NMR spectroscopy charges into protein surface electrostatics
2021; National Academy of Sciences; Volume: 118; Issue: 30 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1073/pnas.2110176118
ISSN1091-6490
Autores Tópico(s)Biotin and Related Studies
ResumoLife needs interaction. The current pandemic has made visible how much interaction, or lack thereof, means for the life of each and every one of us. The validity of this statement also extends to the tiny and invisible: Over the years, scientists have taken key steps to understand the interactions that are vital to life, and that take place on the molecular scale. This field of “biomolecular interactions” is of enormous importance, as it describes the perpetual and correct dynamic functioning of all the components inside living cells, and whose understanding is at the heart of human diseases and underpins how drugs act on their targets. Therefore, the study of molecular interactions is as essential as it is a vital scientific endeavor. Fig. 1. Artistic representation of the protein electrostatic potential. Color density represents the positive (blue) and negative (red) potential that emanates from the protein (shown in silhouette) charge distribution. Yu et al. (1) show, in PNAS, how the near-surface potential can be probed experimentally, via the accumulation or depletion of paramagnetic charged probe molecules in the surrounding solution. In the simplest scenario, two biomolecules come together and form a tight interaction that is both well defined and functional, and that relies on an appropriate complementarity in shape and charge. This archetypical interaction has often been likened to a lock and key, where the two engaging partners form a perfect fit. The exact three-dimensional arrangement of … [↵][1]1Email: fmulder{at}chem.au.dk. [1]: #xref-corresp-1-1
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