An algorithm to find channels and cavities within protein crystals

A novel and efficient tool for locating and characterizing protein cavities and binding sites

Systematic investigation of a protein and its binding site characteristics are crucial for designing small molecules that modulate protein functions. However, fundamental uncertainties in binding site interactions and insufficient knowledge of the properties of even well-defined binding pockets can make it difficult to design optimal drugs. Herein, we report the development and implementation of a cavity detection algorithm built with HINT toolkit functions that we are naming Vectorial Identification of Cavity Extents (VICE). This very efficient algorithm is based on geometric criteria applied to simple integer grid maps. In testing, we carried out a systematic investigation on a very diverse data set of proteins and protein-protein/protein-polynucleotide complexes for locating and characterizing the indentations, cavities, pockets, grooves, channels, and surface regions. Additionally, we evaluated a curated data set of unbound proteins for which a ligand-bound protein structures are also known; here the VICE algorithm located the actual ligand in the largest cavity in 83% of the cases and in one of the three largest in 90% of the cases. An interactive front-end provides a quick and simple procedure for locating, displaying and manipulating cavities in these structures. Information describing the cavity, including its volume and surface area metrics, and lists of atoms, residues, and/or chains lining the binding pocket, can be easily obtained and analyzed. For example, the relative cross-sectional surface area (to total surface area) of cavity openings in well-enclosed cavities is 0.06 +/- 0.04 and in surface clefts or crevices is 0.25 +/- 0.09. Proteins 2010. (c) 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Solute transport in orthorhombic lysozyme crystals: a molecular simulation study

Long-time equilibrium molecular dynamics simulations were performed to study the passage of a substrate, L: -arabinose, through nanopores of orthorhombic hen egg white lysozyme crystals. Cross-linked protein crystals (CLPC), as novel biological nanoporous media, consist of an extensive regular matrix of chiral solvent-filled nanopores via which ions and solutes, e.g. sugars and amino acids, travel in and out. We studied the diffusive motion of arabinose inside protein channels. The computed diffusion coefficients within the crystal were orders of magnitudes lower relative to the diffusion coefficient of the solute in water. This study is valuable for understanding the nature of solute-protein interactions and transport phenomena in CLPCs and provides an understanding of biocatalytic and bioseparation processes using CLPC.

Diffusion of water and sodium counter-ions in nanopores of a β-lactoglobulin crystal: a molecular dynamics study

The dynamics of water and sodium counter-ions (Na(+)) in a C222(1) orthorhombic β-lactoglobulin crystal is investigated by means of 5 ns molecular dynamics simulations. The effect of the fluctuation of the protein atoms on the motion of water and sodium ions is studied by comparing simulations in a rigid and in a flexible lattice. The electrostatic interactions of sodium ions with the positively charged LYS residues inside the crystal channels significantly influence the ionic motion. According to our results, water molecules close to the protein surface undergo an anomalous diffusive motion. On the other hand, the motion of water molecules further away from the protein surface is normal diffusive. Protein fluctuations affect the diffusion constant of water, which increases from 0.646 ± 0.108 to 0.887 ± 0.41 nm(2) ns(-1), when protein fluctuations are taken into account. The pore size (0.63-1.05 nm) and the water diffusivities are in good agreement with previous experimental results. The dynamics of sodium ions is disordered. LYS residues inside the pore are the main obstacles to the motion of sodium ions. However, the simulation time is still too short for providing a precise description of anomalous diffusion of sodium ions. The results are not only of interest for studying ion and water transport through biological nanopores, but may also elucidate water-protein and ion-protein interactions in protein crystals.

Fast prediction and visualization of protein binding pockets with PASS

PASS (Putative Active Sites with Spheres) is a simple computational tool that uses geometry to characterize regions of buried volume in proteins and to identify positions likely to represent binding sites based upon the size, shape, and burial extent of these volumes. Its utility as a predictive tool for binding site identification is tested by predicting known binding sites of proteins in the PDB using both complexed macromolecules and their corresponding apoprotein structures. The results indicate that PASS can serve as a front-end to fast docking. The main utility of PASS lies in the fact that it can analyze a moderate-size protein (approximately 30 kDa) in under 20 s, which makes it suitable for interactive molecular modeling, protein database analysis, and aggressive virtual screening efforts. As a modeling tool, PASS (i) rapidly identifies favorable regions of the protein surface, (ii) simplifies visualization of residues modulating binding in these regions, and (iii) provides a means of directly visualizing buried volume, which is often inferred indirectly from curvature in a surface representation. PASS produces output in the form of standard PDB files, which are suitable for any modeling package, and provides script files to simplify visualization in Cerius2, InsightII, MOE, Quanta, RasMol, and Sybyl. PASS is freely available to all.

LIGSITE: automatic and efficient detection of potential small molecule-binding sites in proteins

LIGSITE is a new program for the automatic and time-efficient detection of pockets on the surface of proteins that may act as binding sites for small molecule ligands. Pockets are identified with a series of simple operations on a cubic grid. Using a set of receptor-ligand complexes we show that LIGSITE is able to identify the binding sites of small molecule ligands with high precision. The main advantage of LIGSITE is its speed. Typical search times are in the range of 5 to 20 s for medium-sized proteins. LIGSITE is therefore well suited for identification of pockets in large sets of proteins (e.g., protein families) for comparative studies. For graphical display LIGSITE produces VRML representations of the protein-ligand complex and the binding site for display with a VRML viewer such as WebSpace from SGI.

Crystal structure at 2.6-A resolution of human macrophage migration inhibitory factor

Macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) was the first cytokine to be described, but for 30 years its role in the immune response remained enigmatic. In recent studies, MIF has been found to be a novel pituitary hormone and the first protein identified to be released from immune cells on glucocorticoid stimulation. Once secreted, MIF counterregulates the immunosuppressive effects of steroids and thus acts as a critical component of the immune system to control both local and systemic immune responses. We report herein the x-ray crystal structure of human MIF to 2.6 angstrom resolution. The protein is a trimer of identical subunits. Each monomer contains two antiparallel alpha-helices that pack against a four-stranded beta-sheet. The monomer has an additional two beta-strands that interact with the beta-sheets of adjacent subunits to form the interface between monomers. The three beta-sheets are arranged to form a barrel containing a solvent-accessible channel that runs through the center of the protein along a molecular 3-fold axis. Electrostatic potential maps reveal that the channel has a positive potential, suggesting that it binds negatively charged molecules. The elucidated structure for MIF is unique among cytokines or hormonal mediators, and suggests that this counterregulator of glucocorticoid action participates in novel ligand-receptor interactions.

Ionic conductivity, transference numbers, composition and mobility of ions in cross-linked lysozyme crystals

Micromethods for measurements of electric conductivity, transference numbers and concentrations of inorganic ions within immobilized protein crystals have been developed and applied to study tetragonal lysozyme crystals cross-linked with glutaraldehyde. Donnan equilibria and mobilities of ions in this crystal were calculated using the data of these methods and the data of crystal pH titration. Taken together these results characterize the lysozyme crystal as an ion exchanger whose electrical properties and ion composition differ greatly from those of the external solution. Although anions transfer most of the current in the crystals, anion mobility is considerably lower than that of cations. Mobility of all ions in the crystal is considerably lower than in solution (3.5-50 times for cations and 120-330 times for anions) and depends on steric restrictions and charges of both ions and lysozyme molecules. Similar features in behavior of crystalline and biological channels are discussed.

Detection and geometric modeling of molecular surfaces and cavities using digital mathematical morphological operations

We developed a digital method based on mathematical morphological operations to obtain three types of surfaces: van der Waals surface, solvent-accessible surface, and molecular surface, to extract the cavities on the surface and interior part of the molecule and to extract the ligand portions in contact with the cavities. The molecular surface, the cavities and the portions, and the heme region are visualized using solid modeling. The method enables us to obtain the volumes of the cavities and inhibitor portions and the areas of the surfaces. Solid modeling enables us to obtain cross-sections at arbitrary positions. This will have considerable utility in docking studies.