Interfacial Water Many-Body Effects Drive Structural Dynamics and Allosteric Interactions in SARS-CoV-2 Main Protease Dimerization Interface

J Phys Chem Lett. 2021 Jul 8;12(26):6218-6226. doi: 10.1021/acs.jpclett.1c01460. Epub 2021 Jul 1.

Abstract

Following our previous work ( Chem. Sci. 2021, 12, 4889-4907), we study the structural dynamics of the SARS-CoV-2 Main Protease dimerization interface (apo dimer) by means of microsecond adaptive sampling molecular dynamics simulations (50 μs) using the AMOEBA polarizable force field (PFF). This interface is structured by a complex H-bond network that is stable only at physiological pH. Structural correlations analysis between its residues and the catalytic site confirms the presence of a buried allosteric site. However, noticeable differences in allosteric connectivity are observed between PFFs and non-PFFs. Interfacial polarizable water molecules are shown to appear at the heart of this discrepancy because they are connected to the global interface H-bond network and able to adapt their dipole moment (and dynamics) to their diverse local physicochemical microenvironments. The water-interface many-body interactions appear to drive the interface volume fluctuations and to therefore mediate the allosteric interactions with the catalytic cavity.

MeSH terms

  • Allosteric Site
  • COVID-19 / pathology
  • COVID-19 / virology
  • Catalytic Domain
  • Dimerization
  • Humans
  • Hydrogen Bonding
  • Hydrogen-Ion Concentration
  • Molecular Dynamics Simulation*
  • SARS-CoV-2 / isolation & purification
  • SARS-CoV-2 / metabolism*
  • Viral Matrix Proteins / chemistry*
  • Viral Matrix Proteins / metabolism
  • Water / chemistry*

Substances

  • Viral Matrix Proteins
  • membrane protein, SARS-CoV-2
  • Water