Interactions between lipid-free apolipoprotein-AI and a lipopeptide incorporating the RGDS cell adhesion motif

Nanoscale. 2015 Jan 7;7(1):171-8. doi: 10.1039/c4nr05072j.

Abstract

The interaction of a designed bioactive lipopeptide C16-GGGRGDS, comprising a hexadecyl lipid chain attached to a functional heptapeptide, with the lipid-free apoliprotein, Apo-AI, is examined. This apolipoprotein is a major component of high density lipoprotein and it is involved in lipid metabolism and may serve as a biomarker for cardiovascular disease and Alzheimers' disease. We find via isothermal titration calorimetry that binding between the lipopeptide and Apo-AI occurs up to a saturation condition, just above equimolar for a 10.7 μM concentration of Apo-AI. A similar value is obtained from circular dichroism spectroscopy, which probes the reduction in α-helical secondary structure of Apo-AI upon addition of C16-GGGRGDS. Electron microscopy images show a persistence of fibrillar structures due to self-assembly of C16-GGGRGDS in mixtures with Apo-AI above the saturation binding condition. A small fraction of spheroidal or possibly "nanodisc" structures was observed. Small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) data for Apo-AI can be fitted using a published crystal structure of the Apo-AI dimer. The SAXS data for the lipopeptide/Apo-AI mixtures above the saturation binding conditions can be fitted to the contribution from fibrillar structures coexisting with flat discs corresponding to Apo-AI/lipopeptide aggregates.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Amino Acid Motifs
  • Apolipoprotein A-I / chemistry*
  • Apolipoprotein A-I / ultrastructure
  • Binding Sites
  • Cell Adhesion Molecules / chemistry*
  • Cell Adhesion Molecules / ultrastructure
  • Lipopeptides / chemistry*
  • Lipopeptides / ultrastructure
  • Materials Testing
  • Membrane Lipids / chemistry*
  • Multiprotein Complexes / chemistry
  • Multiprotein Complexes / ultrastructure
  • Oligopeptides / chemistry*
  • Protein Binding
  • Protein Conformation
  • Protein Interaction Mapping

Substances

  • Apolipoprotein A-I
  • Cell Adhesion Molecules
  • Lipopeptides
  • Membrane Lipids
  • Multiprotein Complexes
  • Oligopeptides
  • arginyl-glycyl-aspartyl-serine