Tricks of the trade used to accelerate high-resolution structure determination of membrane proteins (original) (raw)
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Current Opinion in Structural Biology, 2012
After decades of absent or lackluster growth, recent years have at long last witnessed an exponential growth in the number of novel membrane protein structures determined. Every single achievement has had a tremendous impact on the scientific community, providing an unprecedented wealth of information that typically only an atomic resolution structure can contribute to our molecular understanding of how a protein functions. Presented here is a review of some of the most exciting novel structures of channels and transporters determined by X-ray crystallography in the last two years, and a discussion of their analogies, differences and mechanistic implications.
Structures and Models of Transporter Proteins
Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, 2004
Transporter proteins in biological membranes may be divided into channels and carriers. Channels function as selective pores that open in response to a chemical or electrophysiological stimulus, allowing movement of a solute down an electrochemical gradient. Active carrier proteins use an energy producing process to translocate a substrate against a concentration gradient. Secondary active transporters use the movement of a solute down a concentration gradient to drive the translocation of another substrate across a membrane. ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters couple hydrolysis of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) to the translocation of various substrates across cell membranes. High-resolution three-dimensional structures have now been reported from X-ray crystallographic studies of six different transporters, including two ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters. These structures have explained the results
Structure, 2011
Obtaining well-ordered crystals is a major hurdle to X-ray structure determination of membrane proteins. To facilitate crystal optimization, we investigated the detergent stability of 24 eukaryotic and prokaryotic membrane proteins, predominantly transporters, using a fluorescent-based unfolding assay. We have benchmarked the stability required for crystallization in small micelle detergents, as they are statistically more likely to lead to high-resolution structures. Using this information, we have been able to obtain well-diffracting crystals for a number of sodium and proton-dependent transporters. By including in the analysis seven membrane proteins for which structures are already known, AmtB, GlpG, Mhp1, GlpT, EmrD, NhaA, and LacY, it was further possible to demonstrate an overall trend between protein stability and structural resolution. We suggest that by monitoring membrane protein stability with reference to the benchmarks described here, greater efforts can be placed on constructs and conditions more likely to yield highresolution structures.
Membrane protein structure determination by electron crystallography
Current Opinion in Structural Biology, 2012
During the past year, electron crystallography of membrane proteins has provided structural insights into the mechanism of several different transporters and into their interactions with lipid molecules within the bilayer. From a technical perspective there have been important advances in high-throughput screening of crystallization trials and in automated imaging of membrane crystals with the electron microscope. There have also been key developments in software, and in molecular replacement and phase extension methods designed to facilitate the process of structure determination.
Determining membrane protein structures: still a challenge!
Trends in Biochemical Sciences, 2007
Determination of structures and dynamics events of transmembrane proteins is important for the understanding of their function. Analysis of such events requires high-resolution 3D structures of the different conformations coupled with molecular dynamics analyses describing the conformational pathways. However, the solution of 3D structures of transmembrane proteins at atomic level remains a particular challenge for structural biochemists-the need for purified and functional transmembrane proteins causes a 'bottleneck'. There are various ways to obtain 3D structures: X-ray diffraction, electron microscopy, NMR and modelling; these methods are not used exclusively of each other, and the chosen combination depends on several criteria. Progress in this field will improve knowledge of ligand-induced activation and inhibition of membrane proteins in addition to aiding the design of membrane-protein-targeted drugs. Purification and characterization Because TMPs comprise a hydrophobic core inserted into the lipid bilayer and hydrophilic domains on either side of Review
Practical aspects of overexpressing bacterial secondary membrane transporters for structural studies
Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Biomembranes, 2003
Membrane transporter proteins play critical physiological roles in the cell and constitute 5 -10% of prokaryotic and eukaryotic genomes. High-resolution structural information is essential for understanding the functional mechanism of these proteins. A prerequisite for structural study is to overexpress such proteins in large quantities. In the last few years, over 20 bacterial membrane transporters were overexpressed at a level of 1 mg/liter of culture or higher, most often in Escherichia coli. In this review we analyzed those factors that affect the quantity and quality of the protein produced, and summarized recent progress in overexpression of membrane transporters from bacterial inner membrane. Rapid progress in genome sequencing provides opportunities for expressing several homologues and orthologues of the target protein simultaneously, while the availability of various expression vectors allows flexible experimental design. Careful optimization of cell culture conditions can drastically improve the expression level and homogeneity of the target protein. New sample preparation techniques for mass spectrometry of membrane proteins have enabled one to identity the rigid protein core, which can be subsequently overexpressed. Sizeexclusion chromatography on HPLC has proven to be an efficient method in screening detergent, pH an other conditions required for maintaining the stability and monodispersity of the protein. Such high-quality preparations of membrane transporter proteins will probably lead to successful crystallization and structure determination of these proteins in the next few years. D
Structural perspectives on secondary active transporters
Trends in pharmacological sciences, 2010
Secondary active transporters catalyze concentrative transport of substrates across lipid membranes by harnessing the energy of electrochemical ion gradients. These transporters bind their ligands on one side of the membrane, and undergo a global conformational change to release them on the other side of the membrane. Over the last few years, crystal structures have captured several bacterial secondary transporters in different states along their transport cycle, providing insight into possible molecular mechanisms. In this review, we will summarize recent findings focusing on the emerging structural and mechanistic similarities between evolutionary diverse transporters. We will also discuss the structural basis of substrate binding, ion coupling and inhibition viewed from the perspective of these similarities.