title: N-terminal protein tails act as aggregation protective entropic bristles: the SUMO case.
abstract: The formation of β-sheet enriched amyloid fibrils constitutes the hallmark of many diseases but is also an intrinsic property of polypeptide chains in general, because the formation of compact globular proteins comes at the expense of an inherent sequential aggregation propensity. In this context, identification of strategies that enable proteins to remain functional and soluble in the cell has become a central issue in chemical biology. We show here, using human SUMO proteins as a model system, that the recurrent presence of disordered tails flanking globular domains might constitute yet another of these protective strategies. These short, disordered, and highly soluble protein segments would act as intramolecular entropic bristles, reducing the overall protein intrinsic aggregation propensity and favoring thus the attainment and maintenance of functional conformations.
authors.affiliation: Institut de Biotecnologia i Biomedicina and Departament de Bioquimica i Biologia Molecular, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona , 08193 Bellaterra, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Ricardo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Graña-Montes
authors.forename: Patrizia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Marinelli
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Reverter
authors.forename: Salvador
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ventura
mesh_terms: D016229:Amyloid beta-Peptides / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D019277:Entropy; D006801:Humans; D057927:Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions; D008958:Models, Molecular; D010446:Peptide Fragments / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D066329:Protein Aggregates; D011487:Protein Conformation; D017510:Protein Folding; D055550:Protein Stability; D017434:Protein Structure, Tertiary; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D017384:Sequence Deletion; D025841:Small Ubiquitin-Related Modifier Proteins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D016229:Amyloid beta-Peptides; D010446:Peptide Fragments; D066329:Protein Aggregates; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins; C117909:SUMO2 protein, human; D025841:Small Ubiquitin-Related Modifier Proteins; C075222:amyloid beta-protein (1-42)