Environmental Effects Dominate the Folding of Oligocholates in Solution, Surfactant Micelles, and Lipid Membranes
摘要:
Oligocholate foldamers with different numbers and locations of guanidinium-carboxylate salt bridges were synthesized. The salt bridges were introduced by incorporating arginine and glutamic acid residues into the foldamer sequence. The conformations of these foldamers were studied by fluorescence spectroscopy in homogeneous solution, anionic and nonionic micelles, and lipid bilayers. Environmental effects instead of inherent foldability were found to dominate the folding. As different noncovalent forces become involved in the conformations of the molecules, the best folder in one environment could turn into the worst in another. Preferential solvation was the main driving force for the folding of oligocholates in solution. The molecules behaved very differently in micelles and lipid bilayers, with the most critical factors controlling the folding-unfolding equilibrium being the solvation of ionic groups and the abilities of the surfactants/lipids to compete for the salt bridge. Because of their ability to fold into helices with a nonpolar exterior and a polar interior, the oligocholates could transport large hydrophilic molecules such as carboxyfluorescein across lipid bilayers. Both the conformational properties of the oligocholates and their binding with the guest were important to the transport efficiency.
Oligomeric Cholates: Amphiphilic Foldamers with Nanometer-Sized Hydrophilic Cavities
摘要:
The hydroxyl at the C-3 of cholic acid was converted to an amino group, and the resulting aminofunctionalized cholic acid was used as a monomer to prepare amide-linked oligomeric cholates. These cholate oligomers fold into helical structures with nanometer-sized hydrophilic internal cavities in solvent mixtures consisting of mostly nonpolar solvents such as carbon tetrachloride or ethyl acetate/hexane and 2-5% of a polar solvent such as methanol or DMSO. The conformations of the foldamers; were studied by UV, fluorescence, fluorescence quenching, and fluorescence resonance energy transfer. The nature of the polar/nonpolar solvents and their miscibility strongly influenced the folding reaction. Folding was cooperative, as evidenced by the sigmoidal curves in solvent denaturation experiments. The folded conformers became more stable with an increase in the chain length. The folding/unfolding equilibrium was highly sensitive toward the amount of polar solvent. One percent variation in the solvent composition could change the folding free energies by 0.5-1.4 kcal/mol.
Preferential Solvation within Hydrophilic Nanocavities and Its Effect on the Folding of Cholate Foldamers
作者:Yan Zhao、Zhenqi Zhong、Eui-Hyun Ryu
DOI:10.1021/ja0671159
日期:2007.1.1
microphase separation of the polarsolvent was critical to the folding process. Folding was favored by larger-sized polarsolventmolecules, as fewer such molecules could occupy and solvate the nanocavity, thus requiring a smaller extent of phase separation during folding. Folding was also favored by smaller/acyclic nonpolarsolventmolecules, probably because they could avoid contact with the OH/NH
Enhancing Binding Affinity by the Cooperativity between Host Conformation and Host–Guest Interactions
作者:Zhenqi Zhong、Xueshu Li、Yan Zhao
DOI:10.1021/ja203117g
日期:2011.6.15
Glutamate-functionalized oligocholate foldamers bound Zn(OAc)(2), guanidine, and even amine compounds with surprisingly high affinities. The conformational change of the hosts during binding was crucial to the enhanced binding affinity. The strongest cooperativity between the conformation and guest-binding occurred when the hosts were unfolded but near the folding-unfolding transition. These results suggest that high binding affinity in molecular recognition may be more easily obtained from large hosts capable of strong cooperative conformational changes instead of those with rigid, preorganized structures.