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Lindner C, Friemel A, Schwegler N, Timmermann L, Pham TL, Reusche V, Kovermann M, Thomas F. Thermostable WW-Domain Scaffold to Design Functional β-Sheet Miniproteins. J Am Chem Soc 2024. [PMID: 38853610 DOI: 10.1021/jacs.4c03498] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2024]
Abstract
There has been a recent surge in the design of miniproteins for medicinal chemistry, biomaterial design, or synthetic biology. In particular, there is an interest in peptide scaffolds that fold reliably, predictably, and with solid stability. In this article, we present the design of a highly thermostable WW domain, a three-stranded β-sheet motif, with a superior melting temperature of about 90 °C to serve as a core scaffold onto which receptor-like properties can be grafted. We have performed specific rounds of sequence iteration on a WW-domain consensus sequence to decipher sequence positions that affect structural and, thus, thermal stability. We identified a sequence-structure relationship that yields a highly thermostable WW-domain scaffold. High-resolution NMR spectroscopy was applied, which enabled the identification of structural features at the atomic scale that contribute to this high thermostability. Finally, we grafted the binding motifs of the three WW-domain groups─Group I, Group II/III, and Group IV─and organophosphate and metal binding onto the highly thermostable WW-domain scaffold and obtained thermostable de novo WW domains that indeed display the different binding modes that were intended. The organophosphate-binding WW domains exhibit melting temperatures that are up to 34 K higher than previously reported top-down designs. These results impressively demonstrate that the highly thermostable WW-domain core scaffold is a solid platform for the design of discrete and reliably folding functional β-sheet peptide miniproteins, providing an essential addition to the toolbox of peptide scaffolds previously used in synthetic biology and material design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christina Lindner
- Institute of Organic Chemistry, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 270, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Anke Friemel
- Physical Chemistry, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstraße 10, 78457 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Niklas Schwegler
- Institute of Organic Chemistry, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 270, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
- Institute for Molecular Systems Engineering and Advanced Materials, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 225, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Lisa Timmermann
- Institute of Organic Chemistry, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 270, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Truc Lam Pham
- Institute of Organic Chemistry, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 270, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Vanessa Reusche
- Institute of Organic Chemistry, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 270, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Michael Kovermann
- Physical Chemistry, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstraße 10, 78457 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Franziska Thomas
- Institute of Organic Chemistry, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 270, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
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Pham TL, Thomas F. Design of Functional Globular β-Sheet Miniproteins. Chembiochem 2024; 25:e202300745. [PMID: 38275210 DOI: 10.1002/cbic.202300745] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2023] [Revised: 01/25/2024] [Accepted: 01/26/2024] [Indexed: 01/27/2024]
Abstract
The design of discrete β-sheet peptides is far less advanced than e. g. the design of α-helical peptides. The reputation of β-sheet peptides as being poorly soluble and aggregation-prone often hinders active design efforts. Here, we show that this reputation is unfounded. We demonstrate this by looking at the β-hairpin and WW domain. Their structure and folding have been extensively studied and they have long served as model systems to investigate protein folding and folding kinetics. The resulting fundamental understanding has led to the development of hyperstable β-sheet scaffolds that fold at temperatures of 100 °C or high concentrations of denaturants. These have been used to design functional miniproteins with protein or nucleic acid binding properties, in some cases with such success that medical applications are conceivable. The β-sheet scaffolds are not always completely rigid, but can be specifically designed to respond to changes in pH, redox potential or presence of metal ions. Some engineered β-sheet peptides also exhibit catalytic properties, although not comparable to those of natural proteins. Previous reviews have focused on the design of stably folded and non-aggregating β-sheet sequences. In our review, we now also address design strategies to obtain functional miniproteins from β-sheet folding motifs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Truc Lam Pham
- Truc Lam Pham, Prof. Dr. Franziska Thomas, Institute of Organic Chemistry, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 270, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Franziska Thomas
- Truc Lam Pham, Prof. Dr. Franziska Thomas, Institute of Organic Chemistry, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 270, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
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Pham TL, Conde González MR, Fazliev S, Kishore A, Comba P, Thomas F. Relationship of Thermostability and Binding Affinity in Metal-binding WW-Domain Minireceptors. Chembiochem 2024; 25:e202300715. [PMID: 38127995 DOI: 10.1002/cbic.202300715] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2023] [Revised: 12/20/2023] [Accepted: 12/21/2023] [Indexed: 12/23/2023]
Abstract
The design of metallo-miniproteins advances our understanding of the structural and functional roles of metals in proteins. We recently designed a metal-binding WW domain, WW-CA-Nle, which displays three histidine residues on its surface for coordination of divalent metals Ni(II), Zn(II) and Cu(II). However, WW-CA-Nle is a molten globule in the apo state and thus showed only moderate binding affinities with Kd values in the μM regime. In this report, we hypothesize that improved thermal stability of the apo state of the metal binding WW-domain scaffold should lead to improved preorganization of the metal-binding site and consequently to higher metal-binding affinities. By redesigning WW-CA-Nle, we obtained WW-CA variants, WW-CA-min and WW-CA-ANG, which were fully folded in the apo states and displayed moderate to excellent thermostabilities in the apo and holo states. We were able to show that the improved thermal stabilities led to improved metal binding, which was reflected in Kd values that were at least one order of magnitude lower compared to WW-CA-Nle. EPR spectroscopy and ITC measurements revealed a better defined and predisposed metal binding site in WW-CA-ANG.
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Affiliation(s)
- Truc Lam Pham
- Institute of Organic Chemistry, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 270, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Marcos R Conde González
- Institute of Organic Chemistry, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 270, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
- Max Planck School Matter to Life
| | - Sunnatullo Fazliev
- Institute of Organic Chemistry, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 270, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
- Max Planck School Matter to Life
- Max Planck Institute for Medical Research, Jahnstr. 29, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Agi Kishore
- Institute of Organic Chemistry, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 270, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
- Max Planck School Matter to Life
- Institute of Inorganic Chemistry, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 270, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Peter Comba
- Institute of Inorganic Chemistry, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 270, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
- Interdisciplinary Center for Scientific Computing (IWR), Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 270, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Franziska Thomas
- Institute of Organic Chemistry, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 270, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
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Kokollari A, Werner M, Lindner C, Pham TL, Thomas F. Rapid On-Resin N-Formylation of Peptides as One-Pot Reaction. Chembiochem 2023; 24:e202300571. [PMID: 37695727 DOI: 10.1002/cbic.202300571] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2023] [Revised: 09/08/2023] [Accepted: 09/11/2023] [Indexed: 09/13/2023]
Abstract
N-formylation is a common pre- and post-translational modification of the N-terminus or the lysine side chain of peptides and proteins that plays a role in the initiation of immune responses, gene expression, or epigenetics. Despite its high biological relevance, protocols for the chemical N-formylation of synthetic peptides are scarce. The few available methods are elaborate in their execution and the yields are highly sequence-dependent. We present a rapid, easy-to-use one-pot procedure that runs at room temperature and can be used to formylate protected peptides at both the N-terminus and the lysine side chain on the resin in near-quantitative yields. Only insensitive, storage-stable standard chemicals - formic acid, acetic anhydride, pyridine and DMF - are used. Formylation works for both short and long peptides of up to 34 amino acids and over the spectrum of canonical amino acids.
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Affiliation(s)
- Agon Kokollari
- Institute of Organic Chemistry, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 270, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Marius Werner
- Institute of Organic Chemistry, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 270, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, Institute of Pharmacy and Molecular Biotechnology (IPMB), Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 364, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Christina Lindner
- Institute of Organic Chemistry, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 270, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, Institute of Pharmacy and Molecular Biotechnology (IPMB), Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 364, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Truc Lam Pham
- Institute of Organic Chemistry, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 270, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Franziska Thomas
- Institute of Organic Chemistry, Heidelberg University, Im Neuenheimer Feld 270, 69120, Heidelberg, Germany
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Ko S, Kim JY, Park JY, Jung YJ, Choi MJ, Jin KS, Kim Y, Lim YB, Jeong WJ. Modulating the folding and binding of peptides using a stimuli-responsive molecular tweezer. Chem Sci 2023; 14:9600-9607. [PMID: 37712040 PMCID: PMC10498507 DOI: 10.1039/d3sc03758d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2023] [Accepted: 08/06/2023] [Indexed: 09/16/2023] Open
Abstract
This study presents the development of a β-hairpin (tryptophan zipper, Trpzip)-based molecular tweezer (MT) that can control the folding and binding of α-helical peptides. When an α-helix isolated from the p53 protein was conjugated with Trpzip in an optimized macrocyclic structure, the folded β-hairpin stabilized the helix conformation through the side chain-to-side chain stapling strategy, which notably enhanced target (hDM2) affinity of the peptide. On the other hand, the helicity and binding affinity were significantly reduced when the hairpin was unfolded by a redox stimulus. This stimulus-responsive property was translated into the effective capture and release of model multivalent biomaterials, hDM2-gold nanoparticle conjugates. Since numerous protein interactions are mediated by α-helical peptides, these results suggest that the β-hairpin-based MT holds great potential to be utilized in various biomedical applications, such as protein interaction inhibition and cancer biomarker (e.g., circulating tumor cells and exosomes) detection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sooho Ko
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Yonsei University Seoul 03722 Republic of Korea
| | - Joo-Young Kim
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering, Inha University Incheon 22212 Republic of Korea
| | - Jung Yeon Park
- KU-KIST Graduate School of Converging Science and Technology, Department of Integrative Energy Engineering, Korea University Seoul 02841 Republic of Korea
| | - You-Jin Jung
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Yonsei University Seoul 03722 Republic of Korea
| | - Min-Jae Choi
- Department of Chemical & Biochemical Engineering, Dongguk University Seoul 06420 Republic of Korea
| | - Kyeong Sik Jin
- Pohang Accelerator Laboratory, Pohang University of Science and Technology Pohang 790-784 Republic of Korea
| | - Yongju Kim
- KU-KIST Graduate School of Converging Science and Technology, Department of Integrative Energy Engineering, Korea University Seoul 02841 Republic of Korea
| | - Yong-Beom Lim
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Yonsei University Seoul 03722 Republic of Korea
| | - Woo-Jin Jeong
- Department of Biological Sciences and Bioengineering, Inha University Incheon 22212 Republic of Korea
- Department of Biological Engineering, Inha University Incheon 22212 Republic of Korea
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