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Title: Probing Cytochrome c Folding Transitions upon Phototriggered Environmental Perturbations Using Time-Resolved X-ray Scattering

Journal Article · · Journal of Physical Chemistry. B, Condensed Matter, Materials, Surfaces, Interfaces and Biophysical Chemistry
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  1. Northwestern Univ., Evanston, IL (United States)
  2. Univ. of Delaware, Newark, DE (United States)
  3. Univ. of Chicago, IL (United States). Center for Advanced Radiation Sources (CARS)
  4. Northwestern Univ., Evanston, IL (United States); Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)

Direct tracking of protein structural dynamics during folding–unfolding processes is important for understanding the roles of hierarchic structural factors in the formation of functional proteins. As such, using cytochrome c (cyt c) as a platform, we investigated its structural dynamics during folding processes triggered by local environmental changes (i.e., pH or heme iron center oxidation/spin/ligation states) with time-resolved X-ray solution scattering measurements. Starting from partially unfolded cyt c, a sudden pH drop initiated by light excitation of a photoacid caused a structural contraction in microseconds, followed by active site restructuring and unfolding in milliseconds. In contrast, the reduction of iron in the heme via photoinduced electron transfer did not affect conformational stability at short timescales (<1 ms), despite active site coordination geometry changes. These results demonstrate how different environmental perturbations can change the nature of interaction between the active site and protein conformation, even within the same metalloprotein, which will subsequently affect the folding structural dynamics.

Research Organization:
Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States). Advanced Photon Source (APS)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES); National Institutes of Health (NIH); National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS); National Institute of Diabetes, Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK); Northwestern University; E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Co.; The Dow Chemical Company; National Science Foundation (NSF)
Grant/Contract Number:
R01-GM115761; SC0014664; SC0016288; AC02-06CH11357; R24GM111072; 0960140
OSTI ID:
1439630
Journal Information:
Journal of Physical Chemistry. B, Condensed Matter, Materials, Surfaces, Interfaces and Biophysical Chemistry, Vol. 122, Issue 20; ISSN 1520-6106
Publisher:
American Chemical SocietyCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
ENGLISH
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 17 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Cited By (2)

X-ray snapshots reveal conformational influence on active site ligation during metalloprotein folding journal January 2019
Photoreduction of ferricytochrome c in the presence of potassium ferrocyanide journal January 2018

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