NMR-monitored titration of acid-stress bacterial chaperone HdeA reveals that Asp and Glu charge neutralization produces a loosened dimer structure in preparation for protein unfolding and chaperone activation.

ABSTRACT: HdeA is a periplasmic chaperone found in several gram-negative pathogenic bacteria that are linked to millions of cases of dysentery per year worldwide. After the protein becomes activated at low pH, it can bind to other periplasmic proteins, protecting them from aggregation when the bacteria travel through the stomach on their way to colonize the intestines. It has been argued that one of the major driving forces for HdeA activation is the protonation of aspartate and glutamate side chains. The goal for this study, therefore, was to investigate, at the atomic level, the structural impact of this charge neutralization on HdeA during the transition from near-neutral conditions to pH 3.0, in preparation for unfolding and activation of its chaperone capabilities. NMR spectroscopy was used to

SUBMITTER: Garrison MA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3926742 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature