Download MendeleyStructural resolution of switchable states of a de novo peptide assembly.
Dawson, W.M., Lang, E.J.M., Rhys, G.G., Shelley, K.L., Williams, C., Brady, R.L., Crump, M.P., Mulholland, A.J., Woolfson, D.N.(2021) Nat Commun 12: 1530-1530
- PubMed: 33750792
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-21851-8
- Primary Citation of Related Structures:
6ZT1 - PubMed Abstract:
De novo protein design is advancing rapidly. However, most designs are for single states. Here we report a de novo designed peptide that forms multiple α-helical-bundle states that are accessible and interconvertible under the same conditions. Usually in such designs amphipathic α helices associate to form compact structures with consolidated hydrophobic cores. However, recent rational and computational designs have delivered open α-helical barrels with functionalisable cavities. By placing glycine judiciously in the helical interfaces of an α-helical barrel, we obtain both open and compact states in a single protein crystal. Molecular dynamics simulations indicate a free-energy landscape with multiple and interconverting states. Together, these findings suggest a frustrated system in which steric interactions that maintain the open barrel and the hydrophobic effect that drives complete collapse are traded-off. Indeed, addition of a hydrophobic co-solvent that can bind within the barrel affects the switch between the states both in silico and experimentally.
Organizational Affiliation:
School of Chemistry, University of Bristol, Cantock's Close, Bristol, UK.
