Observation of highly flexible residues in amyloid fibrils of the HET-s prion

J Am Chem Soc. 2006 Oct 11;128(40):13224-8. doi: 10.1021/ja063639x.

Abstract

We report the observation of undetected (until now) residues of the prion protein fragment HET-s(218-289) which give rise to well-resolved (13)C, (15)N, and (1)H NMR resonances under high-resolution magic-angle spinning (HRMAS) conditions. The observed signals belong to large polymeric units as shown by measuring the lateral diffusion constants. The amino acids identified in the spectra are compatible with their localization in the segments of the protein which could not be detected in earlier solid-state NMR experiments. The observed chemical shifts indicate that these residues are in a random-coil conformation. Complementary experiments which detect only dynamic or static residues, respectively, strongly suggest that they belong to different parts of the same molecule.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Amino Acid Sequence
  • Amyloid / chemistry*
  • Fungal Proteins / chemistry*
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, Biomolecular / methods
  • Peptide Fragments / chemistry*
  • Prions / chemistry*

Substances

  • Amyloid
  • Fungal Proteins
  • HET-S protein, Podospora anserina
  • Peptide Fragments
  • Prions