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Direct characterization of amyloidogenic oligomers by single-molecule fluorescence.

ABSTRACT: A key issue in understanding the pathogenic conditions associated with the aberrant aggregation of misfolded proteins is the identification and characterization of species formed during the aggregation process. Probing the nature of such species has, however, proved to be extremely challenging to conventional techniques because of their transient and heterogeneous character. We describe here the application of a two-color single-molecule fluorescence technique to examine the assembly of oligomeric species formed during the aggregation of the SH3 domain of PI3 kinase. The single-molecule experiments show that the species formed at the stage of the reaction where aggregates have previously been found to be maximally cytotoxic are a heterogeneous ensemble of oligomers with a median size of 38 +/- 10 molecules. This number is remarkably similar to estimates from bulk measurements of the critical size of species observed to seed ordered fibril formation and of the most infective form of prion particles. Moreover, although the size distribution of the SH3 oligomers remains virtually constant as the time of aggregation increases, their stability increases substantially. These findings together provide direct evidence for a general mechanism of amyloid aggregation in which the stable cross-beta structure emerges via internal reorganization of disordered oligomers formed during the lag phase of the self-assembly reaction.

SUBMITTER: Orte A

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2567173 | biostudies-literature | 2008 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Direct characterization of amyloidogenic oligomers by single-molecule fluorescence.

Orte Angel A Birkett Neil R NR Clarke Richard W RW Devlin Glyn L GL Dobson Christopher M CM Klenerman David D

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 20080916 38

A key issue in understanding the pathogenic conditions associated with the aberrant aggregation of misfolded proteins is the identification and characterization of species formed during the aggregation process. Probing the nature of such species has, however, proved to be extremely challenging to conventional techniques because of their transient and heterogeneous character. We describe here the application of a two-color single-molecule fluorescence technique to examine the assembly of oligomer ...[more]

PMID: 18796612

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Project description:Transthyretin (TTR) is a protein linked to a number of different amyloid diseases including senile systemic amyloidosis and familial amyloidotic polyneuropathy. The transient nature of oligomeric intermediates of misfolded TTR that later mature into fibrillar aggregates makes them hard to study, and methods to study these species are sparse. In this work we explore a novel pathway for generation of prefibrillar aggregates of TTR, which provides important insight into TTR misfolding. Prefibrillar amyloidogenic oligomers and protofibrils of misfolded TTR were generated in vitro through induction of the molten globule type A-state from acid unfolded TTR through the addition of NaCl. The aggregation process produced fairly monodisperse oligomers (300-500 kD) within 2 h that matured after 20 h into larger spherical clusters (30-50 nm in diameter) and protofibrils as shown by transmission electron microscopy. Further maturation of the aggregates showed shrinkage of the spheres as the fibrils grew in length, suggesting a conformational change of the spheres into more rigid structures. The structural and physicochemical characteristics of the aggregates were investigated using fluorescence, circular dichroism, chemical cross-linking, and transmission electron microscopy. The fluorescent dyes 1-anilinonaphthalene-8-sulfonate (ANS), 4-4-bis-1-phenylamino-8-naphthalene sulfonate (Bis-ANS), 4-(dicyanovinyl)-julolidine (DCVJ), and thioflavin T (ThT) were employed in both static and kinetic assays to characterize these oligomeric and protofibrillar states using both steady-state and time-resolved fluorescence techniques. DCVJ, a molecular rotor, was employed for the first time for studies of an amyloidogenic process and is shown useful for detection of the early steps of the oligomerization process. DCVJ bound to the early prefibrillar oligomers (300-500 kD) with an apparent dissociation constant of 1.6 muM, which was slightly better than for ThT (6.8 muM). Time-resolved fluorescence anisotropy decay of ANS was shown to be a useful tool for giving further structural and kinetic information of the oligomeric aggregates. ThT dramatically increases its fluorescence quantum yield when bound to amyloid fibrils; however, the mechanism behind this property is unknown. Data from this work suggest that unbound ThT is also intrinsically quenched and functions similarly to a molecular rotor, which in combination with its environmental dependence provides a blue shift to the characteristic 482 nm wavelength when bound to amyloid fibrils.

Dataset Information

Direct characterization of amyloidogenic oligomers by single-molecule fluorescence.

Publications

Direct characterization of amyloidogenic oligomers by single-molecule fluorescence.

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