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Adsorption of α-Synuclein to Supported Lipid Bilayers: Positioning and Role of Electrostatics.

Hellstrand, Erik LU ; Grey, Marie LU ; Ainalem, Marie-Louise LU ; Ankner, John ; Forsyth, V Trevor ; Fragneto, Giovanna ; Haertlein, Michael ; Dauvergne, Marie-Therese ; Nilsson, Hanna LU and Brundin, Patrik LU , et al. (2013) In ACS Chemical Neuroscience 4(10). p.1339-1351
Abstract
An amyloid form of the protein α-synuclein is the major component of the intraneuronal inclusions called Lewy bodies, which are the neuropathological hallmark of Parkinson's disease (PD). α-Synuclein is known to associate with anionic lipid membranes, and interactions between aggregating α-synuclein and cellular membranes are thought to be important for PD pathology. We have studied the molecular determinants for adsorption of monomeric α-synuclein to planar model lipid membranes composed of zwitterionic phosphatidylcholine alone or in a mixture with anionic phosphatidylserine (relevant for plasma membranes) or anionic cardiolipin (relevant for mitochondrial membranes). We studied the adsorption of the protein to supported bilayers, the... (More)
An amyloid form of the protein α-synuclein is the major component of the intraneuronal inclusions called Lewy bodies, which are the neuropathological hallmark of Parkinson's disease (PD). α-Synuclein is known to associate with anionic lipid membranes, and interactions between aggregating α-synuclein and cellular membranes are thought to be important for PD pathology. We have studied the molecular determinants for adsorption of monomeric α-synuclein to planar model lipid membranes composed of zwitterionic phosphatidylcholine alone or in a mixture with anionic phosphatidylserine (relevant for plasma membranes) or anionic cardiolipin (relevant for mitochondrial membranes). We studied the adsorption of the protein to supported bilayers, the position of the protein within and outside the bilayer, and structural changes in the model membranes using two complementary techniques-quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring, and neutron reflectometry. We found that the interaction and adsorbed conformation depend on membrane charge, protein charge, and electrostatic screening. The results imply that α-synuclein adsorbs in the headgroup region of anionic lipid bilayers with extensions into the bulk but does not penetrate deeply into or across the hydrophobic acyl chain region. The adsorption to anionic bilayers leads to a small perturbation of the acyl chain packing that is independent of anionic headgroup identity. We also explored the effect of changing the area per headgroup in the lipid bilayer by comparing model systems with different degrees of acyl chain saturation. An increase in area per lipid headgroup leads to an increase in the level of α-synuclein adsorption with a reduced water content in the acyl chain layer. In conclusion, the association of α-synuclein to membranes and its adsorbed conformation are of electrostatic origin, combined with van der Waals interactions, but with a very weak correlation to the molecular structure of the anionic lipid headgroup. The perturbation of the acyl chain packing upon monomeric protein adsorption favors association with unsaturated phospholipids preferentially found in the neuronal membrane. (Less)
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organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
ACS Chemical Neuroscience
volume
4
issue
10
pages
1339 - 1351
publisher
The American Chemical Society (ACS)
external identifiers
  • wos:000326124900002
  • pmid:23823878
  • scopus:84886057818
  • pmid:23823878
ISSN
1948-7193
DOI
10.1021/cn400066t
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
a72edc2e-7538-4c53-8395-e49dfe5cfb22 (old id 3956206)
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 14:59:53
date last changed
2022-01-28 03:32:08
@article{a72edc2e-7538-4c53-8395-e49dfe5cfb22,
  abstract     = {{An amyloid form of the protein α-synuclein is the major component of the intraneuronal inclusions called Lewy bodies, which are the neuropathological hallmark of Parkinson's disease (PD). α-Synuclein is known to associate with anionic lipid membranes, and interactions between aggregating α-synuclein and cellular membranes are thought to be important for PD pathology. We have studied the molecular determinants for adsorption of monomeric α-synuclein to planar model lipid membranes composed of zwitterionic phosphatidylcholine alone or in a mixture with anionic phosphatidylserine (relevant for plasma membranes) or anionic cardiolipin (relevant for mitochondrial membranes). We studied the adsorption of the protein to supported bilayers, the position of the protein within and outside the bilayer, and structural changes in the model membranes using two complementary techniques-quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring, and neutron reflectometry. We found that the interaction and adsorbed conformation depend on membrane charge, protein charge, and electrostatic screening. The results imply that α-synuclein adsorbs in the headgroup region of anionic lipid bilayers with extensions into the bulk but does not penetrate deeply into or across the hydrophobic acyl chain region. The adsorption to anionic bilayers leads to a small perturbation of the acyl chain packing that is independent of anionic headgroup identity. We also explored the effect of changing the area per headgroup in the lipid bilayer by comparing model systems with different degrees of acyl chain saturation. An increase in area per lipid headgroup leads to an increase in the level of α-synuclein adsorption with a reduced water content in the acyl chain layer. In conclusion, the association of α-synuclein to membranes and its adsorbed conformation are of electrostatic origin, combined with van der Waals interactions, but with a very weak correlation to the molecular structure of the anionic lipid headgroup. The perturbation of the acyl chain packing upon monomeric protein adsorption favors association with unsaturated phospholipids preferentially found in the neuronal membrane.}},
  author       = {{Hellstrand, Erik and Grey, Marie and Ainalem, Marie-Louise and Ankner, John and Forsyth, V Trevor and Fragneto, Giovanna and Haertlein, Michael and Dauvergne, Marie-Therese and Nilsson, Hanna and Brundin, Patrik and Linse, Sara and Nylander, Tommy and Sparr, Emma}},
  issn         = {{1948-7193}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{10}},
  pages        = {{1339--1351}},
  publisher    = {{The American Chemical Society (ACS)}},
  series       = {{ACS Chemical Neuroscience}},
  title        = {{Adsorption of α-Synuclein to Supported Lipid Bilayers: Positioning and Role of Electrostatics.}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/cn400066t}},
  doi          = {{10.1021/cn400066t}},
  volume       = {{4}},
  year         = {{2013}},
}