Deciphering the folding code of collagens
Collagen proteins contain a characteristic structural motif called a triple helix. During the self-assembly of this motif, three polypeptides form a folding nucleus at the C-termini and then propagate towards the N-termini like a zip-chain. While polypeptides from human collagens contain up to a 100...
| Autores: | , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Tipo de recurso: | artículo |
| Estado: | Versión publicada |
| Fecha de publicación: | 2025 |
| País: | España |
| Institución: | Varias* (Consorci de Biblioteques Universitáries de Catalunya, Centre de Serveis Científics i Acadèmics de Catalunya) |
| Repositorio: | Recercat. Dipósit de la Recerca de Catalunya |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:recercat.cat:10230/70386 |
| Acceso en línea: | http://hdl.handle.net/10230/70386 http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-54046-y |
| Access Level: | acceso abierto |
| Palabra clave: | Biophysics Protein folding Proteins |
| Sumario: | Collagen proteins contain a characteristic structural motif called a triple helix. During the self-assembly of this motif, three polypeptides form a folding nucleus at the C-termini and then propagate towards the N-termini like a zip-chain. While polypeptides from human collagens contain up to a 1000 amino acids, those found in bacteria can contain up to 6000 amino acids. Additionally, the collagen polypeptides are also frequently interrupted by non-helical sequences that disrupt folding and reduce stability. Given the length of polypeptides and the disruptive interruptions, compensating mechanisms that stabilize against local unfolding during propagation and offset the entropic cost of folding are not fully understood. Here, we show that the information for the correct folding of collagen triple helices is encoded in their sequence as interchain electrostatic interactions, which likely act as molecular clamps that prevent local unfolding. In the case of humans, disrupting these electrostatic interactions is associated with severe to lethal diseases. |
|---|