanisms and species involved in oligomerization and fibril formation. Here, we demonstrate how the powerful combination of diffusion NMR and multilinear data analysis can efficiently disentangle the number of involved species, their kinetic rates of formation or disappearance, spectral contributions, and diffusion coefficients, even without prior knowledge of the time evolution of the process or chemical shift assignments of the various species. Using this method we identify oligomeric species that form transiently during aggregation of human superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1), which is known to form misfolded aggregates in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Specifically, over a time course of 42 days, during which SOD1 fibrils form, we detect the disappearance of the native monomeric species, formation of a partially unfolded intermediate in the dimer to tetramer size range, subsequent formation of a distinct similarly sized species that dominates the final spectrum detected by solution NMR, and concomitant appearance of small peptide fragments.

Stability and Local Unfolding of SOD1 in the Presence of Protein Crowders.

Using NMR and Monte Carlo (MC) methods, we investigate the stability and dynamics of superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) in homogeneous crowding environments, where either bovine pancreatic trypsin inhibitor (BPTI) or the B1 domain of streptococcal protein G (PGB1) serves as a crowding agent. By NMR, we show that both crowders, and especially BPTI, cause a drastic loss in the overall stability of SOD1 in its apo monomeric form. Additionally, we determine chemical shift perturbations indicating that SOD1 interacts with the crowder proteins in a residue-specific manner that further depends on the identity of the crowding protein. Furthermore, the specificity of SOD1-crowder interactions is reciprocal: chemical shift perturbations on BPTI and PGB1 identify regions that interact preferentially with SOD1. By MC simulations, we investigate the local unfolding of SOD1 in the absence and presence of the crowders. We find that the crowders primarily interact with the long flexible loops of the folded SOD1 monomer. The basic mechanisms by which the SOD1 ß-barrel core unfolds remain unchanged when adding the crowders. In particular, both with and without the crowders, the second ß-sheet of the barrel is more dynamic and unfolding-prone than the first. Notably, the MC simulations (exploring the early stages of SOD1 unfolding) and the NMR experiments (under equilibrium conditions) identify largely the same set of PGB1 and BPTI residues as prone to form SOD1 contacts. Thus, contacts stabilizing the unfolded state of SOD1 in many cases appear to form early in the unfolding reaction.

Adenine phosphoribosyltransferase from Sulfolobus solfataricus is an enzyme with unusual kinetic properties and a crystal structure that suggests it evolved from a 6-oxopurine phosphoribosyltransferase.

The adenine phosphoribosyltransferase (APRTase) encoded by the open reading frame SSO2342 of Sulfolobus solfataricus P2 was subjected to crystallographic, kinetic, and ligand binding analyses. The enzyme forms dimers in solution and in the crystals, and binds one molecule of the reactants 5-phosphoribosyl-α-1-pyrophosphate (PRPP) and adenine or the product adenosine monophosphate (AMP) or the inhibitor adenosine diphosphate (ADP) in each active site. The individual subunit adopts an overall structure that resembles a 6-oxopurine phosphoribosyltransferase (PRTase) more than known APRTases implying that APRT functionality in Crenarchaeotae has its evolutionary origin in this family of PRTases. Only the N-terminal two-thirds of the polypeptide chain folds as a traditional type I PRTase with a five-stranded ß-sheet surrounded by helices. The C-terminal third adopts an unusual three-helix bundle structure that together with the nucleobase-binding loop undergoes a conformational change upon binding of adenine and phosphate resulting in a slight contraction of the active site. The inhibitor ADP binds like the product AMP with both the α- and ß-phosphates occupying the 5'-phosphoribosyl binding site. The enzyme shows activity over a wide pH range, and the kinetic and ligand binding properties depend on both pH and the presence/absence of phosphate in the buffers. A slow hydrolysis of PRPP to ribose 5-phosphate and pyrophosphate, catalyzed by the enzyme, may be facilitated by elements in the C-terminal three-helix bundle part of the protein.

The pKa value and accessibility of cysteine residues are key determinants for protein substrate discrimination by glutaredoxin.

The enzyme glutaredoxin catalyzes glutathione exchange, but little is known about its interaction with protein substrates. Very different proteins are substrates in vitro, and the enzyme seems to have low requirements for specific protein interactions. Here we present a systematic investigation of the interaction between human glutaredoxin 1 and glutathionylated variants of a single model protein. Thus, single cysteine variants of acyl-coenzyme A binding protein were produced creating a set of substrates in the same protein background. The rate constants for deglutathionylation differ by more than 2 orders of magnitude between the best (k1 = 1.75 × 10(5) M(-1) s(-1)) and the worst substrate (k1 = 4 × 10(2) M(-1) s(-1)). The pKa values of the substrate cysteine residues were determined by NMR spectroscopy and found to vary from 8.2 to 9.9. Rates of glutaredoxin 1-catalyzed deglutathionylation were assessed with respect to substrate cysteine pKa values, cysteine residue accessibility, local stability, and backbone dynamics. Good substrates are characterized by a combination of high accessibility of the glutathionylated site and low pKa of the cysteine residue.

Specificities and pH profiles of adenine and hypoxanthine-guanine-xanthine phosphoribosyltransferases (nucleotide synthases) of the thermoacidophile archaeon Sulfolobus solfataricus.

Two open reading frames in the genome of Sulfolobus solfataricus (SSO2342 [corrected] and SSO2424) were cloned and expressed in E. coli. The protein products were purified and their enzymatic activity characterized. Although SSO2342 [corrected] was annotated as a gene (gpT-1) encoding a 6-oxopurine phosphoribosyltransferase (PRTase), the protein product turned out to be a PRTase highly specific for adenine and we suggest that the reading frame should be renamed apT. The other reading frame SSO2424 (gpT-2) proved to be a true 6-oxopurine PRTase active with hypoxanthine, xanthine and guanine as substrates, and we suggest that the gene should be renamed gpT. Both enzymes exhibited unusual profiles of activity versus pH. The adenine PRTase showed the highest activity at pH 7.5-8.5, but had a distinct peak of activity also at pH 4.5. The 6-oxo PRTase showed maximal activity with hypoxanthine and guanine around pH 4.5, while maximal activity with xanthine was observed at pH 7.5. We discuss likely reasons why SSO2342 [corrected] in S. solfataricus and similar open reading frames in other Crenarchaeota could not be identified as genes encoding APRTase.

Protein dielectric constants determined from NMR chemical shift perturbations.

Understanding the connection between protein structure and function requires a quantitative understanding of electrostatic effects. Structure-based electrostatic calculations are essential for this purpose, but their use has been limited by a long-standing discussion on which value to use for the dielectric constants (ε(eff) and ε(p)) required in Coulombic and Poisson-Boltzmann models. The currently used values for ε(eff) and ε(p) are essentially empirical parameters calibrated against thermodynamic properties that are indirect measurements of protein electric fields. We determine optimal values for ε(eff) and ε(p) by measuring protein electric fields in solution using direct detection of NMR chemical shift perturbations (CSPs). We measured CSPs in 14 proteins to get a broad and general characterization of electric fields. Coulomb's law reproduces the measured CSPs optimally with a protein dielectric constant (ε(eff)) from 3 to 13, with an optimal value across all proteins of 6.5. However, when the water-protein interface is treated with finite difference Poisson-Boltzmann calculations, the optimal protein dielectric constant (ε(p)) ranged from 2 to 5 with an optimum of 3. It is striking how similar this value is to the dielectric constant of 2-4 measured for protein powders and how different it is from the ε(p) of 6-20 used in models based on the Poisson-Boltzmann equation when calculating thermodynamic parameters. Because the value of ε(p) = 3 is obtained by analysis of NMR chemical shift perturbations instead of thermodynamic parameters such as pK(a) values, it is likely to describe only the electric field and thus represent a more general, intrinsic, and transferable ε(p) common to most folded proteins.

A fluorescent probe which allows highly specific thiol labeling at low pH.

Determination of the thiol-disulfide status in biological systems is challenging as redox pools are easily perturbed during sample preparation. This is particularly pertinent under neutral to mildly alkaline conditions typically required for alkylation of thiols. Here we describe the synthesis and properties of a thiol-specific reagent, fluorescent cyclic activated disulfide (FCAD), which includes the fluorescein moiety as fluorophore and utilizes a variation of thiol-disulfide exchange chemistry. The leaving-group character of FCAD makes it reactive at pH 3, allowing modification at low pH, limiting thiol-disulfide exchange. Different applications are demonstrated including picomolar thiol detection, determination of redox potentials, and in-gel detection of labeled proteins.

Dynamics and mechanisms of coupled protein folding and binding reactions.

Protein folding coupled to binding of a specific ligand is frequently observed in biological processes. In recent years numerous studies have addressed the structural properties of the unfolded proteins in the absence of their ligands. Surprisingly few time-resolved investigations on coupled folding and binding reactions have been published up to date and the dynamics and kinetic mechanisms of these processes are still only poorly understood. Especially, it is still unsolved for most systems which conformation of the protein is recognized by the ligand (conformational selection vs. folding-after-binding) and whether the ligand influences the folding kinetics. Here we review experimental methods, kinetic models and time-resolved experimental studies of coupled folding and binding reactions.

Millisecond dynamics in glutaredoxin during catalytic turnover is dependent on substrate binding and absent in the resting states.

Conformational dynamics is important for enzyme function. Which motions of enzymes determine catalytic efficiency and whether the same motions are important for all enzymes, however, are not well understood. Here we address conformational dynamics in glutaredoxin during catalytic turnover with a combination of NMR magnetization transfer, R(2) relaxation dispersion, and ligand titration experiments. Glutaredoxins catalyze a glutathione exchange reaction, forming a stable glutathinoylated enzyme intermediate. The equilibrium between the reduced state and the glutathionylated state was biochemically tuned to exchange on the millisecond time scale. The conformational changes of the protein backbone during catalysis were followed by (15)N nuclear spin relaxation dispersion experiments. A conformational transition that is well described by a two-state process with an exchange rate corresponding to the glutathione exchange rate was observed for 23 residues. Binding of reduced glutathione resulted in competitive inhibition of the reduced enzyme having kinetics similar to that of the reaction. This observation couples the motions observed during catalysis directly to substrate binding. Backbone motions on the time scale of catalytic turnover were not observed for the enzyme in the resting states, implying that alternative conformers do not accumulate to significant concentrations. These results infer that the turnover rate in glutaredoxin is governed by formation of a productive enzyme-substrate encounter complex, and that catalysis proceeds by an induced fit mechanism rather than by conformer selection driven by intrinsic conformational dynamics.

Thiol-disulfide exchange between glutaredoxin and glutathione.

Glutaredoxins are ubiquitous thiol-disulfide oxidoreductases which catalyze the reduction of glutathione-protein mixed disulfides. Belonging to the thioredoxin family, they contain a conserved active site CXXC motif. The N-proximal active site cysteine can form a mixed disulfide with glutathione or an intramolecular disulfide with the C-proximal cysteine. The C-proximal cysteine is not known to be involved in the catalytic mechanism. The stability of the mixed disulfide with glutathione has been investigated in detail using a mutant variant of yeast glutaredoxin 1, in which the C-proximal active site cysteine has been replaced with serine. The exchange reaction between the reduced protein and oxidized glutathione leading to formation of the mixed disulfide could readily be monitored by isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) due to the enthalpic contributions from the noncovalent interactions and the protonation of glutathione thiolate. An algorithm for the analysis of this type of reaction by ITC was developed and showed that the interaction is enthalpy driven with a large entropy penalty. The applicability of the method was verified by a mass spectrometry-based approach, which gave a standard reduction potential of -295 mV for the mixed disulfide. In another set of experiments, the pK(a) value of the active site cysteine was determined. In line with what has been observed for other glutaredoxins, this cysteine was found to have a very low pK(a) value. The glutathionylation of glutaredoxin was shown to have a substantial effect on the thermal stability of the protein as revealed by differential scanning calorimetry.

Kinetic and thermodynamic aspects of cellular thiol-disulfide redox regulation.

Regulation of intracellular thiol-disulfide redox status is an essential part of cellular homeostasis. This involves the regulation of both oxidative and reductive pathways, production of oxidant scavengers and, importantly, the ability of cells to respond to changes in the redox environment. In the cytosol, regulatory disulfide bonds are typically formed in spite of the prevailing reducing conditions and may thereby function as redox switches. Such disulfide bonds are protected from enzymatic reduction by kinetic barriers and are thus allowed to exist long enough to elicit the signal. Factors that affect the rate of thiol-disulfide exchange and stability of disulfide bonds are discussed within the framework of the underlying chemical foundations. This includes the effect of thiol acidity (pK(a)), the local electrostatic environment, molecular strain, and entropy. Even though a thiol-disulfide exchange reaction is thermodynamically favorable, it will only take place if the activation energy to form the transition state complex can be overcome. This is accomplished by enzymes, such as the oxidoreductases, that direct reactions in thermodynamically favorable directions by decreasing the activation energy barrier.

Structural and enzymatic investigation of the Sulfolobus solfataricus uridylate kinase shows competitive UTP inhibition and the lack of GTP stimulation.

The pyrH gene encoding uridylate kinase (UMPK) from the extreme thermoacidophilic archaeon Sulfolobus solfataricus was cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli, and the enzyme (SsUMPK) was purified. Size exclusion chromatography and sedimentation experiments showed that the oligomeric state in solution is hexameric. SsUMPK shows maximum catalytic rate at pH 7.0, and variation of pH only influences the turnover number. Catalysis proceeds by a sequential reaction mechanism of random order and depends on a divalent cation. The enzyme exhibits high substrate specificity toward UMP and ATP and is inhibited by UTP, whereas CTP and GTP do not influence activity. UTP binds to the enzyme with a sigmoid binding curve, whereas GTP does not bind. The crystal structure of SsUMPK was determined for three different complexes, a ternary complex with UMP and the nonhydrolyzable ATP analogue beta,gamma-methylene-ATP, a complex with UMP, and a complex with UTP to 2.1, 2.2, and 2.8 A resolution, respectively. One UTP molecule was bound in the acceptor site per subunit, leading to the exclusion of both substrates from the active site. In all cases, SsUMPK crystallized as a hexamer with the main fold shared with other prokaryotic UMPKs. Similar to UMPK from Pyrococcus furiosus, SsUMPK has an active site enclosing loop. This loop was only ordered in one subunit in the ternary complex, which also contained an unusual arrangement of ligands (possibly a dinucleotide) in the active site and an altered orientation of the catalytic residue Arg48 relative to the other five subunits of the hexamer.