Department of Neurology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
Biochemistry. 2012 May 15;51(19):3957-9. doi: 10.1021/bi300350p. Epub 2012 May 7.
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is linked to the aberrant assembly of the amyloid β-protein (Aβ). The (21)AEDVGSNKGA(30) segment, Aβ(21-30), forms a turn that acts as a monomer folding nucleus. Amino acid substitutions within this nucleus cause familial forms of AD. To determine the biophysical characteristics of the folding nucleus, we studied the biologically relevant acetyl-Aβ(21-30)-amide peptide using experimental techniques (limited proteolysis, thermal denaturation, urea denaturation followed by pulse proteolysis, and electron microscopy) and computational methods (molecular dynamics). Our results reveal a highly stable foldon and suggest new strategies for therapeutic drug development.
阿尔茨海默病(AD)与淀粉样β-蛋白(Aβ)的异常组装有关。(21)AEDVGSNKGA(30)片段,即 Aβ(21-30),形成一个作为单体折叠核心的环。该核心内的氨基酸取代会导致家族性 AD 形式。为了确定折叠核心的生物物理特性,我们使用实验技术(有限蛋白水解、热变性、尿素变性后脉冲蛋白水解和电子显微镜)和计算方法(分子动力学)研究了具有生物学相关性的乙酰-Aβ(21-30)-酰胺肽。我们的结果揭示了一个高度稳定的折叠核心,并为治疗性药物开发提供了新的策略。