Fe(II)/Fe(III) Redox Process Can Significantly Modulate the Conformational Dynamics and Electrostatics of Pirin in NF-κB Regulation

Pirin is an iron (Fe)-dependent regulatory protein of nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) transcription factors. Binding studies have suggested that the oxidative state of iron plays a crucial role in modulating the binding of Pirin to NF-κB p65, in turn enhancing the binding of p65 to DNA. The Fe­(III) form of Pirin is the active form and binds to NF-κB, whereas the Fe­(II) form does not bind to NF-κB. However, the surprising consequence of a single charge perturbation in the functional modulation of NF-κB is not well understood. Here, we use quantum mechanical calculations and microsecond-long molecular dynamics simulations to explore the free-energy landscapes of the Fe­(II) and Fe­(III) forms of Pirin. We show that the restricted conformational space and electrostatic complementarity of the Fe­(III) form of Pirin are crucial for binding and regulation of NF-κB. Our results suggest that a subtle single-electron redox trigger could significantly modulate the conformational dynamics and electrostatics of proteins in subcellular allosteric regulatory processes

Coupled Dynamics and Entropic Contribution to the Allosteric Mechanism of Pin1

Allosteric communication in proteins regulates a plethora of downstream processes in subcellular signaling pathways. Describing the effects of cooperative ligand binding on the atomic level is a key to understanding many regulatory processes involving biomolecules. Here, we use microsecond-long molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the allosteric mechanism of Pin1, a potential therapeutic target and a phosphorylated-Ser/Thr dependent peptidyl-prolyl <i>cis</i>–<i>trans</i> isomerase that regulates several subcellular processes and has been implicated in many diseases, including cancer and Alzheimer’s. Experimental studies suggest that the catalytic domain and the noncatalytic WW domain are allosterically coupled; however, an atomic level description of the dynamics associated with the interdomain communication is lacking. We show that binding of the substrate to the WW domain is directly coupled to the dynamics of the catalytic domain, causing rearrangement of the residue–residue contact dynamics from the WW domain to the catalytic domain. The binding affinity of the substrate in the catalytic domain is also enhanced upon binding of the substrate to the WW domain. Modulation of the dynamics of the catalytic domain upon binding of the substrate to the WW domain leads to prepayment of the entropic cost of binding the substrate to the catalytic domain. This study shows that Ile 28 at the interfacial region between the catalytic and WW domains is certainly one of the residues responsible for bridging the communication between the two domains. The results complement previous experiments and provide valuable atomistic insights into the role of dynamics and possible entropic contribution to the allosteric mechanism of proteins

Hydrocarbons Depending on the Chain Length and Head Group Adopt Different Conformations within a Water-Soluble Nanocapsule: ¹H NMR and Molecular Dynamics Studies

In this study we have examined the conformational preference of phenyl-substituted hydrocarbons (alkanes, alkenes, and alkynes) of different chain lengths included within a confined space provided by a molecular capsule made of two host cavitands known by the trivial name “octa acid” (OA). One- and two-dimensional ¹H NMR experiments and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations were employed to probe the location and conformation of hydrocarbons within the OA capsule. In general, small hydrocarbons adopted a linear conformation while longer ones preferred a folded conformation. In addition, the extent of folding and the location of the end groups (methyl and phenyl) were dependent on the group (H₂C–CH₂, HCCH, and CC) adjacent to the phenyl group. In addition, the rotational mobility of the hydrocarbons within the capsule varied; for example, while phenylated alkanes tumbled freely, phenylated alkenes and alkynes resisted such a motion at room temperature. Combined NMR and MD simulation studies have confirmed that molecules could adopt conformations within confined spaces different from that in solution, opening opportunities to modulate chemical behavior of guest molecules

Comparative molecular dynamics simulation studies for determining factors contributing to the thermostability of chemotaxis protein “CheY”

<div><p>Comparative molecular dynamics simulations of chemotaxis protein “CheY” from thermophilic origin <i>Thermotoga maritima</i> and its mesophilic counterpart <i>Salmonella enterica</i> have been performed for 10 ns each at 300 and 350 K, and 20 ns each at 400 and 450 K. The trajectories were analyzed in terms of different factors like root-mean-square deviation, root-mean-square fluctuation, radius of gyration, solvent accessible surface area, H-bonds, salt bridge content, and protein–solvent interactions which indicate distinct differences between the two of them. The two proteins also follow dissimilar unfolding pathways. The overall flexibility calculated by the trace of the diagonalized covariance matrix displays similar flexibility of both the proteins near their optimum growth temperatures. However, at higher temperatures mesophilic protein shows increased overall flexibility than its thermophilic counterpart. Principal component analysis also indicates that the essential subspaces explored by the simulations of two proteins at different temperatures are nonoverlapping and they show significantly different directions of motion. However, there are significant overlaps within the trajectories and similar direction of motions are observed for both proteins at 300 K. Overall, the mesophilic protein leads to increased conformational sampling of the phase space than its thermophilic counterpart. This is the first ever study of thermostability of CheY protein homologs by using protein dynamism as a main impact. Our study might be used as a model for studying the molecular basis of thermostability of two homologous proteins from two organisms living at different temperatures with less visible differences.</p></div

Dimerization of the Full-Length Alzheimer Amyloid β-Peptide (Aβ42) in Explicit Aqueous Solution: A Molecular Dynamics Study

In this study, the mechanism of dimerization of the full-length Alzheimer amyloid beta (Aβ42) peptide and structural properties of the three most stable dimers have been elucidated through 0.8 μs classical molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. The Aβ42 dimer has been reported to be the smallest neurotoxic species that adversely affects both memory and synaptic plasticity. On the basis of interactions between the distinct regions of the Aβ42 monomer, 10 different starting configurations were developed from their native folded structures. However, only six of them were found to form dimers and among them the three most stable (<b>X</b>^<b>P</b>, <b>C</b>–<b>C</b>^<b>AP</b>, and <b>N</b>–<b>N</b>^<b>P</b>) were chosen for the detailed analysis. The structural properties of these dimers were compared with the available experimental and theoretical data. The MD simulations show that hydrophobic regions of both monomers play critical roles in the dimerization process. The high content of the α-helical structure in all the dimers is in line with its experimentally proposed role in the oligomerization. The formation of a zipper-like structure in <b>X</b>^<b>P</b> is also in accordance with its existence in the aggregates of several short amyloidogenic peptides. The computed values of translational (<i>D</i>_T) and rotational (<i>D</i>_R) diffusion constants of 0.63 × 10^–6 cm²/s and 0.035 ns^–1, respectively, for this dimer are supported by the corresponding values of the Aβ42 monomer. These simulations have also elucidated several other key structural properties of these peptides. This information will be very useful to design small molecules for the inhibition and disruption of the critical Aβ42 dimers