Dipolar-assisted Rotational Resonance Research Articles

Selective correlations between aliphatic 13C nuclei in protein solid-state NMR

Solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) is a potent tool for studying the structures and dynamics of insoluble proteins. It starts with signal assignment through multi-dimensional correlation experiments, where the aliphatic 13Cα-13Cβ correlation is indispensable for identifying specific residues. However, developing efficient methods for achieving this correlation is a challenge in solid-state NMR. We present a simple band-selective zero-quantum (ZQ) recoupling method, named POST-C4161 (PC4), which enhances 13Cα-13Cβ correlations under moderate magic-angle spinning (MAS) conditions. PC4 requires minimal 13C radio-frequency (RF) field and proton decoupling, exhibits high stability against RF variations, and achieves superior efficiency. Comparative tests on various samples, including the formyl-Met-Leu-Phe (fMLF) tripeptide, microcrystalline β1 immunoglobulin binding domain of protein G (GB1), and membrane protein of mechanosensitive channel of large conductance from Methanosarcina acetivorans (MaMscL), demonstrate that PC4 selectively enhances 13Cα-13Cβ correlations by up to 50 % while suppressing unwanted correlations, as compared to the popular dipolar-assisted rotational resonance (DARR). It has addressed the long-standing need for selective 13C–13C correlation methods. We anticipate that this simple but efficient PC4 method will have immediate applications in structural biology by solid-state NMR.

Parallel β-Sheet Structure and Structural Heterogeneity Detected within Q11 Self-Assembling Peptide Nanofibers.

Q11 peptide nanofibers are used as a biomaterial for applications such as antigen presentation and tissue engineering, yet detailed knowledge of molecular-level structure has not been reported. The Q11 peptide sequence was designed using heuristics-based patterning of hydrophobic and polar amino acids with oppositely charged amino acids placed at opposite ends of the sequence to promote antiparallel β-sheet formation. In this work, we employed solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR) to evaluate whether the molecular organization within Q11 self-assembled peptide nanofibers is consistent with the expectations of the peptide designers. We discovered that Q11 forms a distribution of molecular structures. NMR data from two-dimensional (2D) 13C-13C dipolar-assisted rotational resonance indicate that the K3 and E9 residues between Q11 β-strands are spatially proximate (within ∼0.6 nm). Frequency-selective rotational echo double resonance (fsREDOR) on K3 Nζ and E9 Cδ-labeled sites showed that approximately 9% of the sites are close enough for salt bridge formation to occur. Surprisingly, dipolar recoupling measurements revealed that Q11 peptides do not assemble into antiparallel β-sheets as expected, and structural analysis using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and 2D NMR alone can be misleading. 13C PITHIRDS-CT dipolar recoupling measurements showed that the most abundant structure consists of parallel β-sheets, in contrast to the expected antiparallel β-sheet structure. Structural heterogeneity was detected from 15N{13C} REDOR measurements, with approximately 22% of β-strands having antiparallel nearest neighbors. We cannot propose a complete structural model of Q11 nanofibers because of the complexity involved when examining structurally heterogeneous samples using NMR. Altogether, our results show that while heuristics-based patterning is effective in promoting β-sheet formation, designing a peptide sequence to form a targeted β-strand arrangement remains challenging.

Dynamic nuclear polarization-enhanced, double-quantum filtered 13C-13C dipolar correlation spectroscopy of natural 13C abundant bone-tissue biomaterial

Here, we describe a method for obtaining a dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP)-enhanced double-quantum filtered (DQF) two-dimensional (2D) dipolar 13C-13C correlation spectra of bone-tissue material at natural 13C abundance. DNP-enhanced DQF 2D dipolar 13C-13C spectra were obtained using a few different mixing times of the dipolar-assisted rotational resonance (DARR) scheme and these spectra were compared to a conventional 2D through-space double-quantum (DQ)-single-quantum (SQ) correlation spectrum. While this scheme can only be used for an assignment purpose to reveal the carbon-carbon connectivity within a residue, the DQF 13C-13C dipolar correlation scheme introduced here can be used to obtain longer distance carbon-carbon constraints. A DQF pulse block is placed before the DARR mixing scheme for removing dominant 13C single-quantum (SQ) signals because these SQ 13C signals are overwhelmingly large compared to those 13C-13C dipolar cross-peaks generated and therefore saturate the dynamic range of the NMR detection. This approach exhibits strong enough 2D cross-peaks in a dipolar 13C-13C correlation spectrum and potentially provides pairwise 13C-13C dipolar constraints because the dipolar truncation effect as well as multi-step signal propagations involving a spin cluster that contains more than two spins can be ignored probabilistically. To obtain fast signal averaging, AsymPolPOK was used to provide a short 1H DNP signal build-up time (1.3 s) and to expedite our MAS DNP NMR acquisitions while still maintaining a satisfactory DNP enhancement factor (ε = 50). Under long DARR mixing, a t1-noise-like artifact was observed at a site that possesses a large chemical shift anisotropy (CSA) and a few different strategies to address this problem were discussed.

Two- and Three-Dimensional 13C-17O Heteronuclear Correlation NMR Spectroscopy for Studying Organic and Biological Solids.

We report two- and three-dimensional (2D and 3D) 13C-17O heteronuclear correlation solid-state NMR experiments under magic-angle spinning (MAS) conditions. These experiments utilize the D-RINEPT (Dipolar-mediated Refocused Insensitive Nuclei Enhanced by Polarization Transfer) scheme with symmetry-based SR412 recoupling blocks for coherence transfer between 13C and 17O nuclei. First, a 2D 17O → 13C correlation experiment was performed for the [1-13C,17O]-Gly/Gly·HCl cocrystal and [U-13C, 1-17O]-α/β-d-glucose samples. Second, a 2D 17O → 13C MQ-D-RINEPT correlation experiment where the indirect dimension incorporates the multiple-quantum MAS (MQMAS) scheme was tested for obtaining isotropic 17O resolution with [U-13C, 1-17O]-α/β-d-glucose. Third, a new 3D 17O → 13C → 13C correlation experiment was demonstrated where 17O → 13C and 13C → 13C correlations are achieved by D-RINEPT and DARR (Dipolar Assisted Rotational Resonance) sequences, respectively (thus termed as a 3D D-RINEPT/DARR OCC experiment). This new 3D 17O NMR experiment is implemented with the aim for site-resolved solid-state 17O NMR studies.

Spectral editing of alanine, serine, and threonine in uniformly labeled proteins based on frequency-selective homonuclear recoupling in solid-state NMR.

Spectral editing is crucial to simplify the crowded solid-state NMR spectra of proteins. New techniques are introduced to edit 13C-13C correlations of uniformly labeled proteins under moderate magic-angle spinning (MAS), based on our recent frequency-selective homonuclear recoupling sequences [Zhang et al., J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 2020, 11, 8077-8083]. The signals of alanine, serine, or threonine residues are selected out by selective 13Cα-13Cβ double-quantum filtering (DQF). The 13Cα-13Cβ correlations of alanine residues are selectively established with efficiency up to ~ 1.8 times that by dipolar-assisted rotational resonance (DARR). The techniques are shown in 2D/3D NCCX experiments and applied to the uniformly 13C, 15N labeled Aquaporin Z (AqpZ) membrane protein, demonstrating their potential to simplify spectral analyses in biological solid-state NMR.

Selective One-Dimensional 13C-13C Spin-Diffusion Solid-State Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Methods to Probe Spatial Arrangements in Biopolymers Including Plant Cell Walls, Peptides, and Spider Silk.

Two-dimensional (2D) and 3D through-space 13C-13C homonuclear spin-diffusion techniques are powerful solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) tools for extracting structural information from 13C-enriched biomolecules, but necessarily long acquisition times restrict their applications. In this work, we explore the broad utility and underutilized power of a chemical shift-selective one-dimensional (1D) version of a 2D 13C-13C spin-diffusion solid-state NMR technique. The method, which is called 1D dipolar-assisted rotational resonance (DARR) difference, is applied to a variety of biomaterials including lignocellulosic plant cell walls, microcrystalline peptide fMLF, and black widow dragline spider silk. 1D 13C-13C spin-diffusion methods described here apply in select cases in which the 1D 13C solid-state NMR spectrum displays chemical shift-resolved moieties. This is analogous to the selective 1D nuclear Overhauser effect spectroscopy (NOESY) experiment utilized in liquid-state NMR as a faster (1D instead of 2D) and often less ambiguous (direct sampling of the time domain data, coupled with increased signal averaging) alternative to 2D NOESY. Selective 1D 13C-13C spin-diffusion methods are more time-efficient than their 2D counterparts such as proton-driven spin diffusion (PDSD) and dipolar-assisted rotational resonance. The additional time gained enables measurements of 13C-13C spin-diffusion buildup curves and extraction of spin-diffusion time constants TSD, yielding detailed structural information. Specifically, selective 1D DARR difference buildup curves applied to 13C-enriched hybrid poplar woody stems confirm strong spatial interaction between lignin and acetylated xylan polymers within poplar plant secondary cell walls, and an interpolymer distance of ∼0.45-0.5 nm was estimated. Additionally, Tyr/Gly long-range correlations were observed on isotopically enriched black widow spider dragline silks.

Quantitative Analysis of Solid-State Homonuclear Correlation Spectra of Antiparallel β-Sheet Alanine Tetramers.

Poly-l-alanine (PLA) sequences are a key element in the structure of the crystalline domains of spider dragline silks, wild silkworm silks, antifreeze proteins, and amyloids. To date, no atomic-level structures of antiparallel (AP)-PLA longer than Ala4 have been reported using the single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. In this work, dipolar-assisted rotational resonance solid-state NMR spectra were observed to determine the effective internuclear distances of 13C uniformly labeled alanine tetramer with antiparallel (AP) β-sheet structure whose atomic coordinates are determined from the X-ray crystallographic analysis. Initial build-up rates, R j, k, were obtained from the build-up curves of the cross peaks by considering the internuclear distances arising in the master equation. Subsequently, experimentally obtained effective internuclear distances, reffj, k(obs), were compared with the calculated reffj, k(calc) values obtained from the X-ray crystallographic data. Fairly good correlation between reffj, k(obs) and reffj, k(calc) was obtained in the range of 1.0-6.0 Å, with the standard deviation of 0.244 Å, without considering the zero-quantum line-shape functions. It was further noted that the internuclear distances of intermolecular contributions provide details relating to the molecular packing in solid-state samples. Thus, the present data agree well with AP-β-sheet packing but do not agree with P-β-sheet packing.

Direct assignment of 13C solid-state NMR signals of TFoF1 ATP synthase subunit c-ring in lipid membranes and its implication for the ring structure.

FoF1-ATP synthase catalyzes ATP hydrolysis/synthesis coupled with a transmembrane H+ translocation in membranes. The Fo c-subunit ring plays a major role in this reaction. We have developed an assignment strategy for solid-state 13C NMR (ssNMR) signals of the Fo c-subunit ring of thermophilic Bacillus PS3 (TFo c-ring, 72 residues), carrying one of the basic folds of membrane proteins. In a ssNMR spectrum of uniformly 13C-labeled sample, the signal overlap has been a major bottleneck because most amino acid residues are hydrophobic. To overcome signal overlapping, we developed a method designated as COmplementary Sequential assignment with MInimum Labeling Ensemble (COSMILE). According to this method, we generated three kinds of reverse-labeled samples to suppress signal overlapping. To assign the carbon signals sequentially, two-dimensional Cα(i+1)-C'Cα(i) correlation and dipolar assisted rotational resonance (DARR) experiments were performed under magic-angle sample spinning. On the basis of inter- and intra-residue 13C-13C chemical shift correlations, 97% of Cα, 97% of Cβ and 92% of C' signals were assigned directly from the spectra. Secondary structure analysis predicted a hairpin fold of two helices with a central loop. The effects of saturated and unsaturated phosphatidylcholines on TFo c-ring structure were examined. The DARR spectra at 15ms mixing time are essentially similar to each other in saturated and unsaturated lipid membranes, suggesting that TFo c-rings have similar structures under the different environments. The spectrum of the sample in saturated lipid membranes showed better resolution and structural stability in the gel state. The C-terminal helix was suggested to locate in the outer layer of the c-ring.

Analysis of the Electronic Structure of the Special Pair of a Bacterial Photosynthetic Reaction Center by 13 C Photochemically Induced Dynamic Nuclear Polarization Magic-Angle Spinning NMR Using a Double-Quantum Axis.

The origin of the functional symmetry break in bacterial photosynthesis challenges since several decades. Although structurally very similar, the two branches of cofactors in the reaction center (RC) protein complex act very differently. Upon photochemical excitation, an electron is transported along one branch, while the other remains inactive. Photochemically induced dynamic nuclear polarization (photo-CIDNP) magic-angle spinning (MAS) 13 C NMR revealed that the two bacteriochlorophyll cofactors forming the "Special Pair" donor dimer are already well distinguished in the electronic ground state. These previous studies are relying solely on 13 C-13 C correlation experiments as radio-frequency-driven recoupling (RFDR) and dipolar-assisted rotational resonance (DARR). Obviously, the chemical-shift assignment is difficult in a dimer of tetrapyrrole macrocycles, having eight pyrrole rings of similar chemical shifts. To overcome this problem, an INADEQUATE type of experiment using a POST C7 symmetry-based approach is applied to selectively isotope-labeled bacterial RC of Rhodobacter (R.) sphaeroides wild type (WT). We, therefore, were able to distinguish unresolved sites of the macromolecular dimer. The obtained chemical-shift pattern is in-line with a concentric assembly of negative charge within the common center of the Special Pair supermolecule in the electronic ground state.

Ubiquitin immobilized on mesoporous MCM41 silica surfaces - Analysis by solid-state NMR with biophysical and surface characterization.

Deriving the conformation of adsorbed proteins is important in the assessment of their functional activity when immobilized. This has particularly important bearings on the design of contemporary and new encapsulated enzyme-based drugs, biosensors, and other bioanalytical devices. Solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) measurements can expand our molecular view of proteins in this state and of the molecular interactions governing protein immobilization on popular biocompatible surfaces such as silica. Here, the authors study the immobilization of ubiquitin on the mesoporous silica MCM41 by NMR and other techniques. Protein molecules are shown to bind efficiently at pH 5 through electrostatic interactions to individual MCM41 particles, causing their agglutination. The strong attraction of ubiquitin to MCM41 surface is given molecular context through evidence of proximity of basic, carbonyl and polar groups on the protein to groups on the silica surface using NMR measurements. The immobilized protein exhibits broad peaks in two-dimensional 13C dipolar-assisted rotational resonance spectra, an indication of structural multiplicity. At the same time, cross-peaks related to Tyr and Phe sidechains are missing due to motional averaging. Overall, the favorable adsorption of ubiquitin to MCM41 is accompanied by conformational heterogeneity and by a major loss of motional degrees of freedom as inferred from the marked entropy decrease. Nevertheless, local motions of the aromatic rings are retained in the immobilized state.

Refined Crystal Structure of Samia cynthia ricini Silk Fibroin Revealed by Solid-State NMR Investigations.

Samia cynthia ricini is one of the wild silkworms and its silk fibroin (SF) consists of alternatively repeating poly-l-alanine (PLA) sequences as crystalline domain and glycine-rich sequences as noncrystalline domain; the structure is similar to those of spider silk and other wild silkworm silks. In this paper, we proposed a new staggered model for the packing arrangement of the PLA sequence through the use of the Cambridge Serial Total Energy Package program and a comparison of the observed and calculated chemical shifts of the PLA sequence with the Gauge Including Projector Augmented Wave method. The new model was supported by the interatomic distance information from the cross peaks of Ala Cβ dipolar-assisted rotational resonance (DARR) spectrum of the PLA sequences in S. c. ricini SF fiber. In addition, three 13C NMR peaks observed in the β-sheet region were assigned to the carbons with different environments in the same model, but not assigned to different β-sheet structures.

Packing arrangement of 13C selectively labeled sequence model peptides of Samia cynthia ricini silk fibroin fibers studied by solid-state NMR.

Samia cynthia ricini (S. c. ricini) is one of the wild silkworms. Their silk fibroins have been paid attention as potentially valuable biomedical materials as well as Bombyx mori silk fibroins, but detailed information on the packing arrangement of the fibers is still not currently well understood at a molecular level. In this study, 34 mer model peptides, GGAGGGYGGDGG(A)12GGAGDGYGAG with different 13C labeled positions have been synthesized as a typical sequence of the primary structure of S. c. ricini silk fibroins made up of tandemly repeated sequences of polyalanine as the crystalline region and glycin-rich sequences as the non-crystalline region. The heterogeneous structure was obtained from the determination of the fraction of several conformations depending on the position of the Ala residue by 13C cross polarization/magic angle spinning NMR. The packing arrangement was studied by 13C dipolar assisted rotational resonance NMR and packing in a staggered arrangement rather than a rectangular arrangement of this peptide with an anti-parallel β-sheet structure was clarified, which is in good agreement with our previous report on the packing arrangement of (Ala)7 with an anti-parallel β-sheet structure.

Profiling planktonic biomass using element-specific, multicomponent nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy.

Planktonic metabolism plays crucial roles in Earth's elemental cycles. Chemical speciation as well as elemental stoichiometry is important for advancing our understanding of planktonic roles in biogeochemical cycles. In this study, a multicomponent solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) approach is proposed for chemical speciation of cellular components, using several advanced NMR techniques. Measurements by ssNMR were performed on (13)C and (15)N-labeled Euglena gracilis, a flagellated protist. 3D dipolar-assisted rotational resonance, double-cross-polarization (1)H-(13)C correlation spectroscopy, and (1)H-(13)C solid-state heteronuclear single quantum correlation spectroscopy successively allowed characterization of cellular components. These techniques were then applied to E. gracilis cultured in high and low ammonium media to demonstrate the power of this method for profiling and comparing cellular components. Cellular NMR spectra indicated that ammonium induced both paramylon degradation and amination. Arginine was stored as a nitrogen reserve and ammonium replaced by arginine catabolism via the arginine dihydrolase pathway. (15)N and (31)P cellular ssNMR indicated arginine and polyphosphate accumulation in E. gracilis, respectively. This chemical speciation technique will contribute to environmental research by providing detailed information on environmental chemical properties.

Antiparallel β-Sheet Structure within the C-Terminal Region of 42-Residue Alzheimer's Amyloid-β Peptides When They Form 150-kDa Oligomers

Understanding the molecular structures of amyloid-β (Aβ) oligomers and underlying assembly pathways will advance our understanding of Alzheimer's disease (AD) at the molecular level. This understanding could contribute to disease prevention, diagnosis, and treatment strategies, as oligomers play a central role in AD pathology. We have recently presented a procedure for production of 150-kDa oligomeric samples of Aβ(1-42) (the 42-residue variant of the Aβ peptide) that are compatible with solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) analysis, and we have shown that these oligomers and amyloid fibrils differ in intermolecular arrangement of β-strands. Here we report new solid-state NMR constraints that indicate antiparallel intermolecular alignment of β-strands within the oligomers. Specifically, 150-kDa Aβ(1-42) oligomers with uniform 13C and 15N isotopic labels at I32, M35, G37, and V40 exhibit β-strand secondary chemical shifts in 2-dimensional (2D) finite-pulse radiofrequency-driven recoupling NMR spectra, spatial proximities between I32 and V40 as well as between M35 and G37 in 2D dipolar-assisted rotational resonance spectra, and close proximity between M35 Hα and G37 Hα in 2D CHHC spectra. Furthermore, 2D dipolar-assisted rotational resonance analysis of an oligomer sample prepared with 30% labeled peptide indicates that the I32-V40 and M35-G37 contacts are between residues on different molecules. We employ molecular modeling to compare the newly derived experimental constraints with previously proposed geometries for arrangement of Aβ molecules into oligomers.

Spectral editing through laser-flash excitation in two-dimensional photo-CIDNP MAS NMR experiments

In solid-state photochemically induced dynamic nuclear polarization (photo-CIDNP) MAS NMR experiments, strong signal enhancement is observed from molecules forming a spin-correlated radical pair in a rigid matrix. Two-dimensional 13C–13C dipolar-assisted rotational resonance (DARR) photo-CIDNP MAS NMR experiments have been applied to obtain exact chemical shift assignments from those cofactors. Under continuous illumination, the signals are enhanced via three-spin mixing (TSM) and differential decay (DD) and their intensity corresponds to the electron spin density in pz orbitals. In multiple-13C labelled samples, spin diffusion leads to propagation of signal enhancement to all 13C spins. Under steady-state conditions, direct signal assignment is possible due to the uniform signal intensity. The original intensities, however, are inaccessible and the information of the local electron spin density is lost. Upon laser-flash illumination, the signal is enhanced via the classical radical pair mechanism (RPM). The obtained intensities are related to isotropic hyperfine interactions aiso and both enhanced absorptive and emissive lines can be observed due to differences in the sign of the local isotropic hyperfine interaction. Exploiting the mechanism of the polarization, selectivity can be increased by the novel time-resolved two-dimensional dipolar-assisted rotational resonance (DARR) MAS NMR experiment which simplifies the signal assignment compared to complex spectra of the same RCs obtained by continuous illumination. Here we present two-dimensional time-resolved photo-CIDNP MAS NMR experiments providing both directly: signal assignment and spectral editing by sign and strength of aiso. Hence, this experiment provides a direct key to the electronic structure of the correlated radical pair.

Study of the Mechanism of Thermal Chemical Processes in the Crystals of YAF Tripeptides by Means of Mass Spectrometry and Solid State NMR

Thermal reactions in two Tyr-Ala-Phe (YAF) tripeptide crystals with different molecular packing (monoclinic and hexagonal), distinct stereochemistry of central amino acid (D or L alanine) and specific arrangement of molecules in the crystal lattice (head-to-tail) were investigated. Samples were heated up to 180 °C, while the melting point for YAF crystals is above the 220 °C. Below the melting temperature, in both cases the chemical reactions leading to formation of cyclic dipeptides (YA diketopiperazine) and leaving of phenylalanine were observed. Two possible mechanisms of chemical reaction in the crystal lattice assuming intra- and/or intermolecular pathways were considered. (13)C and (15)N enriched YAF samples were employed to study of mechanism of solid state reactivity using mass spectrometry and advanced solid state NMR techniques (2D DARR (Dipolar Assisted Rotational Resonance) and 2D Double CP (Cross-Polarization) correlations).

Spectrally edited 2D 13C[sbnd]13C NMR spectra without diagonal ridge for characterizing 13C-enriched low-temperature carbon materials

Two robust combinations of spectral editing techniques with 2D 13C13C NMR have been developed for characterizing the aromatic components of 13C-enriched low-temperature carbon materials. One method (exchange with protonated and nonprotonated spectral editing, EXPANSE) selects cross peaks of protonated and nearby nonprotonated carbons, while the other technique, dipolar-dephased double-quantum/single-quantum (DQ/SQ) NMR, selects signals of bonded nonprotonated carbons. Both spectra are free of a diagonal ridge, which has many advantages: Cross peaks on the diagonal or of small intensity can be detected, and residual spinning sidebands or truncation artifacts associated with the diagonal ridge are avoided. In the DQ/SQ experiment, dipolar dephasing of the double-quantum coherence removes protonated-carbon signals; this approach also eliminates the need for high-power proton decoupling. The initial magnetization is generated with minimal fluctuation by combining direct polarization, cross polarization, and equilibration by 13C spin diffusion. The dipolar dephased DQ/SQ spectrum shows signals from all linkages between aromatic rings, including a distinctive peak from polycondensed aromatics. In EXPANSE NMR, signals of protonated carbons are selected in the first spectral dimension by short cross polarization combined with dipolar dephasing difference. This removes ambiguities of peak assignment to overlapping signals of nonprotonated and protonated aromatic carbons, e.g. near 125ppm. Spin diffusion is enhanced by dipolar-assisted rotational resonance. Before detection, CH dipolar dephasing by gated decoupling is applied, which selects signals of nonprotonated carbons. Thus, only cross peaks due to magnetization originating from protonated C and ending on nearby nonprotonated C are retained. Combined with the chemical shifts deduced from the cross-peak position, this double spectral editing defines the bonding environment of aromatic, COO, and CO carbons, which is particularly useful for identifying furan and arene rings. The CO carbons, whose chemical shifts vary strongly (between 212 and 165ppm) and systematically depend on their two bonding partners, show particularly informative cross peaks, given that one bonding partner is defined by the other frequency coordinate of the cross peak. The new techniques and the information content of the resulting spectra are validated on sulfuric-acid treated low-temperature carbon materials and on products of the Maillard reaction. The crucial need for spectral editing for correct peak assignment is demonstrated in an example.

The Alzheimer's Amyloid-β(1–42) Peptide Forms Off-Pathway Oligomers and Fibrils That Are Distinguished Structurally by Intermolecular Organization

Increasing evidence suggests that soluble aggregates of amyloid-β (Aβ) initiate the neurotoxicity that eventually leads to dementia in Alzheimer's disease. Knowledge on soluble aggregate structures will enhance our understanding of the relationship between structures and toxicities. Our group has reported a stable and homogeneous preparation of Aβ(1–42) oligomers that has been characterized by various biophysical techniques. Here, we have further analyzed this species by solid state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and compared NMR results to similar observations on amyloid fibrils. NMR experiments on Aβ(1–42) oligomers reveal chemical shifts of labeled residues that are indicative of β-strand secondary structure. Results from two-dimensional dipolar-assisted rotational resonance experiments indicate proximities between I31 aliphatic and F19 aromatic carbons. An isotope dilution experiment further indicates that these contacts between F19 and I31 are intermolecular, contrary to models of Aβ oligomers proposed previously by others. For Aβ(1–42) fibrils, we observed similar NMR lineshapes and inter-side-chain contacts, indicating similar secondary and quaternary structures. The most prominent structural differences between Aβ(1–42) oligomers and fibrils were observed through measurements of intermolecular 13C–13C dipolar couplings observed in PITHIRDS-CT experiments. PITHIRDS-CT data indicate that, unlike fibrils, oligomers are not characterized by in-register parallel β-sheets. Structural similarities and differences between Aβ(1–42) oligomers and fibrils suggest that folded β-strand peptide conformations form early in the course of self-assembly and that oligomers and fibrils differ primarily in schemes of intermolecular organization. Distinct intermolecular arrangements between Aβ(1–42) oligomers and fibrils may explain why this oligomeric state appears off-pathway for monomer self-assembly to fibrils.

Probing the contacts of a low-affinity substrate with a membrane-embedded transport protein using1H-13C cross-polarisation magic-angle spinning solid-state NMR

Solid-state NMR combined with sample deuteration was used to probe the proximity of the low-affinity substrate D-glucose to its binding site within the Escherichia coli sugar transport protein GalP. Samples of E. coli inner membranes with amplified expression of GalP were incubated in D(2)O with D-[(13)C(6)]glucose and (13)C NMR signals from the substrate were assigned in two-dimensional dipolar-assisted rotational resonance (DARR) spectra. The signals were confirmed as representing D-glucose bound to GalP as the peaks were abolished after the substrate was displaced from the specific site with the inhibitor forskolin. The (13)C chemical shift values for D-[(13)C(6)]glucose in solution revealed some differences compared to those for ligand bound to GalP, the differences being most pronounced for positions C1 and C2, and especially for C1 in the α-anomer. (13)C cross-polarization build-up was measured for C1 and C2 of D-[(13)C(6)]glucose and D-[(2)H(7), (13)C(6)]glucose in GalP membranes suspended in D(2)O. The build-up curves for the deuterated substrate reflect intermolecular (1)H-(13)C interactions between the protein and the fully deuterated substrate; the signal build-up suggests that the α-anomer is situated closer to the protein binding site than is the β-anomer, consistent with its relatively high signal intensities and more pronounced chemical shift changes in the 2D-correlation spectra. These results demonstrate the utility of solid-state NMR combined with sample deuteration for mapping the binding interface of low affinity ligands with membrane proteins.

Magic angle spinning NMR study of interaction of N-terminal sequence of dermorphin (Tyr-d-Ala-Phe-Gly) with phospholipids

Two modifications of the Tyr-d-Ala-Phe-Gly tetrapeptide with different C-terminal groups (Tyr-d-Ala-Phe-Gly-OH 1 and Tyr-d-Ala-Phe-Gly-NH22) were investigated by various nuclear magnetic resonance sequences under magic angle spinning. The structural constraints obtained from the magic angle spinning nuclear magnetic resonance measurements suggest that both peptides are aligned on the surface of the membrane and that the sandwich-like π-CH3-π arrangement of the pharmacophore is preserved. The influence of the chemical modification of the C-terminal residue of 1 and 2 on their interaction with phosphate group of the phospholipid in the subgel phase Lc and the conformation of the peptides in the liquid crystalline phase Lα are discussed. The correlation between the X-ray structure of 1 in the solid state and 1 embedded into a membrane in the Lc phase is presented on the basis of the comparative analysis of the two‐dimensional 13C–13C dipolar-assisted rotational resonance cross-peaks and the 13C isotropic chemical shifts.