1LKQ | pdb_00001lkq

Mechanism of insulin chain combination. Asymmetric roles of A-chain alpha-helices in disulfide pairing

(2002) J Biological Chem&nbsp277: 43443-43453

• PubMed:&nbsp12196530&nbspSearch on PubMed
• DOI:&nbsphttps://doi.org/10.1074/jbc.M206107200
• Primary Citation of Related Structures: &nbsp
  1LKQ


• PubMed Abstract:&nbsp
  

  The A and B chains of insulin combine to form native disulfide bridges without detectable isomers. The fidelity of chain combination thus recapitulates the folding of proinsulin, a precursor protein in which the two chains are tethered by a disordered connecting peptide. We have recently shown that chain combination is blocked by seemingly conservative substitutions in the C-terminal alpha-helix of the A chain. Such analogs, once formed, nevertheless retain high biological activity. By contrast, we demonstrate here that chain combination is robust to non-conservative substitutions in the N-terminal alpha-helix. Introduction of multiple glycine substitutions into the N-terminal segment of the A chain (residues A1-A5) yields analogs that are less stable than native insulin and essentially without biological activity. (1)H NMR studies of a representative analog lacking invariant side chains Ile(A2) and Val(A3) (A chain sequence GGGEQCCTSICSLYQLENYCN; substitutions are italicized and cysteines are underlined) demonstrate local unfolding of the A1-A5 segment in an otherwise native-like structure. That this and related partial folds retain efficient disulfide pairing suggests that the native N-terminal alpha-helix does not participate in the transition state of the reaction. Implications for the hierarchical folding mechanisms of proinsulin and insulin-like growth factors are discussed.

  &nbspView More

---

Organizational Affiliation:&nbsp

Department of Biochemistry, Case Western Reserve School of Medicine, Cleveland, Ohio 44106-4935, USA.