Investigating the Dynamics of Destabilized Nucleosomes Using Methyl-TROSY NMR.

The nucleosome core particle (NCP), comprised of histone proteins wrapped with ∼146 base pairs of DNA, provides both protection and controlled access to DNA so as to regulate vital cellular processes. High-resolution structures of nucleosomes and nucleosome complexes have afforded a clear understanding of the structural role of NCPs, but a detailed description of the dynamical properties that facilitate DNA-templated processes is only beginning to emerge. Using methyl-TROSY NMR approaches we evaluate the effect of point mutations designed to perturb key histone interfaces that become destabilized during nucleosome remodeling in an effort to probe NCP plasticity. Notably the NCP retains its overall structural integrity, yet relaxation experiments of mutant nucleosomes reveal significant dynamics within a central histone interface associated with alternative NCP conformations populated to as much as 15% under low salt conditions. This work highlights the inherent plasticity of NCPs and establishes methyl-TROSY NMR as a valuable compliment to current single molecule methods in quantifying NCP dynamic properties.

¹9F NMR studies of a desolvated near-native protein folding intermediate.

Although many proteins are recognized to undergo folding via an intermediate, the microscopic nature of folding intermediates is less understood. In this study, ¹9F NMR and near-UV circular dichroism (CD) are used to characterize a transition to a thermal folding intermediate of calmodulin, a water-soluble protein, which is biosynthetically enriched with 3-fluorophenylalanine (3F-Phe). ¹9F NMR solvent isotope shifts, resulting from replacing H2O with D2O, and paramagnetic shifts arising from dissolved O2 are used to monitor changes in the water accessibility and hydrophobicity of the protein interior as the protein progresses from a native state to an unfolded state along a heat-denaturation pathway. In comparison to the native state, the solvent isotope shifts reveal the decreased presence of water in the hydrophobic core, whereas the paramagnetic shifts show the increased hydrophobicity of this folding intermediate. ¹5N, ¹H and methyl ¹³C,¹H HSQC NMR spectra demonstrate that this folding intermediate retains a near-native tertiary structure whose hydrophobic interior is highly dynamic. ¹9F NMR CPMG relaxation dispersion measurements suggest the near-native state is transiently adopted well below the temperature associated with its onset.

Optimizing ¹9F NMR protein spectroscopy by fractional biosynthetic labeling.

In protein NMR experiments which employ nonnative labeling, incomplete enrichment is often associated with inhomogeneous line broadening due to the presence of multiple labeled species. We investigate the merits of fractional enrichment strategies using a monofluorinated phenylalanine species, where resolution is dramatically improved over that achieved by complete enrichment. In NMR studies of calmodulin, a 148 residue calcium binding protein, ¹9F and ¹H-¹5N HSQC spectra reveal a significant extent of line broadening and the appearance of minor conformers in the presence of complete (>95%) 3-fluorophenylalanine labeling. The effects of varying levels of enrichment of 3-fluorophenylalanine (i.e. between 3 and >95%) were further studied by ¹9F and ¹H-¹5N HSQC spectra, ¹5N T(1) and T(2) relaxation measurements, ¹9F T(2) relaxation, translational diffusion and heat denaturation experiments via circular dichroism. Our results show that while several properties, including translational diffusion and thermal stability show little variation between non-fluorinated and >95% ¹9F labeled samples, ¹9F and ¹H-¹5N HSQC spectra show significant improvements in line widths and resolution at or below 76% enrichment. Moreover, high levels of fluorination (>80%) appear to increase protein disorder as evidenced by backbone ¹5N dynamics. In this study, reasonable signal to noise can be achieved between 60-76% ¹9F enrichment, without any detectable perturbations from labeling.

Approaches to the assignment of (19)F resonances from 3-fluorophenylalanine labeled calmodulin using solution state NMR.

Traditional single site replacement mutations (in this case, phenylalanine to tyrosine) were compared with methods which exclusively employ (15)N and (19)F-edited two- and three-dimensional NMR experiments for purposes of assigning (19)F NMR resonances from calmodulin (CaM), biosynthetically labeled with 3-fluorophenylalanine (3-FPhe). The global substitution of 3-FPhe for native phenylalanine was tolerated in CaM as evidenced by a comparison of (1)H-(15)N HSQC spectra and calcium binding assays in the presence and absence of 3-FPhe. The (19)F NMR spectrum reveals six resolved resonances, one of which integrates to three 3-FPhe species, making for a total of eight fluorophenylalanines. Single phenylalanine to tyrosine mutants of five phenylalanine positions resulted in (19)F NMR spectra with significant chemical shift perturbations of the remaining resonances, and provided only a single definitive assignment. Although (1)H-(19)F heteronucleclear NOEs proved weak, (19)F-edited (1)H-(1)H NOESY connectivities were relatively easy to establish by making use of the (3)J(FH) coupling between the fluorine nucleus and the adjacent fluorophenylalanine delta proton. (19)F-edited NOESY connectivities between the delta protons and alpha and beta nuclei in addition to (15)N-edited (1)H, (1)H NOESY crosspeaks proved sufficient to assign 4 of 8 (19)F resonances. Controlled cleavage of the protein into two fragments using trypsin, and a repetition of the above 2D and 3D techniques resulted in unambiguous assignments of all 8 (19)F NMR resonances. Our studies suggest that (19)F-edited NOESY NMR spectra are generally adequate for complete assignment without the need to resort to mutational analysis.

A mutagenesis-free approach to assignment of (19)F NMR resonances in biosynthetically labeled proteins.

Solution NMR studies of protein structure and dynamics using fluorinated amino acid probes are a valuable addition to the repertoire of existing (13)C, (15)N, and (1)H experiments. Despite the numerous advantages of the (19)F nucleus in NMR, protein studies are complicated by the dependence of resonance assignments on site-directed mutagenesis methods which are laborious and often problematic. Here we report an NMR-based route to the assignment of fluorine resonances in (13)C,(15)N-3-fluoro-l-tyrosine labeled calmodulin. The assignment begins with the correlation of the fluorine nucleus to the delta proton in the novel (13)C,(15)N-enriched probe which is achieved using a CT-HCCF-COSY experiment. Connection to the backbone is made through two additional solution NMR experiments, namely the (H(beta))C(beta)(C(gamma)C(delta))H(delta) and HNCACB. Assignments are completed using either previously published backbone chemical shift data or obtained experimentally provided uniform (13)C,(15)N labeling procedures are employed during protein expression. Additional benefits of the (13)C,(15)N-3-fluoro-l-tyrosine probe include the reduction of spectral overlap through ((13)C(19)F) CT-HSQCs, as well as the ability to monitor side chain dynamics using (19)F T(1), T(2), and the (13)C-(19)F NOE.

Approaches for the measurement of solvent exposure in proteins by 19F NMR.

Fluorine NMR is a useful tool to probe protein folding, conformation and local topology owing to the sensitivity of the chemical shift to the local electrostatic environment. As an example we make use of (19)F NMR and 3-fluorotyrosine to evaluate the conformation and topology of the tyrosine residues (Tyr-99 and Tyr-138) within the EF-hand motif of the C-terminal domain of calmodulin (CaM) in both the calcium-loaded and calcium-free states. We critically compare approaches to assess topology and solvent exposure via solvent isotope shifts, (19)F spin-lattice relaxation rates, (1)H-(19)F nuclear Overhauser effects, and paramagnetic shifts and relaxation rates from dissolved oxygen. Both the solvent isotope shifts and paramagnetic shifts from dissolved oxygen sensitively reflect solvent exposed surface areas.