Determining the effects of regulatory parameters on the structural dynamics of P-type ATPase membrane transporters

Abstract: Proteins are macromolecular machines with roles in all cellular activities and structures. The functional properties of each protein is the result of its combination of 3D-structure and inherent dynamics, and a wealth of structural and dynamic mechanisms have evolved to regulate protein activity. P-type ATPases are membrane transport proteins that hydrolyze ATP to move cations across membranes. These proteins are involved in important biological functions such as Ca2+ signaling and Cu+ homeostasis, making proper regulation critical. Adenylate kinase (AdK) is a small, soluble protein that plays a role in energy homeostasis by interconverting ATP, AMP, and ADP, which are bound by two substrate binding domains. In this thesis, the effect of regulatory parameters on the structural dynamics of Cu+-ATPases and the sarcoplasmic/endoplasmic Ca2+-ATPase (SERCA) was investigated, together with the reaction dynamics of AdK.In Paper III, the human Cu+-ATPase ATP7B was simulated with (holo) and without (apo) Cu+ bound to the regulatory metal binding domains (MBDs, with MBD-1 closest to the core protein). In the holo state, the MBD chain was more dynamic and extended, and MBD-2 approached the membrane Cu+ entry site. In Paper IV, the stability of the interaction between MBD-2 and the Cu+-entry site was evaluated using MD simulations, showing that the interaction was stable in the cytosol-open E1 state, but not in the lumen-facing E2P state. An interaction site between MBD-3 and the cytoplasmic domains was also found, where MBD-3 might inhibit activity by interfering with functional motions. Finally, in Paper II, Cu+ entry into the membrane high-affinity Cu+-binding site was simulated, showing that a proposed initial binding site was transient and that the Cu+ ion could move deeper into the membrane domain. In Paper I, we used time-resolved X-ray solution scattering (TR-XSS) to show a simultaneous closing of the substrate binding domains in AdK, which included a partial unfolding and refolding event in the ATP-binding domain. Paper VI demonstrated that a novel time-resolved setup based on detector readout at the MAX IV beamline CoSAXS could trigger and detect AdK structural dynamics.In Paper V, TR-XSS experiments showed that the rate-limiting step in skeletal-muscle SERCA1a was an E1-to-E2P intermediate at both low and high Ca2+ concentrations. An inhibitory effect at high Ca2+ concentration was explained by a fraction of SERCA molecules stalling in the ATP-binding/phosphorylation step. In Paper VII, TR-XSS experiments showed that the housekeeping isoform SERCA2b, which is slower but has higher Ca2+ affinity than the other SERCA isoforms, shared the same rate-limiting step as the SERCA1a isoform, but with a longer rise-time. Deletion of the SERCA2b luminal extension (LE) shifted the rate-limiting step to ATP-binding/phosphorylation, possibly because of LE-stabilization of the ATP-bound structure. These papers demonstrated the capability of TR-XSS to detect changes in rate-limiting steps and to investigate how protein structural dynamics respond to mutations and inhibitory conditions.