MONOMOLECULAR MECHANICS AND MUTANT MYOSINS

描述（摘自申请）：我们将讨论与肌球蛋白功能相关的两个主要领域。首先，我们将对肌动蛋白和肌凝蛋白进行动态测量，以揭示肌凝蛋白构象的变化，这些变化是解释观察到的位移所需的大小。在atp酶循环过程中，肌凝蛋白的构象变化将通过荧光能量来量化，在单个肌凝蛋白头和肌动蛋白寡聚物之间形成复合物，导致肌动蛋白结合形式S1的x射线晶体结构，这是动力学循环中的关键状态。使用荧光共振能量转移（FRET）的初步数据表明，肌球蛋白杠杆臂确实可以通过摆动超过50度的弧度来作为运动的机械放大器。我们建议使用FET方法进一步完善这些数据，使人们能够确定不同群体的肌球蛋白头部构象，从而确定斜杆的最大摆动角度和一次力量击球的最大步长。在ATP和各种ATP类似物存在的情况下，构象状态的数量将被检查。Vale实验室已经开发了一种定制的激光显微镜，可以在单分子水平上测量FRET，我们计划与他合作，对肌凝蛋白马达进行这样的测量。与Roger Cooke的团队一起，我们将通过在分子中选定的位置放置各种探针来测量肌凝蛋白头部构象变化的其他方面。在所有情况下，我们将使用我们的半胱氨酸轻肌球蛋白结构，这是一个功能马达基本上不含半胱氨酸残基。选择的位点将改为半胱氨酸残基，用探针直接标记。上述技术也将应用于通过蛋白质诱变在循环的各种状态下捕获的肌凝蛋白头部。例如，导致无法水解结合ATP的突变变化可以通过这种方式进行研究。一个f -肌动蛋白三聚体将被创建用于结晶和表征有或没有结合肌球蛋白运动结构域。F-肌动蛋白和与肌凝蛋白结合的F-肌动蛋白的原子结构对于理解肌凝蛋白为基础的运动是必不可少的。肌动蛋白单体不能激活肌球蛋白三磷酸腺苷酶，肌动蛋白的丝状形态尚未结晶。一个主要的障碍是只创造肌动蛋白丝的核心部分，即肌动蛋白三聚体，并以纯形式分离它。一个突变的方法将被用来试图分离这样一个物种。其激活肌凝蛋白atp酶活性的能力以及在有无肌凝蛋白的情况下结晶的能力将被研究。我们承认这是一个风险极高的项目。然而，我们乐观地认为，如果运气好的话，我们可以实现这一目标，而且回报会很高。

Description (taken from the application): We will address two major areas relating to the function of myosin. First we will take dynamic measurements of actin and myosin to reveal changes in conformation of myosin that are of the size required to explain the observed displacements. Conformational changes in myosin during the ATPase cycle will be quantitated using fluorescence energy formation of a complex between a single myosin head and actin oligomers, leading to an X-ray crystal structure of the actin-bound form of S1, a critical state in the kinetic cycle. The preliminary data using fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) suggests that the myosin lever arm may indeed function as a mechanical amplifier for motility by swinging through an arc greater than 50 degrees. We propose to further refine this data using FET approaches that allow one to ascertain different populations of myosin head conformations and thereby determine the maximum swing angle of the leer arm and the resultant maximum step size of one power stroke. The number of conformation states in the presence of ATP and various ATP analogs will be examined. The Vale laboratory has developed a custom build laser microscope that can measure FRET at the single molecule level, and we plan to collaborate with him to make such measurements for the myosin motor. Together with Roger Cooke's group, we will measure other aspects of conformational changes in the myosin head by placing various probes on chosen sites in the molecule. In all cases, we will use our cysteine-light myosin construct, which is a functional motor containing essentially no cysteine residues. Chosen sites will be changed to cysteine residues for direct labeling with probes. The above techniques will also be applied to myosin heads arrested in various states of the cycle via mutagenesis of the protein. For example, mutational changes that result in failure to hydrolyze bound ATP can be studied in this way. An F-actin trimer will be created for crystallization and characterization with and without bound myosin motor domain. Atomic structures of F- actin and F-actin with myosin bound are essential for understanding myosin-based motility. Actin monomers do not activate myosin ATPase and the filamentous form of actin has not been crystallized. A major hurdle is creating only the core part of the actin filament, which is an actin trimer, and isolating that in pure form. A mutational approach will be used to attempt to isolate such a species. Its ability to activate myosin ATPase activity and to crystallize with and without the myosin head bound will be pursued. We acknowledge that this is an extremely high risk project. We are optimistic, however, that with some luck we can achieve this goal, and the payoff will be high.