Polyglutamine Fibrils: New Insights into Antiparallel β-Sheet Conformational Preference and Side Chain Structure

David Punihaole, Riley J. Workman, Zhenmin Hong, Jeffry D. Madura, Sanford A. Asher

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

13 Scopus citations

Abstract

Understanding the structure of polyglutamine (polyQ) amyloid-like fibril aggregates is crucial to gaining insights into the etiology of at least ten neurodegenerative disorders, including Huntington's disease. Here, we determine the structure of D2Q10K2 (Q10) fibrils using ultraviolet resonance Raman (UVRR) spectroscopy and molecular dynamics (MD). Using UVRR, we determine the fibril peptide backbone Ψ and glutamine (Gln) side chain X3 dihedral angles. We find that most of the fibril peptide bonds adopt antiparallel β-sheet conformations; however, a small population of peptide bonds exist in parallel β-sheet structures. Using MD, we simulate three different potential fibril structural models that consist of either β-strands or β-hairpins. Comparing the experimentally measured Ψ and X3 angle distributions to those obtained from the MD simulated models, we conclude that the basic structural motif of Q10 fibrils is an extended β-strand structure. Importantly, we determine from our MD simulations that Q10 fibril antiparallel β-sheets are thermodynamically more stable than parallel β-sheets. This accounts for why polyQ fibrils preferentially adopt antiparallel β-sheet conformations instead of in-register parallel β-sheets like most amyloidogenic peptides. In addition, we directly determine, for the first time, the structures of Gln side chains. Our structural data give new insights into the role that the Gln side chains play in the stabilization of polyQ fibrils. Finally, our work demonstrates the synergistic power and utility of combining UVRR measurements and MD modeling to determine the structure of amyloid-like fibrils. (Figure Presented).

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)3012-3026
Number of pages15
JournalJournal of Physical Chemistry B
Volume120
Issue number12
DOIs
StatePublished - Mar 31 2016
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Physical and Theoretical Chemistry
  • Surfaces, Coatings and Films
  • Materials Chemistry

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Polyglutamine Fibrils: New Insights into Antiparallel β-Sheet Conformational Preference and Side Chain Structure'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this