Resonant energy transfer based biosensor for detection of multivalent proteins.

We have developed a new fluorescence-based biosensor for sensitive detection of species involved in a multivslent interaction. The biosensor system utilizes specific interactions between proteins and cell surface receptors, which trigger a receptor aggregation process. Distance-dependent fluorescence self-quenching and resonant energy transfer mechanisms were coupled with a multivalent interaction to probe the receptor aggregation process, providing a sensitive and specific signal transduction method for such a binding event. The fluorescence change induced by the aggregation process can be monitored by different instrument platforms, e.g. fluorimetry and flow cytometry. In this article, a sensitive detection of pentavalent cholera toxin which recognizes ganglioside GM1 has been demonstrated through the resonant energy transfer scheme, which can achieve a double color change simultaneously. A detection sensitivity as high as 10 pM has been achieved within a few minutes (c.a. 5 minutes). The simultaneous double color change (an increase of acceptor fluorescence and a decrease of donor fluorescence intensity) of two similar fluorescent probes provides particularly high detection reliability owing to the fact that they act as each other's internal reference. Any external perturbation such as environmental temperature change causes no significant change in signal generation. Besides the application for biological sensing, the method also provides a useful tool for investigation of kinetics and thermodynamics of a multivalent interaction. Keywords: Biosensor, Fluorescence resonant energy transfer, Multivalent interaction, Cholera Toxin, Ganglioside GM1, Signal Transductio

Membrane perturbing properties of toxin mycolactone from <i>Mycobacterium ulcerans</i>

Mycolactone is the exotoxin produced by Mycobacterium ulcerans and is the virulence factor behind the neglected tropical disease Buruli ulcer. The toxin has a broad spectrum of biological effects within the host organism, stemming from its interaction with at least two molecular targets and the inhibition of protein uptake into the endoplasmic reticulum. Although it has been shown that the toxin can passively permeate into host cells, it is clearly lipophilic. Association with lipid carriers would have substantial implications for the toxin’s distribution within a host organism, delivery to cellular targets, diagnostic susceptibility, and mechanisms of pathogenicity. Yet the toxin’s interactions with, and distribution in, lipids are unknown. Herein we have used coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations, guided by all-atom simulations, to study the interaction of mycolactone with pure and mixed lipid membranes. Using established techniques, we calculated the toxin’s preferential localization, membrane translocation, and impact on membrane physical and dynamical properties. The computed water-octanol partition coefficient indicates that mycolactone prefers to be in an organic phase rather than in an aqueous environment. Our results show that in a solvated membrane environment the exotoxin mainly localizes in the water-membrane interface, with a preference for the glycerol moiety of lipids, consistent with the reported studies that found it in lipid extracts of the cell. The calculated association constant to the model membrane is similar to the reported association constant for Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome protein. Mycolactone is shown to modify the physical properties of membranes, lowering the transition temperature, compressibility modulus, and critical line tension at which pores can be stabilized. It also shows a tendency to behave as a linactant, a molecule that localizes at the boundary between different fluid lipid domains in membranes and promotes inter-mixing of domains. This property has implications for the toxin’s cellular access, T-cell immunosuppression, and therapeutic potential