Structural Analysis of Protein Folding by the Long-Chain Archaeal Chaperone FKBP26

Abstract

In the cell, protein folding is mediated by folding catalysts and chaperones. The two functions are often linked, especially when the catalytic module forms part of a multidomain protein, as in Methanococcus jannaschii peptidyl-prolyl cis/ trans isomerase FKBP26. Here, we show that FKBP26 chaperone activity requires both a 50-residue insertion in the catalytic FKBP domain, also called ‘Insert-in-Flap’ or IF domain, and an 80-residue C-terminal domain. We determined FKBP26 structures from four crystal forms and analyzed chaperone domains in light of their ability to mediate protein–protein interactions. FKBP26 is a crescent-shaped homodimer. We reason that folding proteins are bound inside the large crescent cleft, thus enabling their access to inward-facing peptidyl-prolyl cis/ trans isomerase catalytic sites and ipsilateral chaperone domain surfaces. As these chaperone surfaces participate extensively in crystal lattice contacts, we speculate that the observed lattice contacts reflect a proclivity for protein associations and represent substrate interactions by FKBP26 chaperone domains. Finally, we find that FKBP26 is an exceptionally flexible molecule, suggesting a mechanism for nonspecific substrate recognition.