title: Structural Insights and the Surprisingly Low Mechanical Stability of the Au-S Bond in the Gold-Specific Protein GolB.
abstract: The coordination bond between gold and sulfur (Au-S) has been widely studied and utilized in many fields. However, detailed investigations on the basic nature of this bond are still lacking. A gold-specific binding protein, GolB, was recently identified, providing a unique opportunity for the study of the Au-S bond at the molecular level. We probed the mechanical strength of the gold-sulfur bond in GolB using single-molecule force spectroscopy. We measured the rupture force of the Au-S bond to be 165 pN, much lower than Au-S bonds measured on different gold surfaces (∼1000 pN). We further solved the structures of apo-GolB and Au(I)-GolB complex using X-ray crystallography. These structures showed that the average Au-S bond length in GolB is much longer than the reported average value of Au-S bonds. Our results highlight the dramatic influence of the unique biological environment on the stability and strength of metal coordination bonds in proteins.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.forename: Yang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.forename: Mingli
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: Xiangzhi
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Peiqing
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.affiliation: Elias James Corey Institute of Biomedical Research, Wuxi Biortus Biosciences Co., Ltd , Jiangyin, 214437, China.
authors.forename: Feng
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Qiu
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Gui
authors.affiliation: Elias James Corey Institute of Biomedical Research, Wuxi Biortus Biosciences Co., Ltd , Jiangyin, 214437, China.
authors.forename: Wuyi
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Meng
authors.forename: Yi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Cao
authors.forename: Jing
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhao
mesh_terms: D018360:Crystallography, X-Ray; D006046:Gold / Q000737:chemistry*; D055595:Mechanical Phenomena; D008667:Metalloproteins / Q000737:chemistry*; D008958:Models, Molecular; D055550:Protein Stability; D012486:Salmonella typhimurium / Q000737:chemistry*; D013455:Sulfur / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D008667:Metalloproteins; D013455:Sulfur; D006046:Gold