The Action of Chemical Denaturants: From Globular to Intrinsically Disordered Proteins.

ABSTRACT: Proteins perform their many functions by adopting either a minimal number of strictly similar conformations, the native state, or a vast ensemble of highly flexible conformations. In both cases, their structural features are highly influenced by the chemical environment. Even though a plethora of experimental studies have demonstrated the impact of chemical denaturants on protein structure, the molecular mechanism underlying their action is still debated. In the present review, after a brief recapitulation of the main experimental data on protein denaturants, we survey both classical and more recent interpretations of the molecular basis of their action. In particular, we highlight the differences and similarities of the impact that denaturants have on different structural classes of prote

SUBMITTER: Paladino A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10215825 | biostudies-literature | 2023 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature