TY - JOUR A1 - Kang, Yu A1 - Gohlke, Ulrich A1 - Engström, Olof A1 - Hamark, Christoffer A1 - Scheidt, Tom A1 - Kunstmann, Ruth Sonja A1 - Heinemann, Udo A1 - Widmalm, Göran A1 - Santer, Mark A1 - Barbirz, Stefanie T1 - Bacteriophage Tailspikes and Bacterial O-Antigens as a Model System to Study Weak-Affinity Protein-Polysaccharide Interactions JF - Journal of the American Chemical Society N2 - Understanding interactions of bacterial surface polysaccharides with receptor protein scaffolds is important for the development of antibiotic therapies. The corresponding protein recognition domains frequently form low-affinity complexes with polysaccharides that are difficult to address with experimental techniques due to the conformational flexibility of the polysaccharide. In this work, we studied the tailspike protein (TSP) of the bacteriophage Sf6. Sf6TSP binds and hydrolyzes the high-rhamnose, serotype Y O-antigen polysaccharide of the Gram-negative bacterium Shigella flexneri (S. flexneri) as a first step of bacteriophage infection. Spectroscopic analyses and enzymatic cleavage assays confirmed that Sf6TSP binds long stretches of this polysaccharide. Crystal structure analysis and saturation transfer difference (STD) NMR spectroscopy using an enhanced method to interpret the data permitted the detailed description of affinity contributions and flexibility in an Sf6TSP-octasaccharide complex. Dodecasaccharide fragments corresponding to three repeating units of the O-antigen in complex with Sf6TSP were studied computationally by molecular dynamics simulations. They showed that distortion away from the low-energy solution conformation found in the octasaccharide complex is necessary for ligand binding. This is in agreement with a weak-affinity functional polysaccharide protein contact that facilitates correct placement and thus hydrolysis of the polysaccharide close to the catalytic residues. Our simulations stress that the flexibility of glycan epitopes together with a small number of specific protein contacts provide the driving force for Sf6TSP-polysaccharide complex formation in an overall weak-affinity interaction system. Y1 - 2016 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1021/jacs.6b00240 SN - 0002-7863 VL - 138 SP - 9109 EP - 9118 PB - American Chemical Society CY - Washington ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Muzdalo, Anja A1 - Saalfrank, Peter A1 - Vreede, Jocelyne A1 - Santer, Mark T1 - Cis-to-Trans Isomerization of Azobenzene Derivatives Studied with Transition Path Sampling and Quantum Mechanical/Molecular Mechanical Molecular Dynamics JF - Journal of chemical theory and computation N2 - Azobenzene-based molecular photoswitches are becoming increasingly important for the development of photoresponsive, functional soft-matter material systems. Upon illumination with light, fast interconversion between a more stable trans and a metastable cis configuration can be established resulting in pronounced changes in conformation, dipole moment or hydrophobicity. A rational design of functional photosensitive molecules with embedded azo moieties requires a thorough understanding of isomerization mechanisms and rates, especially the thermally activated relaxation. For small azo derivatives considered in the gas phase or simple solvents, Eyring’s classical transition state theory (TST) approach yields useful predictions for trends in activation energies or corresponding half-life times of the cis isomer. However, TST or improved theories cannot easily be applied when the azo moiety is part of a larger molecular complex or embedded into a heterogeneous environment, where a multitude of possible reaction pathways may exist. In these cases, only the sampling of an ensemble of dynamic reactive trajectories (transition path sampling, TPS) with explicit models of the environment may reveal the nature of the processes involved. In the present work we show how a TPS approach can conveniently be implemented for the phenomenon of relaxation–isomerization of azobenzenes starting with the simple examples of pure azobenzene and a push–pull derivative immersed in a polar (DMSO) and apolar (toluene) solvent. The latter are represented explicitly at a molecular mechanical (MM) and the azo moiety at a quantum mechanical (QM) level. We demonstrate for the push–pull azobenzene that path sampling in combination with the chosen QM/MM scheme produces the expected change in isomerization pathway from inversion to rotation in going from a low to a high permittivity (explicit) solvent model. We discuss the potential of the simulation procedure presented for comparative calculation of reaction rates and an improved understanding of activated states. Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jctc.7b01120 SN - 1549-9618 SN - 1549-9626 VL - 14 IS - 4 SP - 2042 EP - 2051 PB - American Chemical Society CY - Washington ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Banerjee, Pallavi A1 - Lipowsky, Reinhard A1 - Santer, Mark T1 - Coarse-grained molecular model for the Glycosylphosphatidylinositol anchor with and without protein JF - Journal of Chemical Theory and Computation N2 - Glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchors are a unique class of complex glycolipids that anchor a great variety of proteins to the extracellular leaflet of plasma membranes of eukaryotic cells. These anchors can exist either with or without an attached protein called GPI-anchored protein (GPI-AP) both in vitro and in vivo. Although GPIs are known to participate in a broad range of cellular functions, it is to a large extent unknown how these are related to GPI structure and composition. Their conformational flexibility and microheterogeneity make it difficult to study them experimentally. Simplified atomistic models are amenable to all-atom computer simulations in small lipid bilayer patches but not suitable for studying their partitioning and trafficking in complex and heterogeneous membranes. Here, we present a coarse-grained model of the GPI anchor constructed with a modified version of the MARTINI force field that is suited for modeling carbohydrates, proteins, and lipids in an aqueous environment using MARTINI's polarizable water. The nonbonded interactions for sugars were reparametrized by calculating their partitioning free energies between polar and apolar phases. In addition, sugar-sugar interactions were optimized by adjusting the second virial coefficients of osmotic pressures for solutions of glucose, sucrose, and trehalose to match with experimental data. With respect to the conformational dynamics of GPI-anchored green fluorescent protein, the accessible time scales are now at least an order of magnitude larger than for the all-atom system. This is particularly important for fine-tuning the mutual interactions of lipids, carbohydrates, and amino acids when comparing to experimental results. We discuss the prospective use of the coarse-grained GPI model for studying protein-sorting and trafficking in membrane models. KW - Martini force-field KW - osmotic-pressure KW - potential-functions KW - aqueous-solution KW - dynamics KW - coefficient KW - simulation KW - trypanosoma KW - transition KW - parameters Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jctc.0c00056 SN - 1549-9626 SN - 1549-9618 VL - 16 IS - 6 PB - ACS Publications CY - Washington DC ER - TY - GEN A1 - Banerjee, Pallavi A1 - Lipowsky, Reinhard A1 - Santer, Mark T1 - Coarse-grained molecular model for the Glycosylphosphatidylinositol anchor with and without protein T2 - Postprints der Universität Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe N2 - Glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchors are a unique class of complex glycolipids that anchor a great variety of proteins to the extracellular leaflet of plasma membranes of eukaryotic cells. These anchors can exist either with or without an attached protein called GPI-anchored protein (GPI-AP) both in vitro and in vivo. Although GPIs are known to participate in a broad range of cellular functions, it is to a large extent unknown how these are related to GPI structure and composition. Their conformational flexibility and microheterogeneity make it difficult to study them experimentally. Simplified atomistic models are amenable to all-atom computer simulations in small lipid bilayer patches but not suitable for studying their partitioning and trafficking in complex and heterogeneous membranes. Here, we present a coarse-grained model of the GPI anchor constructed with a modified version of the MARTINI force field that is suited for modeling carbohydrates, proteins, and lipids in an aqueous environment using MARTINI's polarizable water. The nonbonded interactions for sugars were reparametrized by calculating their partitioning free energies between polar and apolar phases. In addition, sugar-sugar interactions were optimized by adjusting the second virial coefficients of osmotic pressures for solutions of glucose, sucrose, and trehalose to match with experimental data. With respect to the conformational dynamics of GPI-anchored green fluorescent protein, the accessible time scales are now at least an order of magnitude larger than for the all-atom system. This is particularly important for fine-tuning the mutual interactions of lipids, carbohydrates, and amino acids when comparing to experimental results. We discuss the prospective use of the coarse-grained GPI model for studying protein-sorting and trafficking in membrane models. T3 - Zweitveröffentlichungen der Universität Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe - 1216 KW - Martini force-field KW - osmotic-pressure KW - potential-functions KW - aqueous-solution KW - dynamics KW - coefficient KW - simulation KW - trypanosoma KW - transition KW - parameters Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-523742 SN - 1866-8372 IS - 6 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Kang, Yu A1 - Barbirz, Stefanie A1 - Lipowsky, Reinhard A1 - Santer, Mark T1 - Conformational Diversity of O-Antigen Polysaccharides of the Gram-Negative Bacterium Shigella flexneri Serotype Y JF - The journal of physical chemistry : B, Condensed matter, materials, surfaces, interfaces & biophysical chemistry Y1 - 2014 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1021/jp4111713 SN - 1520-6106 VL - 118 IS - 9 SP - 2523 EP - 2534 PB - American Chemical Society CY - Washington ER - TY - CHAP A1 - Kang, Y. A1 - Barbirz, Stefanie A1 - Lipowsky, Reinhard A1 - Santer, Mark T1 - Conformational Insights into Recognition Mechanism of O-Antigen Polysaccharides by Tailspike Protein T2 - European biophysics journal : with biophysics letters ; an international journal of biophysics Y1 - 2013 SN - 0175-7571 SN - 1432-1017 VL - 42 IS - 1 SP - S112 EP - S112 PB - Springer CY - New York ER - TY - GEN A1 - Kunstmann, Ruth Sonja A1 - Engström, Olof A1 - Wehle, Marko A1 - Widmalm, Göran A1 - Santer, Mark A1 - Barbirz, Stefanie T1 - Increasing the affinity of an O-Antigen polysaccharide binding site in Shigella flexneri bacteriophage Sf6 tailspike protein T2 - Zweitveröffentlichungen der Universität Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe N2 - Broad and unspecific use of antibiotics accelerates spread of resistances. Sensitive and robust pathogen detection is thus important for a more targeted application. Bacteriophages contain a large repertoire of pathogen-binding proteins. These tailspike proteins (TSP) often bind surface glycans and represent a promising design platform for specific pathogen sensors. We analysed bacteriophage Sf6 TSP that recognizes the O-polysaccharide of dysentery-causing Shigella flexneri to develop variants with increased sensitivity for sensor applications. Ligand polyrhamnose backbone conformations were obtained from 2D H-1,H-1-trNOESY NMR utilizing methine-methine and methine-methyl correlations. They agreed well with conformations obtained from molecular dynamics (MD), validating the method for further predictions. In a set of mutants, MD predicted ligand flexibilities that were in good correlation with binding strength as confirmed on immobilized S. flexneri O-polysaccharide (PS) with surface plasmon resonance. In silico approaches combined with rapid screening on PS surfaces hence provide valuable strategies for TSP-based pathogen sensor design. T3 - Zweitveröffentlichungen der Universität Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe - 1417 KW - carbohydrates KW - molecular dynamics simulations KW - NMR spectroscopy KW - protein-carbohydrate interactions KW - surface plasmon resonance Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-519418 SN - 1866-8372 IS - 32 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Kunstmann, Ruth Sonja A1 - Engström, Olof A1 - Wehle, Marko A1 - Widmalm, Göran A1 - Santer, Mark A1 - Barbirz, Stefanie T1 - Increasing the affinity of an O-Antigen polysaccharide binding site in Shigella flexneri bacteriophage Sf6 tailspike protein JF - Chemistry – A European Journal N2 - Broad and unspecific use of antibiotics accelerates spread of resistances. Sensitive and robust pathogen detection is thus important for a more targeted application. Bacteriophages contain a large repertoire of pathogen-binding proteins. These tailspike proteins (TSP) often bind surface glycans and represent a promising design platform for specific pathogen sensors. We analysed bacteriophage Sf6 TSP that recognizes the O-polysaccharide of dysentery-causing Shigella flexneri to develop variants with increased sensitivity for sensor applications. Ligand polyrhamnose backbone conformations were obtained from 2D H-1,H-1-trNOESY NMR utilizing methine-methine and methine-methyl correlations. They agreed well with conformations obtained from molecular dynamics (MD), validating the method for further predictions. In a set of mutants, MD predicted ligand flexibilities that were in good correlation with binding strength as confirmed on immobilized S. flexneri O-polysaccharide (PS) with surface plasmon resonance. In silico approaches combined with rapid screening on PS surfaces hence provide valuable strategies for TSP-based pathogen sensor design. KW - carbohydrates KW - molecular dynamics simulations KW - NMR spectroscopy KW - protein-carbohydrate interactions KW - surface plasmon resonance Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/chem.202000495 SN - 0947-6539 SN - 1521-3765 VL - 26 IS - 32 SP - 7263 EP - 7273 PB - Wiley-VCH CY - Weinheim ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Feldmann, David A1 - Maduar, Salim R. A1 - Santer, Mark A1 - Lomadze, Nino A1 - Vinogradova, Olga I. A1 - Santer, Svetlana T1 - Manipulation of small particles at solid liquid interface BT - light driven diffusioosmosis JF - Scientific reports N2 - The strong adhesion of sub-micron sized particles to surfaces is a nuisance, both for removing contaminating colloids from surfaces and for conscious manipulation of particles to create and test novel micro/nano-scale assemblies. The obvious idea of using detergents to ease these processes suffers from a lack of control: the action of any conventional surface-modifying agent is immediate and global. With photosensitive azobenzene containing surfactants we overcome these limitations. Such photo-soaps contain optical switches (azobenzene molecules), which upon illumination with light of appropriate wavelength undergo reversible trans-cis photo-isomerization resulting in a subsequent change of the physico-chemical molecular properties. In this work we show that when a spatial gradient in the composition of trans- and cis- isomers is created near a solid-liquid interface, a substantial hydrodynamic flow can be initiated, the spatial extent of which can be set, e.g., by the shape of a laser spot. We propose the concept of light induced diffusioosmosis driving the flow, which can remove, gather or pattern a particle assembly at a solid-liquid interface. In other words, in addition to providing a soap we implement selectivity: particles are mobilized and moved at the time of illumination, and only across the illuminated area. KW - genomic DNA conformation KW - photosensitive surfactants KW - optical manipulation KW - photocontrol KW - azobenzene KW - films KW - gradients KW - transport KW - tracking KW - brushes Y1 - 2016 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1038/srep36443 SN - 2045-2322 VL - 6 PB - Nature Publishing Group CY - London ER - TY - GEN A1 - Feldmann, David A1 - Maduar, Salim R. A1 - Santer, Mark A1 - Lomadze, Nino A1 - Vinogradova, Olga I. A1 - Santer, Svetlana T1 - Manipulation of small particles at solid liquid interface BT - light driven diffusioosmosis N2 - The strong adhesion of sub-micron sized particles to surfaces is a nuisance, both for removing contaminating colloids from surfaces and for conscious manipulation of particles to create and test novel micro/nano-scale assemblies. The obvious idea of using detergents to ease these processes suffers from a lack of control: the action of any conventional surface-modifying agent is immediate and global. With photosensitive azobenzene containing surfactants we overcome these limitations. Such photo-soaps contain optical switches (azobenzene molecules), which upon illumination with light of appropriate wavelength undergo reversible trans-cis photo-isomerization resulting in a subsequent change of the physico-chemical molecular properties. In this work we show that when a spatial gradient in the composition of trans- and cis- isomers is created near a solid-liquid interface, a substantial hydrodynamic flow can be initiated, the spatial extent of which can be set, e.g., by the shape of a laser spot. We propose the concept of light induced diffusioosmosis driving the flow, which can remove, gather or pattern a particle assembly at a solid-liquid interface. In other words, in addition to providing a soap we implement selectivity: particles are mobilized and moved at the time of illumination, and only across the illuminated area. T3 - Zweitveröffentlichungen der Universität Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe - 293 KW - azobenzene KW - brushes KW - films KW - genomic DNA conformation KW - gradients KW - optical manipulation KW - photocontrol KW - photosensitive surfactants KW - tracking KW - transport Y1 - 2016 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-100338 ER -