Correlation between the dynamics of hydrogen bonds and the local density reorganization in the protein hydration layer

An atomistic molecular dynamics simulation of the protein villin headpiece subdomain or HP-36 has been carried out with explicit water to explore the microscopic inhomogeneity of local density reorganization of the hydration layers of the three alpha-helical segments of the protein. The density reorganization of the hydration layer of helix-3 is found to occur faster than that for the hydration layers of the other two helices. It is noticed that such inhomogeneous density reorganization at the surface of different secondary structures exhibits excellent correlation with the microscopic dynamics of hydrogen bonds between the protein residues and the hydration water. Further, it is observed that the reorientation of water molecules involved in the formation and breaking of protein-water or water-water hydrogen bonds plays an important role in determining the dynamics of local density of the hydration layer. The faster density reorganization of the hydration layer of helix-3 is also consistent with the functionality of HP-36, as helix-3 contains several active site residues.     

Exploration of the secondary structure specific differential solvation dynamics between the native and molten globule states of the protein HP-36

Recent experiments have shown that the time dependence of fluorescence Stokes shift of a chromophore is substantially different when the chromophore is located in a molten globule (MG) state and in the native state of the same protein. To understand the origin of this difference, particularly the role of water in the differential solvation of the protein in the native and the MG states, we have carried out fully atomistic molecular dynamics simulations with explicit water of a partially unfolded MG state of the protein HP-36 and compared the results with the solvation dynamics of the protein in the folded native state. It is observed that the polar solvation dynamics of the three helical segments of the protein is influenced in a nonuniform heterogeneous manner in the MG state. While the equilibrium solvation time correlation function for helix-3 has been found to relax faster in the MG state as compared to that in the native state, the decay of the corresponding function for the other two helices slows down in the MG state. A careful analysis shows that the origin of such heterogeneous relative solvation behavior lies in the differential location of the polar probe residues and their exposure to bulk solvent. We find a significant negative cross-correlation between the contribution (to the solvation energy of a tagged amino acid residue) of water and the other groups of the protein, indicating a competing role in solvation. The sensitivity of solvation dynamics to the secondary structure and the immediate environment can be used to discriminate the partially unfolded and folded states. These results therefore should be useful in explaining recent solvation dynamics experiments on native and MG states of proteins.     

Coupling between hydration layer dynamics and unfolding kinetics of HP-36

We have performed atomistic molecular dynamics simulations of aqueous solutions of HP-36 at 300 K in its native state, as well as at high temperatures to explore the unfolding dynamics of the protein and its correlation with the motion of water around it. On increasing the temperature a partially unfolded molten globule state is formed where the smallest alpha helix (helix 2) unfolds into a coil. It is observed that the unfolding is initiated around the residue Phe-18 which shows a sharp displacement during unfolding. We have noticed that the unfolding of the protein affects the density of water near the protein surface. Besides, the dynamics of water in the protein hydration layer has been found to be strongly correlated with the time evolution of the unfolding process. We have introduced and calculated a displacement time correlation function to monitor the change in water motion relative to the protein backbone during unfolding. We find that the unfolding of helix 2 is associated with an increase in mobility of water around it as compared to water around the other two helices. We have also explored the microscopic aspects of secondary structure specific and site specific solvation dynamics of the protein. The calculations reveal that unfolding influences the solvation dynamics of the protein molecule in a heterogeneous manner depending on the location of the polar probe residues. This seems to be in agreement with recent experimental findings.     

Sensitivity of polar solvation dynamics to the secondary structures of aqueous proteins and the role of surface exposure of the probe

The structure and dynamics of water around a protein is expected to be sensitive to the details of the adjacent secondary structure of the protein. In this article, we explore this sensitivity by calculating both the orientational dynamics of the surface water molecules and the equilibrium solvation time correlation function of the polar amino acid residues in each of the three helical segments of the protein HP-36, using atomistic molecular dynamics simulations. The solvation dynamics of polar amino acid residues in helix-2 is found to be faster than that of the other two helices (the average time constant is smaller by a factor of 2), although the interfacial water molecules around helix-2 exhibit much slower orientational dynamics than that around the other two helices. A careful analysis shows that the origin of such a counterintuitive behavior lies in the dependence of the solvation time correlation function on the surface exposure of the probe-the more exposed is the probe, the faster the solvation dynamics. We discuss that these results are useful in explaining recent solvation dynamics experiments.     

Secondary structure sensitivity of hydrogen bond lifetime dynamics in the protein hydration layer

The heterogeneous nature of a protein surface plays an essential role in its biological activity and molecular recognition, and this role is mediated at least partly through the surrounding water molecules. We have performed atomistic molecular dynamics simulations of an aqueous solution of HP-36 to investigate the correlation between the dynamics of the hydration layer water molecules and the lifetimes of protein-water hydrogen bonds. The nonexponential hydrogen bond lifetime correlation functions have been analyzed by using the formalism of Luzar and Chandler, which allowed identification of the quasi-bound states in the surface and quantification of the dynamic equilibrium between quasi-bound and free water molecules in terms of time-dependent rate of interconversion. It is noticed that, irrespective of the structural heterogeneity of different segments of the protein, namely the three alpha-helices, the positively charged amino acid residues form longer-lived hydrogen bonds with water. The overall relaxation behavior of protein-water hydrogen bonds is found to differ significantly among the three helices of the protein. Study of water number density fluctuation reveals that the hydration layer of helix-3 is much less rigid, which can be correlated with faster structural relaxation of the hydrogen bonds between its residues and water. This also agrees excellently with faster translational and rotational motions of water near helix-3, and hence the lower rigidity of its hydration layer. The lower rigidity of the helix-3 hydration layer also correlates well with the biological activity of the protein, as several of the active-site residues of HP-36 are located in helix-3.     

Low-frequency vibrational spectrum of water in the hydration layer of a protein: a molecular dynamics simulation study

An atomistic molecular dynamics simulation has been carried out to understand the low-frequency intermolecular vibrational spectrum of water present in the hydration layer of the protein villin headpiece subdomain or HP-36. An attempt is made to explore how the heterogeneous rigidity of the hydration layers of different segments (three alpha helices) of the protein, strength of the protein-water hydrogen bonds, and their differential relaxation behavior influence the distribution of the intermolecular vibrational density of states of water in the hydration layers. The calculations revealed that compared to bulk water these bands are nonuniformly blue-shifted for water near the helices, the extent of shifts being more pronounced for water molecules hydrogen bonded to the protein residues. It is further noticed that the larger blue shift observed for the water molecules hydrogen bonded to helix 2 residues correlates excellently with the slowest structural relaxation of these hydrogen bonds. These results can be verified by suitable experimental measurements.     

Thickness of the hydration layer of a protein from molecular dynamics simulation

Water molecules around a protein exhibit slow dynamics with respect to that of pure bulk water. One important issue in protein hydration is the thickness of the hydration layer (i.e., the distance from the protein surface up to which the water dynamics is influenced by the protein). Estimation of thickness is crucial to understand better the properties of "biological water" and the role that it plays in guiding the protein's function. We have performed an atomistic molecular dynamics simulation of an aqueous solution of the protein villin headpiece subdomain or HP-36 to estimate the thickness of its hydration water. In particular, several dynamical properties of water around different segments (three alpha-helices) of the protein have been calculated by varying the thickness of the hydration layers. It is found that in general the influence of the helices on water properties extends beyond the first hydration layer. However, the heterogeneous nature of water among the first hydration layers of the three helices diminishes as the thickness is increased. It indicates that, for a small protein such as HP-36, the thickness of "biological water" is uniform for different segments of the protein.     

A solution study on the local and global structure changes of cytochrome c: an unfolding process induced by urea

The local and global structural changes of cytochrome c induced by urea in aqueous solution have been studied using X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) and small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS). According to the XAS result, both the native (folded) protein and the unfolded protein exhibit the same preedge features taken at Fe K-edge, indicating that the Fe(III) in the heme group of the protein maintains a six-coordinated local structure in both the folded and unfolded states. Furthermore, the discernible differences in the X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) of these two states are attributed to a possible spin transition of the Fe(III) from a low-spin state to a high-spin state during the unfolding process. The perseverance of six-coordination and the spin transition of the iron are reconciled by a proposed ligand exchange, with urea and water molecules replacing the methionine-80 and histidine-18 axial ligands, respectively. The SAXS result reveals a significant morphology change of cytochrome c from a globular shape of a radius of gyration R(g) = 12.8 A of the native protein to an elongated ellipsoid shape of R(g) = 29.7 A for the unfolded protein in the presence of concentrated urea. The extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) data unveil the coordination geometries of Fe(III) in both the folded and unfolded state of cytochrome c. An initial spin transition of Fe(III) followed by an axial ligand exchange, accompanied by the change in the global envelope, is proposed for what happened in the protein unfolding process of cytochrome c.     

Protonation/deprotonation effects on the stability of the Trp-cage miniprotein

The Trp-cage miniprotein is a 20 amino acid peptide that exhibits many of the properties of globular proteins. In this protein, the hydrophobic core is formed by a buried Trp side chain. The folded state is stabilized by an ion pair between aspartic acid and an arginine side chain. The effect of protonating the aspartic acid on the Trp-cage miniprotein folding/unfolding equilibrium is studied by explicit solvent molecular dynamics simulations of the protein in the charged and protonated Asp9 states. Unbiased Replica Exchange Molecular Dynamics (REMD) simulations, spanning a wide temperature range, are carried out to the microsecond time scale, using the AMBER99SB forcefield in explicit TIP3P water. The protein structural ensembles are studied in terms of various order parameters that differentiate the folded and unfolded states. We observe that in the folded state the root mean square distance (rmsd) from the backbone of the NMR structure shows two highly populated basins close to the native state with peaks at 0.06 nm and 0.16 nm, which are consistent with previous simulations using the same forcefield. The fraction of folded replicas shows a drastic decrease because of the absence of the salt bridge. However, significant populations of conformations with the arginine side chain exposed to the solvent, but within the folded basin, are found. This shows the possibility to reach the folded state without formation of the ion pair. We also characterize changes in the unfolded state. The equilibrium populations of the folded and unfolded states are used to characterize the thermodynamics of the system. We find that the change in free energy difference due to the protonation of the Asp amino acid is 3 kJ mol(-1) at 297 K, favoring the charged state, and resulting in ΔpK(1) = 0.5 units for Asp9. We also study the differences in the unfolded state ensembles for the two charge states and find significant changes at low temperature, where the protonated Asp side chain makes multiple hydrogen bonds to the protein backbone.     

Towards a Quantitative Understanding of Protein Hydration and Volumetric Properties

Herein, we probe by pressure perturbation calorimetry (PPC) the coefficient of thermal expansion, the volumetric and the hydration properties of variants of a hyperstable variant of staphylococcal nuclease (SNase), Δ+PHS. The temperature‐dependent volumetric properties of the folded and unfolded states of the wild‐type protein are calculated with previously published data. The present PPC results are used to interpret the volume diagram and expansivity at a molecular level. We conclude that the expansivity of the unfolded state is, to a first approximation, temperature independent, while that of the folded state decreases with increasing temperature. Our data suggest that at low temperature the defining contribution to ΔV comes mainly from excluded volume differences and ΔV for unfolding is negative. In contrast, at high temperatures, differential solvation due to the increased exposed surface area of the unfolded state and, in particular, its larger thermal volume linked to the increased conformational dynamics of the unfolded state ensemble takes over and ΔV for unfolding eventually becomes positive.     

Computer simulations of the refolding of sperm whale apomyoglobin from high-temperature denaturated state

The refolding mechanism of apomyoglobin (apoMb) subsequent to high-temperature unfolding has been examined using computer simulations with atomic level detail. The folding of this protein has been extensively studied experimentally, providing a large database of folding parameters which can be probed using simulations. In the present study, 4-folding trajectories of apoMb were computed starting from coiled structures. A crystal structure of sperm whale myoglobin taken from the Protein Data Bank was used to construct the final native conformation by removal of the heme group followed by energy optimization. The initial unfolded conformations were obtained from high-temperature molecular dynamics simulations. Room-temperature refolding trajectories at neutral pH were obtained using the stochastic difference equation in length algorithm. The folding trajectories were compared with experimental results and two previous molecular dynamics studies at low pH. In contrast to the previous simulations, an extended intermediate with large helical content was not observed. In the present study, a structural collapse occurs without formation of helices or native contacts. Once the protein structure is more compact (radius of gyration<18 A) secondary and tertiary structures appear. These results suggest that apoMb follows a different folding pathway after high-temperature denaturation.     

Size and sequence and the volume change of protein folding

The application of hydrostatic pressure generally leads to protein unfolding, implying, in accordance with Le Chatelier's principle, that the unfolded state has a smaller molar volume than the folded state. However, the origin of the volume change upon unfolding, ΔV(u), has yet to be determined. We have examined systematically the effects of protein size and sequence on the value of ΔV(u) using as a model system a series of deletion variants of the ankyrin repeat domain of the Notch receptor. The results provide strong evidence in support of the notion that the major contributing factor to pressure effects on proteins is their imperfect internal packing in the folded state. These packing defects appear to be specifically localized in the 3D structure, in contrast to the uniformly distributed effects of temperature and denaturants that depend upon hydration of exposed surface area upon unfolding. Given its local nature, the extent to which pressure globally affects protein structure can inform on the degree of cooperativity and long-range coupling intrinsic to the folded state. We also show that the energetics of the protein's conformations can significantly modulate their volumetric properties, providing further insight into protein stability.     

Site-specific hydration dynamics in the nonpolar core of a molten globule by dynamic nuclear polarization of water

Water-protein interactions play a direct role in protein folding. The chain collapse that accompanies protein folding involves extrusion of water from the nonpolar core. For many proteins, including apomyoglobin (apoMb), hydrophobic interactions drive an initial collapse to an intermediate state before folding to the final structure. However, the debate continues as to whether the core of the collapsed intermediate state is hydrated and, if so, what the dynamic nature of this water is. A key challenge is that protein hydration dynamics is significantly heterogeneous, yet suitable experimental techniques for measuring hydration dynamics with site-specificity are lacking. Here, we introduce Overhauser dynamic nuclear polarization at 0.35 T via site-specific nitroxide spin labels as a unique tool to probe internal and surface protein hydration dynamics with site-specific resolution in the molten globular, native, and unfolded protein states. The (1)H NMR signal enhancement of water carries information about the local dynamics of the solvent within ～10 ? of a spin label. EPR is used synergistically to gain insights on local polarity and mobility of the spin-labeled protein. Several buried and solvent-exposed sites of apoMb are examined, each bearing a covalently bound nitroxide spin label. We find that the nonpoloar core of the apoMb molten globule is hydrated with water bearing significant translational dynamics, only 4-6-fold slower than that of bulk water. The hydration dynamics of the native state is heterogeneous, while the acid-unfolded state bears fast-diffusing hydration water. This study provides a high-resolution glimpse at the folding-dependent nature of protein hydration dynamics.     

Temperature dependent equilibrium native to unfolded protein dynamics and properties observed with IR absorption and 2D IR vibrational echo experiments

Dynamic and structural properties of carbonmonoxy (CO)-coordinated cytochrome c(552) from Hydrogenobacter thermophilus (Ht-M61A) at different temperatures under thermal equilibrium conditions were studied with infrared absorption spectroscopy and ultrafast two-dimensional infrared (2D IR) vibrational echo experiments using the heme-bound CO as the vibrational probe. Depending on the temperature, the stretching mode of CO shows two distinct bands corresponding to the native and unfolded proteins. As the temperature is increased from low temperature, a new absorption band for the unfolded protein grows in and the native band decreases in amplitude. Both the temperature-dependent circular dichroism and the IR absorption area ratio R(A)(T), defined as the ratio of the area under the unfolded band to the sum of the areas of the native and unfolded bands, suggest a two-state transition from the native to the unfolded protein. However, it is found that the absorption spectrum of the unfolded protein increases its inhomogeneous line width and the center frequency shifts as the temperature is increased. The changes in line width and center frequency demonstrate that the unfolding does not follow simple two-state behavior. The temperature-dependent 2D IR vibrational echo experiments show that the fast dynamics of the native protein are virtually temperature independent. In contrast, the fast dynamics of the unfolded protein are slower than those of the native protein, and the unfolded protein fast dynamics and at least a portion of the slower dynamics of the unfolded protein change significantly, becoming faster as the temperature is raised. The temperature dependence of the absorption spectrum and the changes in dynamics measured with the 2D IR experiments confirm that the unfolded ensemble of conformers continuously changes its nature as unfolding proceeds, in contrast to the native state, which displays a temperature-independent distribution of structures.     

In Silico Evidence That Protein Unfolding is a Precursor of Protein Aggregation

We present a computational study on the folding and aggregation of proteins in an aqueous environment, as a function of its concentration. We show how the increase of the concentration of individual protein species can induce a partial unfolding of the native conformation without the occurrence of aggregates. A further increment of the protein concentration results in the complete loss of the folded structures and induces the formation of protein aggregates. We discuss the effect of the protein interface on the water fluctuations in the protein hydration shell and their relevance in the protein-protein interaction.     

脲和盐酸胍诱导过氧化氢酶去折叠的研究

用荧光相图法分别研究了脲和盐酸胍诱导牛肝过氧化氢酶去折叠的过程。当脲 浓度从0依次增大至0.50,4.5和8.0 mol/L时,过氧化氢酶从天然四聚体依次转变 为蓬松的四聚体、部分折叠的无活性二聚体和去折叠态,而当盐酸胍浓度从0依次 变化至0.65,2.5和6.0 mol/L时,过氧化氢酶则从天然四聚体集资转变为部分折叠 的激活二聚体、部分折叠的单体和去折叠态,这表明无论是用脲还是用盐酸胍作为 变性剂,该蛋白的变性过程都符合“四态模型”,但这两种变性剂诱导该蛋白去折 叠的途径和机制有较大差异。实验结果表明荧光相图法可以检测蛋白质去折叠的中 间态。用等温滴定量去热法研究了盐酸胍诱导过氧化氢酶去折叠过程的热力学, 25.0 ℃时低浓度盐酸胍诱导该蛋白从天然四聚体转变为部分折叠的激活二聚体的 本征摩尔构象变化焓、Gibbs自由能和熵分别为-69.2 kJ·mol~(-1),6.43 kJ· mol~(-1)和-254 J·K~(-1)·mol~(-1),据此推断盐酸胍通过熵效应和静电效应来 稳定和激活该二聚体。     

荧光相图法研究脲诱导牛血清白蛋白的去折叠过程

作为从分子水平上阐明生命奥秘的中心课题之一,蛋白质的折叠问题一直受到生物化学、生物物理学和结构生物学等领域研究工作者的高度关注。在蛋白质的变性过程中,它们往往达不到完全去折叠,而是会形成不同的部分折叠中间态[1-3],这些部分折叠中间态在蛋白质折叠过程中起着重要作     

脲和盐酸胍诱导溶菌酶去折叠的荧光相图法研究

用荧光相图法分别研究了脲和盐酸胍诱导卵清溶菌酶去抓叠的过程。当变性体 系中无还原剂2－巯基乙醇存在、脲浓度从0变化至4.0 mol/L（或盐酸胍浓度从0变 化至3.0 mol/L）时,溶菌酶从天然态转变为部分折叠中间态,当脲浓度从4.0 mol/L变化至8.0 mol/L（或盐酸胍浓度从3.0 mol/L变化至6.0 mol/L）时,溶菌 酶从中间态转变为去折叠态,此时该蛋白的变性过程符合“三态模型”。而当变性 体系中有该还原剂存在时,溶菌酶则由天然态直接转变为去折叠态,此时脲诱导该 蛋白去折叠的过程符合曲型的“二态模型”。实难结果表明荧光相图法可以检测蛋 白南去抓叠的中间态。     

Local heterogeneous dynamics of water around lysozyme: a computer simulation study

Water present near the surface of a protein exhibits dynamic properties different from that of water in the pure bulk state. In this work, we have carried out atomistic molecular dynamics simulation of an aqueous solution of hen egg-white lysozyme. Attempts have been made to explore the correlation between the local heterogeneous mobility of water around the protein segments and the rigidity of the hydration layers with the microscopic dynamics of hydrogen bonds formed by water molecules with the protein residues. The kinetics of breaking and reformation of hydrogen bonds involving the surface water molecules have been calculated. It is found that the reformations of broken hydrogen bonds are more frequent for the hydration layers of those segments of the protein that are more rigid. The calculation of the low-frequency vibrational modes of hydration layer water molecules reveals that the protein influences the transverse and longitudinal degrees of freedom of water around it in a differential manner. These findings can be verified by appropriate experimental studies.     

Site-specific Heterogeneity of Multi-domain Human Serum Albumin and its Origin: A Red Edge Excitation Shift Study†

Conformational heterogeneity is a defining characteristic of a protein and is vital in understanding its function and folding landscape. In the present work, we interrogated the presence of conformational heterogeneity in multi-domain human serum albumin in a domain-specific manner using red edge excitation shift (REES) in its native state and also monitored its variation along the unfolding transition. We also looked into the origin of such conformational heterogeneity by varying the solution viscosity. We observed (1) even in the native state, the heterogeneity and dynamics of the side chain exhibit varied behaviors depending on which domain of the multi-domain human serum albumin (HSA) is being examined. (2) When the protein is in the unfolded state, the extent of REES is rendered unimportant since there is a greater quantity of free water present, in addition to the disruption of the protein's structure. (3) While the rigid protein matrix provides the rigidity of domain-I and domain-III, the rigidity of domain-II is provided by water molecules, which indicates that the role of water molecules in providing the rigidity is significant. Overall, our results provide direct evidence of the rigidity and alternate side chain packing arrangement of protein core that varies domain-wise in multi-domain HSA.