Computational insights into the aggregation mechanism and amyloidogenic core of aortic amyloid medin polypeptide

Abstract

Medin amyloid, prevalent in the vessel walls of 97 % of individuals over 50, contributes to arterial stiffening and cerebrovascular dysfunction, yet our understanding of its aggregation mechanism remains limited. Dividing the full-length 50-amino-acid medin peptide into five 10-residue segments, we conducted individual investigations on each segment's self-assembly dynamics via microsecond-timescale atomistic discrete molecular dynamics (DMD) simulations. Our findings showed that medin1–10 and medin11–20 segments predominantly existed as isolated unstructured monomers, unable to form stable oligomers. Medin31–40 exhibited moderate aggregation, forming dynamic β-sheet oligomers with frequent association and dissociation. Conversely, medin21–30 and medin41–50 segments demonstrated significant self-assembly capability, readily forming stable β-sheet-rich oligomers. Residue pairwise contact frequency analysis highlighted the critical roles of residues 22–26 and 43–49 in driving the self-assembly of medin21–30 and medin41–50, acting as the β-sheet core and facilitating β-strand formation in other regions within medin monomers, expecting to extend to oligomers and fibrils. Regions containing residues 22–26 and 43–49, with substantial self-assembly abilities and assistance in β-sheet formation, represent crucial targets for amyloid inhibitor drug design against aortic medial amyloidosis (AMA). In summary, our study not only offers deep insights into the mechanism of medin amyloid formation but also provides crucial theoretical and practical guidance for future treatments of AMA.