苏氨酸在昆虫抗冻蛋白抗冻活性中的作用

设计系列昆虫抗冻蛋白CfAFP突变体, 通过分子动力学模拟确定各突变体与冰晶的最佳作用模式, 并用半经验分子轨道方法AM1和PM3研究了其与冰晶的相互作用. 结果表明, TXT面上的苏氨酸在蛋白与冰晶相互识别和结合过程中十分关键, 对CfAFP与冰晶间相互作用的贡献大, 用其它疏水或亲水氨基酸残基替换都将削弱抗冻蛋白与冰晶的相互作用强度, 从而降低蛋白的抗冻活性. 但是, 在维系蛋白和冰晶结构匹配的基础上, 疏水基团的增加加强了抗冻蛋白与冰晶的结合, 从而增加蛋白的抗冻活性.     

两种昆虫抗冻蛋白抗冻活性差异的分子基础

云杉蚜虫(Choristoneura fumiferana)体内可产生一种抗冻蛋白(AFP), 能够保护其在寒冷的冬季安全越冬, 这类昆虫抗冻蛋白(简称 CfAFP)存在多种异构体, 其中CfAFP-501和CfAFP-337均呈现相似的左手β-螺旋结构. 实验测定, 相比CfAFP-337仅多出两个插入螺旋环的CfAFP-501的抗冻活性竟然是CfAFP-337的3倍左右. 蛋白异构体CfAFP-501显著增强的抗冻活性和它的插入环数不成比例, 当然也不能简单归因于两个插入环所导致的与冰晶作用部位及接触面积的增加. 为了探讨两种昆虫抗冻蛋白异构体抗冻活性差异的分子基础, 深入了解抗冻蛋白作用特点的普遍规律, 分别使用分子力学、分子动力学模拟和量子力学方法来系统研究蛋白及其切割体与冰晶结合的结构特征及相互作用. 结果表明, CfAFP-501中多数螺旋环比CfAFP-337具有更强的冰晶相互作用和破坏冰晶中水分子的成键的能力, 由于螺旋长度增加导致CfAFP-501中各b-螺旋环之间协同效应的增强, 是其具有显著增强的抗冻活性的主要来源. 这种协同作用对具有b-螺旋结构的抗冻蛋白起十分关键的作用和重要贡献.     

操控冰水:仿生抗冻蛋白研究进展*

抗冻蛋白是自然界娴熟操控(冰)水的分子识别的典范之一。抗冻蛋白的抗冻活性与其特殊结构有着十分密切的关系。作为目前最高效的生物抗冻剂,抗冻蛋白因其含量低、易变性失活,导致产量过低,亟待开发新的来源。近年来,模拟抗冻蛋白的研究工作吸引了科学家们的广泛关注,抗冻蛋白关键的结构特质:氢键作用、疏水性、冰晶吸附、“结构水”在各类仿生抗结冰材料中相继得以体现,对深入理解抗冻蛋白作用机制起到了重要的推动作用。综述了仿生抗冻蛋白在仿生抗结冰材料领域的研究进展,对基于仿生抗冻蛋白的仿生抗结冰材料的发展做出了展望。     

抗冻蛋白抗冻机制的分子模拟研究

抗冻蛋白能使生物体在寒冷环境下生存,具有极大的潜在应用价值。近年来,人们对抗冻蛋白开展了广泛的研究,但其抗冻机理还未明确。本文阐述了抗冻蛋白的功能特性和结构特征,并从结构的角度对其抗冻机制方面的分子模拟研究成果进行了综述。另一方面,对目前已知晶体结构的29个野生型抗冻蛋白的结构特性进行了分析,发现在整个抗冻蛋白表面和在冰结合位点处都存在亲水残基与水形成氢键和疏水残基与类冰结构特异性结合的特点。然后,探讨了抗冻蛋白的二级结构、冰结合位点残基的疏水性与抗冻活性之间的关系。最后,从结构的角度讨论了抗冻蛋白的机制和影响抗冻活性的因素并简要总结了仿生抗冻材料设计和应用的研究进展。     

沙冬青抗冻蛋白热滞活性的DSC研究

在某些极地鱼类的血清以及某些昆虫和植物中 ,人们发现了一类特殊的物质 .它们的共同特点是能通过直接与冰晶核相互作用,抑制冰晶核的形成和生长,从而降低溶液冰点 .现已发现的这类抗冻物质都属于蛋白质,被统称为抗冻蛋白（ Antifreeze Proteins, AFPs） .抗冻蛋白能以非依数性形式大大降低溶液的冰点,但对熔点的影响很微弱,而且遵从依数性的原则,使冰点低于平衡态的熔点,溶液处于反常的非平衡相变状态 .这种冰点低于熔点的特性称为热滞 (Hysteresis).因此,抗冻蛋白也叫热滞蛋白或温度迟滞蛋白（ Thermal Hysteresis Proteins, …     

均匀电场对冰晶结构及生长的影响

采用分子动力学模拟方法研究了强度为4.0-40.0 V·nm^-1的均匀电场对过冷水冰晶结构和冰晶生长速率的影响. 文中通过CHILL 算法来识别不同的冰相结构,通过拟合Avrami 公式来得到冰晶生长所需的特征时间. 结果表明,在所施加的电场强度范围内生成的冰相以立方冰为主. 随着电场强度的增加,形成的立方冰的变形程度逐渐增大,冰晶的密度从0.98 g·cm^-3 增加到1.08 g·cm^-3,同时冰晶生长的特征时间从5.153 ns 减小到0.254 ns,冰晶生长的速率逐渐增长. 对水分子的动力学分析表明,冰晶生长速率增加的部分原因是电场能够促进水分子运动到形成冰晶所需要的取向. 此外,对冰相分子形成过程的分析表明缺陷冰分子在冰晶的生长过程中扮演着中间态的角色. 随电场强度的增加,由缺陷冰转变为立方冰的比例增长的速率逐渐提高.     

瓜环对氨基酸的分子识别研究

使用¹H NMR和UV-Vis光谱法研究了七、八元瓜环对九种天然氨基酸盐酸盐的分子识别作用. 结果表明, 瓜环对芳香侧基取代的L-酪氨酸、L-色氨酸、L-苯丙氨酸均能进行有效识别, 而侧链上不带芳香基团的氨基酸, 如L-组氨酸、L-谷氨酸、L-蛋氨酸、L-缬氨酸、L-白氨酸、L-丙氨酸, 与这些瓜环的作用相对较弱. 对于七元瓜环, 主客体间都以1∶1化学计量比形成包结物, 并得到它们相互作用的稳定常数; 八元瓜环与L-酪氨酸及L-色氨酸也以1∶1形成包结物, 而与L-苯丙氨酸以1∶2形成包结物. L-酪氨酸、L-色氨酸和L-苯丙氨酸荧光性质研究表明, 七、八元瓜环既可成为这些氨基酸荧光性质的增敏试剂, 也可成为它们荧光淬灭试剂, 这与氨基酸的结构有关.     

纳米TiO2的光致发光性能与SERS效应的关系

以采用溶胶-水热法制备的纯TiO₂及Zn掺杂的TiO₂纳米粒子作为SERS活性基底, 研究了其光致发光机制及其与表面增强拉曼散射(SERS)性能的关系. 结果表明, TiO₂纳米粒子的表面缺陷和氧空位等表面性质在其光致发光和增强拉曼散射性能中发挥着重要的作用. 在表面缺陷和氧空位含量较低时, TiO₂纳米粒子的光致发光光谱(PL)信号越强, 其SERS性能就越高; 当TiO₂纳米粒子的表面缺陷和氧空位含量达到一定程度时, TiO₂纳米粒子的PL信号越弱, 其SERS性能越高.     

Cε3-Cε4蛋白寡核苷酸适配子结合位点的预测与筛选

采用NPDock程序对Cε3-Cε4蛋白与其核酸适配子A1的结合位点进行了预测与筛选, 筛选出A1与Cε3-Cε4蛋白结合的关键位点. 同时, 根据蛋白与DNA片段复合物结合界面中氨基酸残基和碱基统计分析发现, 结合界面氨基酸富集碱基G能力最强, 富集碱基T和C能力次之. 本文建立了以NPDock程序虚拟对接为基础的高效适配子优化方法, 为相关研究提供了实验参考.     

HIV-1整合酶G140A/G149A及T66I/S153Y突变后的构象变化

对HIV-1整合酶(IN)野生体(WT), G140A/G149A和T66I/S153Y突变体分别进行了5 ns的分子动力学(MD)模拟, 并用成簇和动力学交叉相关图(DCCM)分析了突变前后的构象变化. 整体结构分析表明, 突变后IN的活性口袋尺寸变化不大, T66I/S153Y突变体分子的整体运动性提高, 而G140A/G149A突变体的功能loop区柔性明显上升. IN WT的方均根涨落(RMSF)模拟值与B因子实验值的较高相关性证明了柔性分析的合理性. 通过成簇分析发现, IN在突变后功能loop区构象有开合运动, 构象开放的概率是: 体系G140A/G149A＞T66I/S153Y＞WT. 最后DCCM分析结果表明, 功能性分区的弱化以及DDE基序残基运动相关性的降低均有可能是突变体G140A/G149A和T66I/S153Y产生抗药性的原因. 模拟结果对理解IN突变体的抗药机理以及为基于HIV-1 IN的药物分子设计提供了理论帮助.     

β-环糊精的低临界溶解温度现象及其在有序纳米孔道片晶制备中的应用

将β-环糊精(β-CD)溶解于N,N-二甲基甲酰胺(DMF)中, 加热至140 ℃后有大量白色晶体析出. 扫描电子显微镜观察发现析出物为β-CD片状结晶. 红外光谱(IR)和核磁共振波谱(NMR)结果证明了片状结晶的化学结构与β-CD原料相同. 热重分析(TGA)和差示扫描量热(DSC)分析结果证明片状结晶的理化性质与β-CD原料相同. X射线衍射分析(XRD)测试结果表明, β-CD片晶的结晶结构与β-CD原料不同. 利用Diamond软件模拟了具有开通管道结晶结构的β-CD晶体的XRD谱图, 发现其与实测的β-CD片晶谱图基本相符, 说明β-CD片晶具有有序纳米开通管道结晶结构. 比表面积测试和酚酞吸附实验进一步证实β-CD片晶具有比β-CD原料更大的比表面积和更好的吸附性能.     

Ice surface reconstruction as antifreeze protein-induced morphological modification mechanism

The crystal growth process by which fish antifreeze proteins (AFPs) and antifreeze glycoproteins (AFGPs) modify the ice morphology is analyzed in the AFP-ice system. A newly identified AFP-induced surface reconstruction mechanism enables one-dimensional helical and irregular globular ice binding surfaces to stabilize secondary, kinetically less stable ice surfaces with variable face indices. Not only are the relative growth rates controlled by the IBS engagement but also the secondary face indices themselves become adjusted in the process of maximizing the AFP-substrate interaction, through attaining the best structural match. The theoretical formulation leads to comprehensive agreement with experiment.     

基于β⁃环糊精@全氟壬酸主客体作用构筑的斜六面体结构水凝胶

研究了一种全氟脂肪酸表面活性剂全氟壬酸(PFNA)与β-环糊精(β-CD)在水溶液中的自组装行为. 通过改变PFNA和β-CD的混合比例及浓度, 得到了由高度规整的厚度约为几百纳米, 长度约为十几微米的斜六面体组成的水凝胶, 并绘制了该体系的相图; 根据实验结果推测了该水凝胶的形成机理, PFNA分子的尾链包合在β-CD的空腔内形成了1∶1包合物(β-CD@PFNA), 该包合物作为构筑基元, β-CD分子以“头对头、 尾对尾”形式相互连接成“管道型”结构, 这些管道在β-CD分子间氢键作用下堆积进而结晶诱导形成斜六面体聚集体; 该六面体进一步交叉连接形成三维网状结构, 包裹住溶剂水分子从而形成水凝胶. 这种基于碳氟表面活性剂和环糊精主客体作用的自组装策略有望为新颖聚集体的可控自组装提供新思路.     

Reversible binding of the HPLC6 isoform of type I antifreeze proteins to ice surfaces and the antifreeze mechanism studied by multiple quantum filtering-spin exchange NMR experiment

Antifreeze proteins (AFPs) protect organisms from freezing damage by inhibiting the growth of seed-ice crystals. It has long been hypothesized that irreversible binding of AFPs to ice surfaces is responsible for inhibiting the growth of seed-ice crystals as such a mechanism supports the popularly accepted Kelvin effect for the explanation of local freezing-point depression. However, whether the binding is reversible or irreversible is still under debate due to the lack of direct experimental evidence. Here, we report the first direct experimental result, by using the newly developed multiple quantum (MQ) filtering-spin exchange NMR experiment, that shows that the binding of HPLC6 peptides to ice surfaces is reversible. It was found that the reversible process can be explained by the model of monolayer adsorption. These results suggest that the Kelvin effect is not suitable for explaining the antifreeze mechanism, and direct interactions between the peptides and the ice-surface binding sites are the driving forces for the binding of AFPs to ice surfaces. We propose that there exists a concentration gradient of AFP from an ice-binding surface to the solution due to the affinity of ice surfaces to AFPs. This concentration gradient creates a dense layer of AFP in contact with the ice-binding surface, which depresses the local freezing point because of the colligative property, but not the Kelvin effect.     

Effect of antifreeze proteins on the nucleation, growth, and the memory effect during tetrahydrofuran clathrate hydrate formation

The inhibition activities of two antifreeze proteins (AFPs) on the formation of tetrahydrofuran (THF) clathrate hydrate have been tested. AFPs from fish (wfAFP) and insect (CfAFP) changed the morphology of growing THF hydrate crystals. Also, both AFPs showed higher activities in inhibiting the formation THF hydrate than a commercial kinetic inhibitor, poly(vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP). Strikingly, both AFPs also showed the ability to eliminate the "memory effect" in which the crystallization of hydrate occurs more quickly after the initial formation. This is the first report of molecules that can inhibit the memory effect. Since the homogeneous nucleation temperature for THF hydrate was measured to be 237 K, close to that observed for ice itself, the action of kinetic inhibitors must involve heterogeneous nucleation. On the basis of our results, we postulate a mechanism for heterogeneous nucleation, the memory effect and its elimination by antifreeze proteins.     

多价环状模板法合成交联胶束和类环胶体

通过点击偶联法, 用二茂铁（Fc）修饰环状聚甲基丙烯酸羟乙酯[c-P(HEMA)₅₀]的侧链羟基, 得到多价环状聚合物模板c-P(HEMA-Fc)₅₀, 该模板可通过β-CD/Fc的主客体识别作用, 在Fc位点有序偶联以亲水聚乙二醇（PEG）和硫辛酸（LA）功能化的β-环糊精（β-CD）, 形成具有明显核壳结构的超分子胶束[c-P(HEMA-Fc)₅₀/β-CD-PEG-LA]. 该超分子胶束可通过二硫苏糖醇（DTT）催化的分子内自交联（CL）形成交联的超分子胶束, 作为交联β-CD-PEG-LA的环状胶体前驱体. 与三臂星状聚合物模板相比, 环状聚合物模板的优势在于环状多价结构具有更高的稳定性和空间位阻效应, 以环状聚合物为模板制备的交联胶束和类环胶体的胶束前驱溶液的浓度可显著提高至1.0 mg/mL.     

三维还原氧化石墨烯/β-环糊精复合物的合成及其电化学检测水中左氧氟沙星北大核心CSCD

成功构筑了β-环糊精修饰的三维还原氧化石墨烯复合材料(3D-rGO/β-CD),并对该复合材料进行扫描电子显微镜、傅里叶红外光谱、热重分析和拉曼光谱分析等一系列的表征,分析了其形貌和结构的特征。进一步将其修饰到玻碳电极(GCE)表面,构建了一种新型电化学传感器(3D-rGO/β-CD/GCE)。利用3D-rGO/β-CD/GCE电化学传感器,通过微分脉冲伏安法(DPV)对左氧氟沙星(LEV)进行了检测。其中,具有多孔结构的三维还原氧化石墨烯具有优异的导电性能、比表面积大、化学稳定性好等优良的性质,而修饰的β-环糊精能在其环形腔内与客体分子结合形成超分子包合物,进而可以对LEV进行有效识别。研究结果显示,在最优实验条件下,3D-rGO/β-CD/GCE对左氧氟沙星的检测具有较宽的线性范围(1~150μmol/L),且检测限可达0.33μmol/L,同时该修饰电极还表现出良好的选择性和稳定性。此外,成功将其应用于实际水样中LEV的检测,表明该传感器具有一定的应用潜力。     

A two-dimensional adsorption kinetic model for thermal hysteresis activity in antifreeze proteins

Antifreeze proteins (AFPs) and antifreeze glycoproteins (AFGPs), collectively abbreviated as AF(G)Ps, are synthesized by various organisms to enable their cells to survive in subzero environments. Although the AF(G)Ps are markedly diverse in structure, they all function by adsorbing to the surface of embryonic ice crystals to inhibit their growth. This adsorption results in a freezing temperature depression without an appreciable change in the melting temperature. The difference between the melting and freezing temperatures, termed thermal hysteresis (TH), is used to detect and quantify the antifreeze activity. Insights from crystallographic structures of a number of AFPs have led to a good understanding of the ice-protein interaction features. Computational studies have focused either on verifying a specific model of AFP-ice interaction or on understanding the protein-induced changes in the ice crystal morphology. In order to explain the origin of TH, we propose a novel two-dimensional adsorption kinetic model between AFPs and ice crystal surfaces. The validity of the model has been demonstrated by reproducing the TH curve on two different beta-helical AFPs upon increasing the protein concentration. In particular, this model is able to accommodate the change in the TH behavior observed experimentally when the size of the AFPs is increased systematically. Our results suggest that in addition to the specificity of the AFPs for the ice, the coverage of the AFPs on the ice surface is an equally necessary condition for their TH activity.     

Mimicking the Ice Recrystallization Activity of Biological Antifreezes. When is a New Polymer “Active”?

Antifreeze proteins and ice‐binding proteins have been discovered in a diverse range of extremophiles and have the ability to modulate the growth and formation of ice crystals. Considering the importance of cryoscience across transport, biomedicine, and climate science, there is significant interest in developing synthetic macromolecular mimics of antifreeze proteins, in particular to reproduce their property of ice recrystallization inhibition (IRI). This activity is a continuum rather than an “on/off” property and there may be multiple molecular mechanisms which give rise to differences in this observable property; the limiting concentrations for ice growth vary by more than a thousand between an antifreeze glycoprotein and poly(vinyl alcohol), for example. The aim of this article is to provide a concise comparison of a range of natural and synthetic materials that are known to have IRI, thus providing a guide to see if a new synthetic mimic is active or not, including emerging materials which are comparatively weak compared to antifreeze proteins, but may have technological importance. The link between activity and the mechanisms involving either ice binding or amphiphilicity is discussed and known materials assigned into classes based on this.