title: Thermodynamics of model prions and its implications for the problem of prion protein folding.
abstract: Prion disease is caused by the propagation of a particle containing PrPSc, a misfolded form of the normal cellular prion protein (PrPC). PrPC can re-fold to form PrPSc with loss of alpha-helical structure and formation of extensive beta-sheet structure. Here, we model this prion folding problem with a simple, low-resolution lattice model of protein folding. If model proteins are allowed to re-fold upon dimerization, a minor proportion of them (up to approximately 17%) encrypts an alternative native state as a homodimer. The structures in this homodimeric native state re-arrange so that they are very different in conformation from the monomeric native state. We find that model proteins that are relatively less stable as monomers are more susceptible to the formation of alternative native states as homodimers. These results suggest that less-stable proteins have a greater need for a well-designed energy landscape for protein folding to overcome an increased chance of encrypting substantially different native conformations stabilized by multimeric interactions. This conceptual framework for aberrant folding should be relevant in Alzheimer's disease and other disorders associated with protein aggregation.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Cellular & Molecular Pharmacology, University of California, San Francisco, 94143, USA.
authors.forename: P M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Harrison
authors.forename: H S
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Chan
authors.forename: S B
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Prusiner
authors.forename: F E
authors.initials: FE
authors.lastname: Cohen
mesh_terms: D019943:Amino Acid Substitution; D055598:Chemical Phenomena; D002627:Chemistry, Physical; D003198:Computer Simulation; D019281:Dimerization; D006801:Humans; D008958:Models, Molecular; D017354:Point Mutation; D018621:PrPC Proteins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics; D018620:PrPSc Proteins / Q000737:chemistry*; D011487:Protein Conformation; D017510:Protein Folding; D017433:Protein Structure, Secondary; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000737:chemistry; D013816:Thermodynamics