ABSTRACT:
Lai2014 - Hemiconcerted MWC model of intact
calmodulin with two targets
This model is described in the article:
Modulation of calmodulin
lobes by different targets: an allosteric model with
hemiconcerted conformational transitions.
Lai M, Brun D, Edelstein SJ, Le
Novère N.
PLoS Comput. Biol. 2015 Jan; 11(1):
e1004063
Abstract:
Calmodulin is a calcium-binding protein ubiquitous in
eukaryotic cells, involved in numerous calcium-regulated
biological phenomena, such as synaptic plasticity, muscle
contraction, cell cycle, and circadian rhythms. It exibits a
characteristic dumbell shape, with two globular domains (N- and
C-terminal lobe) joined by a linker region. Each lobe can take
alternative conformations, affected by the binding of calcium
and target proteins. Calmodulin displays considerable
functional flexibility due to its capability to bind different
targets, often in a tissue-specific fashion. In various
specific physiological environments (e.g. skeletal muscle,
neuron dendritic spines) several targets compete for the same
calmodulin pool, regulating its availability and affinity for
calcium. In this work, we sought to understand the general
principles underlying calmodulin modulation by different target
proteins, and to account for simultaneous effects of multiple
competing targets, thus enabling a more realistic simulation of
calmodulin-dependent pathways. We built a mechanistic
allosteric model of calmodulin, based on an hemiconcerted
framework: each calmodulin lobe can exist in two conformations
in thermodynamic equilibrium, with different affinities for
calcium and different affinities for each target. Each lobe was
allowed to switch conformation on its own. The model was
parameterised and validated against experimental data from the
literature. In spite of its simplicity, a two-state allosteric
model was able to satisfactorily represent several sets of
experiments, in particular the binding of calcium on intact and
truncated calmodulin and the effect of different skMLCK
peptides on calmodulin's saturation curve. The model can also
be readily extended to include multiple targets. We show that
some targets stabilise the low calcium affinity T state while
others stabilise the high affinity R state. Most of the effects
produced by calmodulin targets can be explained as modulation
of a pre-existing dynamic equilibrium between different
conformations of calmodulin's lobes, in agreement with linkage
theory and MWC-type models.
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