Saturation Transfer EPR Spectroscopy Research Articles

Antifungal activity of the primycin complex and its main components A1, A2 and C1 on a Candida albicans clinical isolate, and their effects on the dynamic plasma membrane changes

The in vitro antifungal activities of the macrolide lactone antibiotic complex primycin (PC) and its main components, A1 (50%), A2 (7.3%) and C1 (13%), against the opportunistic pathogenic fungus Candida albicans 33erg(+)were determined by microdilution testing. The MIC(100) (the minimal concentration required for 100% growth inhibition) values found, A2 (2 μg ml(-1)), PC (32 μg ml(-1)), A1 (32 μg ml(-1)) and C1 (64 μg ml(-1)), suggested that the biological activity of PC is highly dependent on the proportions of its constituents. In vivo measurements of the biophysical properties of plasma membranes were carried out by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopic methods, using the spin probe 5-(4,4-dimethyloxazolidine-N-oxyl)stearic acid. Conventional EPR measurements demonstrated altered phase transition temperatures (Tm) of the plasma membrane of strain 33erg(+) as a consequence of treatment with PC or its constituents: for cells treated with 128 μg ml(-1) PC, A1, A2 or C1 for 15 min, Tm was 17, 21, 14.5 and 15 °C, respectively; that is significantly higher than the Tm of untreated cells, 12 °C. The molecular motions of the near-surface hydrophobic region of the plasma membrane, estimated by saturation transfer EPR spectroscopy, reflected changes in the membrane phases after the treatment. Two physiological membrane phases were detected in control samples: liquid-ordered and liquid-disordered, characterized by molecular movements ∼10(-6)-10(-8) s and ≥10(-9) s. The cells treated with the investigated compounds showed the strong presence of a non-physiological gel phase additional to the above phases, characterized by movements ≤10(-5) s.

A study of the photoinduced conformational mobility of spin-labeled regenerated rhodopsin by ESR spectroscopy

Saturation transfer EPR spectroscopy is used to study the photoinduced conformational changes of spin-labeled (Cys140 and Cys316) rhodopsin in a photoreceptor membrane. Illumination of rhodopsin with “yellow” light (λ > 450 nm), converting it from the dark form into metarhodopsin II, a physiologically active form, is accompanied by an increase in the mobility of the cytoplasmic loop (Cys140) and eighth alpha-helix (Cys316), whereas the subsequent illumination with “blue” light (λ < 445 nm), which converts metarhodopsin II into a mixture of inactive photoregenerated products, results in a decrease in the mobility. The restoration of the specific features of the photoinduced changes in the conformational mobility of the cytoplasmic loops of rhodopsin regenerated in the dark is demonstrated.

Interaction of inhibitors of the vacuolar H(+)-ATPase with the transmembrane Vo-sector.

The macrolide antibiotic concanamycin A and a designed derivative of 5-(2-indolyl)-2,4-pentadienamide (INDOL0) are potent inhibitors of vacuolar H(+)-ATPases, with IC(50) values in the low and medium nanomolar range, respectively. Interaction of these V-ATPase inhibitors with spin-labeled subunit c in the transmembrane V(o)-sector of the ATPase was studied by using the transport-active 16-kDa proteolipid analogue of subunit c from the hepatopancreas of Nephrops norvegicus. Analogous experiments were also performed with vacuolar membranes from Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Membranous preparations of the Nephrops 16-kDa proteolipid were spin-labeled either on the unique cysteine C54, with a nitroxyl maleimide, or on the functionally essential glutamate E140, with a nitroxyl analogue of dicyclohexylcarbodiimide (DCCD). These residues were previously demonstrated to be accessible to lipid. Interaction of the inhibitors with these lipid-exposed residues was studied by using both conventional and saturation transfer EPR spectroscopy. Immobilization of the spin-labeled residues by the inhibitors was observed on both the nanosecond and microsecond time scales. The perturbation by INDOL0 was mostly greater than that by concanamycin A. Qualitatively similar but quantitatively greater effects were obtained with the same spin-label reagents and vacuolar membranes in which the Nephrops 16-kDa proteolipid was expressed in place of the native vma3p proteolipid of yeast. The spin-label immobilization corresponds to a direct interaction of the inhibitors with these intramembranous sites on the protein. A mutational analysis on transmembrane segment 4 known to give resistance to concanamycin A also gave partial resistance to INDOL0. The results are consistent with transmembrane segments 2 and 4 of the 16-kDa putative four-helix bundle, and particularly the functionally essential protonation locus, being involved in the inhibitor binding sites. Inhibition of proton transport may also involve immobilization of the overall rotation of the proteolipid subunit assembly.

Non-linear, continuous-wave EPR spectroscopy and spin–lattice relaxation: spin-label EPR methods for structure and dynamics †

The sensitivity of continuous-wave, non-linear EPR signals to spin–lattice (T1) relaxation has been investigated. The aim was to identify those spectral displays that are most appropriate to obtain structural and dynamic information from spin-label EPR experiments that involve detection of T1-relaxation enhancements. This has been achieved by solving the Bloch equations for the various harmonics of the absorption and dispersion components of the spin magnetisation. Of interest are the magnetisation components that are out-of-phase with respect to the static magnetic field modulation, under conditions of partial saturation of the microwave absorption. It is found that both the first- and second-harmonic out-of-phase absorption EPR signals are particularly sensitive to T1-relaxation. The first-harmonic absorption quadrature-phase signal is favoured for determining T1-relaxation enhancements because of its superior intensity and relative insensitivity to transverse (T2) relaxation. The second-harmonic absorption quadrature-phase EPR signal has lower relative intensity and is more sensitive to T2-relaxation, but has a unique sensitivity to rotational diffusion that is exploited in saturation transfer EPR spectroscopy. The non-linear dispersion signals are less appropriate because of their principal sensitivity to T2-relaxation and because they saturate less readily. These novel non-linear EPR spectroscopies can be contrasted with the conventional progressive saturation behaviour of the in-phase absorption signals that are determined by the T1T2 relaxation time product.

Determination of the orientation of a band 3 affinity spin-label relative to the membrane normal axis of the human erythrocyte.

The orientation of the nitroxide moiety of an isotopically substituted spin-labeled derivative of dihydrostilbenedisulfonate ([15N,2H13]-SL-H2DADS-maleimide) covalently coupled at the extracellular stilbenedisulfonate binding site of the human erythrocyte anion exchange protein, band 3, has been determined relative to the membrane normal axis of intact cells. The X-band linear electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectra of [15N,2H13]-SL-H2DADS-maleimide-labeled band 3 in intact erythrocytes oriented by flow through an EPR flat cell have been obtained for two orthogonal orientations of the sample in the DC magnetic field. Two different methods of analysis have provided very similar values for the angles alpha 1 and beta 1 which uniquely define the orientation of the nitroxide axis frame relative to the membrane normal axis. In the first approach, a variable fraction of the cells, f, were taken to be biconcave disks perfectly oriented relative to the flat cell surface with the remainder, 1-f, isotropically oriented. Simultaneous nonlinear least squares analysis of the spectra obtained at the two sample orientations yielded best fit values of f = 0.60, alpha 1 = 58 degrees, and beta 1 = 36 degrees. In the second approach, the EPR spectra of flow-oriented intact erythrocytes labeled with the fatty acid spin-label, [15N,2H12]-5-nitroxyl stearate, have been obtained at the two sample orientations. These two spectra have been used to determine a model-independent distribution of membrane normal orientations in the sample. Using this experimentally determined membrane normal orientation distribution, the EPR spectra of [15N,2H13]-SL-H2DADS-maleimide-labeled erythrocytes were then reanalyzed to obtain a second determination of the nitroxide orientation, alpha 1 = 61 degrees and beta 1 = 37 degrees. The orientation of the nitroxide with respect to the membrane normal axis determined in the present study is nearly identical to the orientation of the nitroxide with respect to the uniaxial rotational diffusion axis, alpha = 66 degrees and beta = 34 degrees, as determined from saturation transfer EPR (ST-EPR) studies [Hustedt, E. H., & Beth, A. H. (1995) Biophys. J. 69, 1409-1423]. This result supports the conclusion that the motion observed using ST-EPR spectroscopy is, in fact, the uniaxial rotational diffusion of band 3 about the membrane normal.

Spin label saturation transfer EPR determinations of the stoichiometry and selectivity of lipid—protein interactions in the gel phase

Lipid-protein interactions with the myelin proteolipid protein incorporated in the gel phase of dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine bilayers have been studied by saturation transfer EPR spectroscopy of spin-labelled phospholipids. The integrated intensities of the saturation transfer EPR spectra from spin-labelled phosphatidylcholine are linearly dependent on the protein/lipid ratio, and correspond to a fixed stoichiometry of approximately 11 lipids per monomer associated with the protein in the gel phase. The normalized saturation transfer intensities of spin-labelled phosphatidic acid, on the other hand, display a non-linear dependence on the protein/lipid ratio that can be described well by a selectivity for interaction with the protein in the gel phase with an average association constant relative to phosphatidylcholine of approx. 5.2. These values for the stoichiometry and selectivity of lipid-protein interaction in the lipid gel phase obtained from saturation transfer EPR spectroscopy are comparable to those found previously in fluid phase lipids by conventional EPR spectroscopy.

Conventional and saturation transfer EPR spectroscopy of Na +/K +-ATPase modified with different maleimide-nitroxide derivatives

The membranous Na +/K +-ATPase from Squalus acanthias has been covalently modified on either Class I or Class II sulphydryl groups using derivatives of 3-(maleimidomethyl)-1-oxyl-2,2,5,5,-tetramethylpyrrolidine with substituents of different charge and hydrophobicity attached at the remaining unsubstituted position of the pyrrolidine ring. The substituent groups used were a methyl and a hexyl ester, and di- and tri-methylammonium ethyl esters, as well as the parent underivatized compound. Additionally, another series of maleimide-nitroxides differing (by zero to seven intervening atoms) in the length of the linking group between the maleimide and the pyrrolidine moieties was used. The sites of attachment have been characterized in terms of the rotational mobility and environment polarity by using conventional and saturation transfer EPR spectroscopy of these spin-labelled reagents. This provides a further sub-classification of the primary Class I and Class II SH-groups on the α-subunit of the enzyme, which differ both in their reactivity and influence on the Na +/K +-ATPase activity.

Exchange and dipolar spin-spin interaction and rotational diffusion in saturation transfer EPR spectroscopy

Saturation transfer EPR spectroscopy (STEPR) provides a means for investigating weak spin-spin interaction between spin-labelled molecules because the spectral intensity is proportional to the effective spin-lattice relaxation time,T1eff. Rate equations for the spin population defferences yield equivalent results for the dependence ofT1eff on the physical (or chemical) and Heisenberg spin exchange rates and show thatT1eff depends on the extent of redistribution of saturation throughout the anisotropic spin label powder lineshape. This approach yields a particularly simple formulation for the dependence of the STEPR lineshape on slow rotational diffusion. The effects of spin exchange are readily distinguished from those of slow rotational diffusion because of the insensitivity of the STEPR lineshape in the former case. The characteristic dependence of the STEPR spectral intensity on spin concentration allows determination of the exchange rate and can be used for studying slow translational diffusion, e.g. of spin-labelled proteins. Dipolar relaxation induced by paramagnetic ions gives a linear dependence of the reciprocal spin label STEPR intensity on metal ion concentration. STEPR measurements with spin-labelled lipid molecules in gel phase membranes in the presence of Ni2+ ions yield reliable distance information and provide calibrations for use with other systems.

Measurement of the local translational diffusion rates of proteins by saturation transfer EPR spectroscopy

The concentration dependence of the normalized integral of the saturation-transfer EPR spectrum of human serum albumin spin-labelled on amino groups is found to be sensitive to viscosity and to temperature in aqueous solution and in 60% glycerol. The dependence on protein concentration is consistent with theoretical predictions for a diffusion-controlled Heisenberg spin-exchange interaction and the experimentally derived bimolecular collision rate constants are in reasonable agreement with those calculated theoretically for a diffusion-controlled process. The method is therefore applicable to the determination of translational diffusion coefficients of proteins in solution and, because of the nature of the saturation transfer EPR method, should be ideally suited to the study of local translational diffusion of proteins in membranes.

Saturation transfer EPR spectroscopy on spin-labeled muscle fibers using a loop-gap resonator

Previously, saturation transfer (ST-EPR) studies of biomolecular dynamics have involved the use of a resonant cavity and the V'2 display (absorption, second harmonic, out of phase). In the present study, we replaced the resonant cavity with a loop-gap resonator and used the U'1 display (dispersion, first harmonic, out of phase) to study spin-labeled muscle fibers. The new resonator and display showed several advantages over those previously used. It produced virtually noiseless U'1 spectra on a 0.4 microliter sample using a 4 min scan; previous U'1 experiments on spin-labeled muscle, using a conventional rectangular cavity, resulted in an unacceptably low signal-to-noise ratio. The high filling factor of the resonator facilitated the study of these extremely small fiber bundles and permitted high microwave field intensities to be achieved at much lower incident microwave power levels, thus greatly enhancing the signal-to-noise ratio in U'1 experiments. This reduction in the noise level made it possible to benefit from the other advantages of U'1 over V'2, such as stronger signals, simpler line shapes, and simpler data analysis. For these muscle fiber samples, the resulting sensitivity (signal/noise/sample volume) of the U'1 signals was greater than 100 times that of V'2 signals obtained in a conventional cavity. Another advantage of the U'1 display is that signals from weakly immobilized probes, i.e., probes that have nanosecond rotational mobility relative to the labeled protein (myosin), are greatly suppressed relative to strongly immobilized probes. This reduces the ambiguity of spectral analysis, and eliminates the need for chemical treatments [e.g., using K3Fe(CN)6] that were previously required in muscle fibers and other systems. Further suppression of this weakly immobilized component was achieved in U'1 spectra by increasing the microwave power and decreasing the field modulation frequency.

Rotational diffusion of cytochrome P-450 in the microsomal membrane—Evidence for a clusterlike organization from saturation transfer electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy

Rotational diffusion of cytochrome P-450 in rabbit liver microsomes has been studied by saturation transfer EPR spectroscopy. Sulfhydryl groups of cytochrome P-450 were selectively modified using a maleimide spin label. The effective rotational correlation time for the rotation of cytochrome P-450 was calculated to be about 480 μ s which corresponds to a very strong immobilization thus evidencing protein aggregation within the membrane. The anisotropic character of the spectra indicates a nonspherical shape and/or anisotropic rotational motion of the cluster. The temperature dependence of the rotational correlation time shows a relatively sharp break at about 4 °C but only small changes above this temperature. The break at about 4 °C is probably caused by the onset of the cluster rotation. Below 4 °C the enzyme is almost immobilized. A similar complete immobilization can be achieved by treating the microsomes with glutaraldehyde.

35-GHz (Q-band) saturation transfer electron paramagnetic resonance studies of rotational diffusion.

The extension of saturation transfer electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy (ST-EPR) to an observational frequency of 35 GHz (Q band) is described. At this frequency the spectral resolution is greatly enhanced over that afforded at the 9.5-GHz (X-band) frequency used in most of the ST-EPR studies published to date. Thus, Q-band operation may provide an approach for the detailed analysis of the slow anisotropic motions believed to occur in many biomolecular systems. The spectral characteristics and the effects of various instrumental settings are described in detail for a model system of spin-labeled hemoglobin in water-glycerol solutions. Several spectral parameters are defined, and their potential use in monitoring various types of anisotropic motion is considered.

A New Detection System of Saturation Transfer Electron Paramagnetic Resonance Spectroscopy by a Fourier Transformation Technique

A new detection system for measurement of accurate saturation transfer electron paramagnetic resonance (ST-EPR) spectra has been developed. The principle of this system is that the EPR absorbance is recorded digitally over a wide frequency range without filtering, then processed numerically by a Fourier transformation technique without any phase sensitive detector which is used in conventional ST-EPR spectroscopy. It is possible to acquire the first and second harmonic signals at in-phase and 90° out-of-phase simultaneously. To obtain very high accuracy of phase determination, the modulation signal is also recorded and processed digitally simultaneously. To improve the signal/noise ratio, an accumulation technique is adopted. Consequently, in-phase and 90° out-of-phase for 100 kHz modulation can be easily corrected within the ±0.5° accuracy, and the phase can be changed quantitatively. Experimentally it is shown that 90° out-of-phase has to be set within 90 ± 0.5° to suppress the out-of-phase signal under 1% of in-phase signal in the absence of saturation. The errors in the ST-EPR parameters and τ-values are also estimated in the case of improper phase angles.

Effect of the lipid environment on protein motion and enzymatic activity of sarcoplasmic reticulum calcium ATPase.

In order to investigate the roles of the physical states of phospholipid and protein in the enzymatic behavior of the Ca2+ -ATPase from sarcoplasmic reticulum, we have modified the lipid phase of the enzyme, observed the effects on the enzymatic activity at low temperatures, and correlated these effects with spectroscopic measurements of the rotational motions of both the lipid and protein components. Replacement of the native lipids with dipalmitoyl phosphatidylcholine inhibits ATPase activity and decreases both lipid fluidity, as monitored by EPR spectroscopy on a stearic acid spin label, and protein rotational mobility, as monitored by saturation transfer EPR spectroscopy on the covalently spin-labeled enzyme. Solubilization of the lipid-replaced enzyme with Triton X-100 reverses all three of these effects. Ten millimolar CaCl2 added either to the enzyme associated with the endogenous lipids or to the Triton X-100 soulbilized enzyme inhibits both ATPase activity and protein rotational mobility but has no detectable effect on the lipid mobility. These results are consistent with the proposal that both lipid fluidity and protein rotational mobility are essential for enzymatic activity.

Source modulation in saturation transfer EPR spectroscopy: sensitivity of signals to molecular reorientation

The sensitivity of saturation transfer electron paramagnetic resonance (ST-EPR) signals, obtained employing amplitude modulation of the incident microw

The quantitative measurement of rotational motion of the subfragment‐1 region of myosin by saturation transfer EPR spectroscopy

According to current models of muscle contraction (Huxley, H. E., Science 164: 1356-1366 [1969]), motion of flexible myosin crossbridges is essential to the contractile cycle. Using a spin-label analog of iodoacetamide bound to the subfragment No. 1 (S1) region of myosin, we have obtained rotational correlation times (tau 2) for this region of the molecule with the ultimate goal of making quantitative measurements of the motion of the crossbridges under conditions comparable to those in living, contracting muscle. We used the newly developed technique of saturation transfer electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy (Hyde, J.S., and Thomas, D.D., Ann. N.Y. Acad Sci. 22:680-692 [1973]), which is uniquely sensitive to rotational motion in the range of 10(-7)-10(-3) sec. Our results indicate that the spin label is rigidly bound to S1 (tau 2 for isolated S1 is 2 X 10(-7) sec) and that the motion of the label reflects the motion of the S1 region of myosin. the value of tau 2 for the S1 segment of myosin is less than twice that for isolated S1, while the molecular weights differ by a factor of 4, indicating flexibility of myosin in agreement with the conclusions of Mendelson et al. (Biochemistry 12:2250-2255 [1973]). Adding F-actin increses tau 2 in either myosin or isolated S1 by a factor of mearly 103, indicating rigid immobilization of S1 by actin. Formation of myosin filaments (at an ionic strength of 0.15 or less) increses tau 2 by a factor of 10-30, depending on the ionic strength, indicating a decrease of the rotational mobility of S1 in these agregates. The remaining motion is at least a factor of 10 faster than would be expected for the filament itself, suggesting motion of the S1 region independent of the filament backbone but slower than in a single molecule. F-actin has a strong immobilizing effect on labeled S1 in myosin filaments (in 0.137 M KC1), but the immobilization is less complete than that observed when F-actin is added to labeled myosin monomers (in 0.5 M KC1). A spin-label analog of maleimide, attached to the SH-2 thiol groups of S1, is immobilized to a much lesser extent by F-actin than is the label on SH-1 groups. The maleimide label also was attached directly to F-actin and was sufficiently immobilized to suggest rigid binding to actin.