A Population Shift between Sparsely Populated Folding Intermediates Determines Amyloidogenicity

• The balance between protein folding and misfolding is a crucial determinant of amyloid assembly. Transient intermediates that are sparsely populated during protein folding have been identified as key players in amyloid aggregation. However, due to their ephemeral nature, structural characterization of these species remains challenging. Here, using the power of nonuniformly sampled NMR methods we investigate the folding pathway of amyloidogenic and nonamyloidogenic variants of beta(2)-microglobulin (beta(2)m) in atomic detail. Despite folding via common intermediate states, we show that the decreased population of the aggregation-prone I-Trans state and population of a less stable, more dynamic species ablate amyloid formation by increasing the energy barrier for amyloid assembly. The results show that subtle changes in conformational dynamics can have a dramatic effect in determining whether a protein is amyloidogenic, without perturbation of the mechanism of protein folding.

Ämnesord

MEDICIN OCH HÄLSOVETENSKAP  -- Medicinska och farmaceutiska grundvetenskaper -- Cell- och molekylärbiologi (hsv//swe)

MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES  -- Basic Medicine -- Cell and Molecular Biology (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

beta(2)-microglobulin-related amyloid fibrils

human lysozyme

neutral

ph

in-vitro

beta-2-microglobulin

aggregation

proteins

nmr

prediction

state

Publikations- och innehållstyp

ref (ämneskategori)

art (ämneskategori)