Ultraviolet resonance Raman (UVRR) spectra of tryptophan compounds in various solvents and a model peptide are presented and reveal systematic changes that reflect solvent polarity, hydrogen bond strength, and cation-π interaction. The commonly utilized UVRR spectral marker for environment polarity that has been based on off-resonance Raman data, the tryptophan Fermi doublet ratio I~1 360 /I~1 340 , exhibits different values in on-and off-resonance Raman spectra as well as for different tryptophan derivatives. Specifically, the UVRR Fermi doublet ratio for indole ranges from 0.3 in polar solvents to 0.8 in nonpolar solvents, whereas the respective values reported here and previously for off-resonance Raman spectra are 0.5-1.3. UVRR Fermi doublet ratios for the more biologically relevant molecule, N-acetyl tryptophan ethyl ester (NATEE), are in a smaller range of 1.1 (polar solvent) to 1.7 (nonpolar solvent) and correlate to the solvent polarity/polarization parameters π* and . As has been reported previously, several UVRR modes are also sensitive to the hydrogen bond strength of the indole N-H moiety. Here, we report a new unambiguous marker for H-bonding: the ratio of the W10 (~1237 cm −1 ) intensity to that of the W9 (~1254 cm −1 ) mode (R W10 ). This ratio is 0.7 for NATEE in the absence of hydrogen bond acceptors and increases to 3.1 in the presence of strong hydrogen bond acceptors, with a value of 2.3 in water. The W8 and W17 modes shift more than +10 and approximately −5 cm −1 upon increase in hydrogen bond strength; this range for W17 is smaller than that reported previously and reflects a more realistic range for proteins and peptides in solution. Finally, our data provide evidence for change in the W18 and W16 relative intensity in the presence of cation-π interactions. These UVRR markers are utilized to interpret spectra of model membrane-bound systems tryptophan octyl ester and the peptide toxin melittin. These spectra reveal the importance of intra-and intermolecular hydrogen bonding and cation-π interactions that likely influence the partitioning of membrane-associated biomolecules to lipid bilayers or self-associated soluble oligomers. The UVRR analysis presented here modifies and augments prior reports and provides an unambiguous set of spectral makers that can be applied to elucidate the molecular microenvironment and structure of a wide range of complex systems, including anchoring tryptophan residues in membrane proteins and peptides.

Heat shock proteins (hsp) are well recognized for their protein folding activity. Additionally, hsp expression is enhanced during stress conditions to preserve cellular homeostasis. Hsp are also detected outside cells, released by an active mechanism independent of cell death. Extracellular hsp appear to act as signaling molecules as part of a systemic response to stress. Extracellular hsp do not contain a consensus signal for their secretion via the classical ER-Golgi compartment. Therefore, they are likely exported by an alternative mechanism requiring translocation across the plasma membrane. Since Hsp70, the major inducible hsp, has been detected on surface of stressed cells, we propose that membrane interaction is the first step in the export process. The question that emerges is how does this charged cytosolic protein interact with lipid membranes? Prior studies have shown that Hsp70 formed ion conductance pathways within artificial lipid bilayers. These early observations have been extended herewith using a liposome insertion assay. We showed that Hsp70 selectively interacted with negatively charged phospholipids, particularly phosphatidyl serine (PS), within liposomes, which was followed by insertion into the lipid bilayer, forming high-molecular weight oligomers. Hsp70 displayed a preference for less fluid lipid environments and the region embedded into the lipid membrane was mapped toward the Cterminus end of the molecule. The results from our studies provide evidence of an unexpected ability of a large, charged protein to become inserted into a lipid membrane. This observation provides a new paradigm for the interaction of proteins with lipid environments. In addition, it may explain the export mechanism of an increasing number of proteins that lack the consensus secretory signals.

SUMMARY Islet amyloid polypeptide (IAPP) is a hormone cosecreted with insulin. IAPP proceeds through a series of conformational changes from random coil to β-sheet via transient α-helical intermediates. An unknown subset of these events are associated with seemingly disparate gains-of-function including catalysis of self-assembly, membrane penetration, loss of membrane integrity, mitochondrial localization and finally cytotoxicity, a central component of diabetic pathology. A series of small molecule, α-helical mimetics, oligopyridylamides, was previously shown to target the membrane bound α-helical oligomeric intermediates of IAPP. In this study, we develop an improved, microwave assisted synthesis of oligopyridylamides. A series of designed tripyridylamides demonstrate that lipid-catalyzed self-assembly of IAPP can be deliberately targeted. These molecules additionally affect IAPP induced leakage of synthetic liposomes and cellular toxicity in insulin secreting cells. The tripyridylamides inhibit these processes with identical rank orders of effectiveness. This indicates a common molecular basis for the disparate set of observed effects of IAPP.

Three families of membrane-active peptides are commonly found in nature and are classified according to their initial apparent activity. Antimicrobial peptides are ancient components of the innate immune system and typically act by disruption of microbial membranes leading to cell death. Amyloid peptides contribute to the pathology of diverse diseases from Alzheimer's to type II diabetes. Preamyloid states of these peptides can act as toxins by binding to and permeabilizing cellular membranes. Cell-penetrating peptides are natural or engineered short sequences that can spontaneously translocate across a membrane. Despite these differences in classification, many similarities in sequence, structure, and activity suggest that peptides from all three classes act through a small, common set of physical principles. Namely, these peptides alter the Brownian properties of phospholipid bilayers, enhancing the sampling of intrinsic fluctuations that include membrane defects. A complete energy landscape for such systems can be described by the innate membrane properties, differential partition, and the associated kinetics of peptides dividing between surface and defect regions of the bilayer. The goal of this review is to argue that the activities of these membrane-active families of peptides simply represent different facets of what is a shared energy landscape.

We report altogether 3-μs molecular dynamics (MD) simulations of the antimicrobial peptide CM15 to systematically investigate its interaction with two model lipid bilayers, pure POPC and mixed POPG:POPC (1:2). Starting with either an α-helical or a random-coil conformation, CM15 is found to insert into both bilayers. Peptide-lipid interaction is stronger with the anionic POPG:POPC than the zwitterionic POPC, which is largely attributed to the electrostatic attraction between CM15 and the negatively charged POPG. Simulations initiated with CM15 as a random coil allowed us to study peptide folding at the lipid-water interface. Interestingly, CM15 folding appears to be faster in POPC than POPG:POPC, which may be explained by a lower activation energy barrier of structural rearrangement in the former system. Our data also suggest that compared with the random-coil conformation, CM15 in a pre-folded α-helix has significantly reduced interactions with the lipids, indicating that peptide initial structures may bias the simulation results considerably on the 100-ns timescale. The implications of this result should be considered when preparing and interpreting future AMP simulations.

Refolding curves of the integral membrane protein Outer Membrane Protein A (OmpA) were measured to determine the conformational stabilities of this model system for membrane protein folding. Wild-type OmpA exhibits a free energy of unfolding ( ) of 10.5 kcal/mol. Mutants, containing a single tryptophan residue at the native positions 7, 15, 57, 102, or 143, are less stable than wild-type OmpA, with values of 6.7, 4.8, 2.4, 4.7, and 2.8 kcal/mol, respectively. The trend observed here is discussed in terms of non-covalent interactions, including aromatic interactions and hydrogen bonding. The effect of the soluble tail on the conformational stability of the transmembrane domain of OmpA was also investigated via truncated single-trp mutants; values for four of the five truncated mutants are greater by >2.7 kcal/mol relative to the full-length versions, suggesting that the absence of the soluble domain may destabilize the unfolded transmembrane domain. Finally, dynamic light scattering experiments were performed to measure the effects of urea and protein on vesicle size and stability. Urea concentrations greater than 1 M cause an increase in vesicle size, and these diameters are unaltered in the presence of protein. These dynamic light scattering results complement the fluorescence studies and illustrate the important effects of vesicle size on protein conformational stability. KeywordsOuter Membrane Protein A; membrane protein folding; tryptophan fluorescence; conformational stability; dynamic light scattering; refolding curves Membrane proteins adopt unique three-dimensional structures in cell membranes to be biologically active. Like soluble proteins, membrane proteins that form aberrant structures lead to a number of prevalent diseases, such as cystic fibrosis and type II diabetes (1,2). A great deal of experimental and theoretical research has recently been devoted towards elucidating the molecular mechanisms, thermodynamics, and kinetics of protein folding in lipid bilayers (3-7). Despite these efforts, our knowledge of membrane protein folding remains inferior to our fundamental understanding of soluble protein folding. A number of factors contribute to the inherent difficulties in the study of membrane protein folding. First, in contrast to soluble proteins, a limited number of membrane protein systems are available to serve as models for membrane protein folding (5)(6)(7)(8). An additional challenge is the membrane itself; lipid bilayers *Corresponding author: Judy E. Kim, Assistant Professor, Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive MC 0314, La Jolla, CA 92093-0314, judyk@ucsd.edu, Phone: (858) Fax: (858) . Supporting Information Available: A supporting figure of gel-shift refolding/unfolding curves. NIH Public Access Author ManuscriptBiochemistry. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2009 August 10. NIH-PA Author ManuscriptNIH-PA Author Manuscript NIH-PA Author Manuscript are complex systems, with a high degree of chemical heterogeneity (6...

Disordered proteins, such as those central to Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, are particularly intractable for structure-targeted therapeutic design. Here we demonstrate the capacity of a synthetic foldamer to capture structure in a disease relevant peptide. Oligoquinoline amides have a defined fold with a solvent-excluded core that is independent of its outwardly projected, derivatizable moieties. Islet amyloid polypeptide (IAPP) is a peptide central to β-cell pathology in type II diabetes. A tetraquinoline is presented that stabilizes a pre-amyloid, α-helical conformation of IAPP. This charged, dianionic compound is readily soluble in aqueous buffer, yet crosses biological membranes without cellular assistance: an unexpected capability that is a consequence of its ability to reversibly fold. The tetraquinoline docks specifically with intracellular IAPP and rescues β-cells from toxicity. Taken together, our work here supports the thesis that stabilizing non-toxic conformers of a plastic protein is a viable strategy for cytotoxic rescue addressable using oligoquinoline amides.

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