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Linda K Andersson

Publications and source records attributed to Linda K Andersson.

4 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2003

A surface exposed O-linked galactose residue destabilises the structure of a folded helix-loop-helix dimer.

A 42-residue glycopeptide Tn-15 and the corresponding reference polypeptide Thr-15 were designed and synthesized to provide a model system for the study of how glycosylation affects the stability of a molten globule-like protein. Tn-15 and Thr-15 fold into hairpin helix-loop-helix motifs that dimerise to form four-helix bundles and the only difference between the sequences is that Tn-15 carries an O-linked N-acetylgalactosamine residue at the side chain of threonine-15 whereas the sequence Thr-15 is unglycosylated. An analysis of the mean residue ellipticities at 222 nm of the two polypeptides and of the alpha-H chemical shift deviations from random coil values showed that glycosylation reduced the helical content of the polypeptides and increased the dissociation constant of the helix-loop-helix dimer to form monomers. The pH dependencies of the helical content of Tn-15 and Thr-15 differed as that of Thr-15 was largely unaffected by pH in the range from pH 4 to pH 10, whereas Tn-15 lost almost half of the helical content at pH 4 upon raising the pH to 10. No single amino acid residue was found to ionize in a way that could explain the observed pH dependence of Tn-15. The temperature dependence of the mean residue ellipticity of Tn-15 revealed a surprising decrease in helicity at 278 K in comparison with that at 293 K, reminiscent of cold denaturation, that was not observed for the reference four-helix bundle Thr-15.

Acetylgalactosamine↗
PubMed2002

Control of lysine reactivity in four-helix bundle proteins by site-selective pKa depression: expanding the versatility of proteins by postsynthetic functionalization.

Five 42-residue polypeptides have been designed to fold into hairpin helix-loop-helix motifs that dimerize to form four-helix bundles, and to serve as protein scaffolds for the elucidation at the molecular level of the principles that control and fine-tune lysine and ornithine reactivities in a protein context. Site-selective control of Lys and Orn reactivity provides a mechanism for addressing directly individual residues and is a prerequisite for the site-selective functionalization of folded proteins. Several lysine and one ornithine residues were introduced on the surface and in the hydrophobic core of the folded motif. The reactivity of each residue was determined by measuring the degree of acylation of the trypsin cleaved fragments by HPLC and mass spectrometry. The most reactive residues were Orn34 and Lys19, both of which were located in d positions in the heptad repeat, and therefore in hydrophobic environments. Upon reaction of the helix-loop-helix dimer KA-I with one equivalent of mono-p-nitrophenyl fumarate, Orn34 was acylated approximately three times more efficiently than Lys19, whereas Lys10 (b position), Lys15 (g position), and Lys33 (c position) remained unmodified. In the sequence KA-I-A(15) Lys15 was replaced by an alanine residue and the selectivity of Orn34 over Lys19 increased to approximately a factor of six, probably because Lys15 had the capacity to reduce the pK(a) value of Lys19 and 85 % of site-selectively monoacylated product was obtained. The pH dependence of the acylation reaction was determined and showed that the pK(a) of the reactive residues were 9.3, more than a pK(a) unit below the magnitude of the corresponding residue in a solvent exposed position. Introducing Lys and Orn residues into a or d positions of the heptad repeat therefore serves as a mechanism of depressing their pK(a) to increase their reactivity site selectively. Extensive NMR and CD spectroscopic analyses showed that the sequences fold according to prediction.

Acylation↗
PubMed2002

Multifunctional folded polypeptides from peptide synthesis and site-selective self-functionalization--practical scaffolds in aqueous solution.

The site selectivity of His-mediated lysine and ornithine side-chain acylation in a designed four-helix bundle protein scaffold was mapped by reaction of several polypeptides with one equivalent of mono-p-nitrophenyl fumarate in aqueous solution at pH 5.9 and room temperature followed by an analysis of the degrees and sites of acylation. Integration of the HPLC chromatograms of the acylated polypeptides and trypsin cleavage followed by mass spectrometry analysis of the tryptic fragments provided the experimental evidence. Based on these and previously published results a strategy was developed for the site-selective and stepwise incorporation of three residues into a folded polypeptide in aqueous solution at room temperature. The first substituent was incorporated by reaction of a 1.7-fold excess of the corresponding active ester with the polypeptide at pH 5.9, the second substituent was introduced in a 3-fold excess after the pH value was raised to 8, and the third substituent was incorporated by reaction of a 10-fold excess with the polypeptide at pH 5.9. No intermediate steps of purification were taken and the overall yield was 30 % or more. Examples of the substituents included are carbohydrates, an enzyme inhibitor, a fumarate, and an acetate group. The introduction of different substituents into three individually addressable positions in a stepwise, efficient, and controllable reaction demonstrates that designed folded polypeptides are practically useful scaffolds that can be functionalized by using very simple chemistry in aqueous solution. Predicted applications include designed receptors, biosensors, and molecular devices.

Acylation↗