NMR studies of the Zn2+ interactions with rat and human beta-amyloid (1-28) peptides in water-micelle environment

Alzheimer's disease is a fatal neurodegenerative disorder involving the abnormal accumulation and deposition of peptides (amyloid-beta, Abeta) derived from the amyloid precursor protein. Here, we present the structure and the Zn2+ binding sites of human and rat Abeta(1-28) fragments in water/sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) micelles by using 1H NMR spectroscopy. The chemical shift variations measured after Zn2+ addition at T>310 K allowed us to assign the binding donor atoms in both rat and human zinc complexes. The Asp-1 amine, His-6 Ndelta, Glu-11 COO-, and His-13 Nepsilon of rat Abeta28 all enter the metal coordination sphere, while His-6 Ndelta, His-13, His-14 Nepsilon, Asp-1 amine, and/or Glu-11 COO- are all bound to Zn2+ in the case of human Abeta28. Finally, a comparison between the rat and human binding abilities was discussed.     

Structural features of the Cu(II) complex with the rat Abeta(1-28) fragment

The interaction between Cu(II) and the rat amyloid beta (1-28) fragment in micellar solutions at pH 7.5 was investigated by CD and NMR spectroscopy; the proton-copper distances were used in restrained molecular dynamics simulations to obtain a structural model of the Cu(II) complex.     

Clustering dynamics in water/methanol mixtures: a nuclear magnetic resonance study at 205 k<T<295 k

Proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR) experiments have been performed to measure the spin-lattice, T1, and spin-spin, T2, relaxation times of the three functional groups in water/methanol mixtures at different methanol molar fractions (XMeOH=0, 0.04, 0.1, 0.24, 0.5, 1) as a function of temperature in the range 205 K相似文献   

Determination of Mercury with a Miniature Sensor for Point-of-care Testing

In developing countries, subsistence gold mining entails mixing metallic mercury with crushed sediments to extract gold. In this approach, the gold−mercury amalgam is heated to evaporate mercury and obtain gold. Thus, the highly volatile mercury can be absorbed through inhalation, resulting in adverse health effects. Urinalysis can be used to detect mercury, which is excreted in urine and feces, and correlate exposure with toxic effects. The current gold standard analytical methods are based on fluorescence or inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry methods, but are expensive, time consuming, and are not easily accessible in countries where testing is needed. In this work, we report on a miniature electrochemical sensor that can rapidly detect mercury in urine at levels well below the US Biological Exposure Index (BEI) limit of 50 ppb (μg/L). The sensor is based on a thin-film gold electrode and anodic stripping voltammetry electroanalytical approach. The sensor successfully detected mercury at trace levels in urine, with a limit of detection of ∼15 ppb Hg in the linear range of 20–80 ppb. With the low-cost disposable sensors and portable instrumentation, it is well suited for point-of-care applications.     

Concerning the reactivity of dioxiranes. Observations from experiments and theory

The challenging hypothesis of a "biphilic" (i.e., electrophilic vs nucleophilic) character for dioxirane reactivity, which envisages that electron-poor alkenes are attacked by dioxiranes in a nucleophilic fashion, could not be sustained experimentally. Rate data, which estimate Hammett "rho" values for the epoxidation of 3- or 4-substituted cinnamonitriles X x Ph-CH=CH-CN, unequivocally allow one to establish that dioxiranes epoxidize electrophilically even alkenes carrying electron-withdrawing groups. The greater propensity of methyl(trifluoromethyl)dioxirane TFDO (1b) to act as an electrophilic oxidant with respect to dimethyldioxirane DDO (1a) parallels the cathode reduction potentials for the two dioxiranes, as measured by cyclic voltammetry. A simple FMO approach for alkene epoxidation is helpful to conceive a likely rationale for the greater oxidizing power of TFDO as compared to DDO.     

Effect of ortho-SR groups on O-H bond strength and H-atom donating ability of phenols: a possible role for the Tyr-Cys link in galactose oxidase active site?

Rotation about the Ar-S bond in ortho-(alkylthio)phenols strongly affects the bond dissociation enthalpy (BDE) and the reactivity of the OH group. Newly synthesized sulfur containing heterocycles 3 and 4, where the -SR group is almost coplanar with the phenolic ring, are characterized by unusually low BDE(O-H) values (79.6 and 79.2 kcal/mol, respectively) and by much higher reactivities toward peroxyl radicals than the ortho-methylthio derivative 1 (82.0 kcal/mol). The importance of the intramolecular hydrogen bond (IHB) in determining the BDE(O-H) was demonstrated by FT-IR experiments, which showed that in heterocycles 3 and 4 the IHB between the phenolic OH group and the S atom is much weaker than that present in 1. Since the IHB can be formed only if the -SR group adopts an out-of-plane geometry, this interaction is possible only in the methylthio derivative 1 and not in 3 and 4. The additive contribution to the phenolic BDE(O-H) of the -SR substituent therefore varies from -3.1 to +2.8 kcal/mol for the in-plane and out-of-plane conformations, respectively. These results may be relevant to understanding the role of the tyrosine-cysteine link in the active site of galactose oxidase, an important enzyme that catalyzes the two-electron aerobic oxidation of primary alcohols to aldehydes. The switching of the ortho -SR substituent between perpendicular and planar conformations may account for the catalytic efficiency of this enzyme.     

Artarborol, a nor-caryophyllane sesquiterpene alcohol from Artemisia arborescens. stereostructure assignment through concurrence of NMR data and computational analysis

A nor-caryophyllane derivative, artarborol, has been isolated from wormwood (Artemisia arborescens) and its stereostructure established by using a combination of chemical derivatization, NMR data, molecular modeling, and quantum-mechanical calculations. In particular, comparison of experimental 13C NMR data with a Boltzmann-weighed average of 13C NMR chemical shifts, calculated by ab initio DFT method, supported the stereochemical assignment.     

Classification of water molecules in protein binding sites

Water molecules play a crucial role in mediating the interaction between a ligand and a macromolecular receptor. An understanding of the nature and role of each water molecule in the active site of a protein could greatly increase the efficiency of rational drug design approaches: if the propensity of a water molecule for displacement can be determined, then synthetic effort may be most profitably applied to the design of specific ligands with the displacement of this water molecule in mind. In this paper, a thermodynamic analysis of water molecules in the binding sites of six proteins, each complexed with a number of inhibitors, is presented. Two classes of water molecules were identified: those conserved and not displaced by any of the ligands, and those that are displaced by some ligands. The absolute binding free energies of 54 water molecules were calculated using the double decoupling method, with replica exchange thermodynamic integration in Monte Carlo simulations. It was found that conserved water molecules are on average more tightly bound than displaced water molecules. In addition, Bayesian statistics is used to calculate the probability that a particular water molecule may be displaced by an appropriately designed ligand, given the calculated binding free energy of the water molecule. This approach therefore allows the numerical assessment of whether or not a given water molecule should be targeted for displacement as part of a rational drug design strategy.