Parameters for the amber force field for the molecular mechanics modeling of the cobalt corrinoids

Abstract

Additional parameters for the amber force field have been developed for the molecular mechanics modeling of the cobalt corrinoids. Parameter development was based on a statistical analysis of the reported structures of these compounds. The resulting force field reproduces bond lengths, bond angles, and torsional angles within 0.01 Å, 0.8°, and 4.0° of the mean crystallographic values, respectively. Parameters for the Co–C bond length and the Co–C–C bond angle for modeling the alkylcobalamins were developed by modeling six alkylcobalamins. The validity of the force field was tested by comparing the results obtained with known experimental features of the structures of the cobalt corrinoids as well as with the results from their modeling using a parameter set for the MM2 force field that has been previously developed and extensively tested. The amber force field reproduces the structures of the cobalt corrinoids as well as the MM2 force field, although it tends to underestimate the corrin fold angle, the angle between mean planes through the corrin atoms in the northern and southern half of the molecules, respectively. The force field was applied to a study of the structures of 5′-deoxy-5′-(3-isoadenosyl)cobalamin, 2′,5′-dideoxy-5′-adenosylcobalamin and 2′,3′,5′-trideoxy-5′-adenosylcobalamin. This expansion of the standard amber force field provides a force field that can be used for modeling the structures of the B 12-dependent proteins, the structures of some of which are now beginning to emerge. This was verified in a preliminary modeling of the coenzyme B 12 binding site of methylmalonyl coenzyme A mutase.