Mercurio, Flavia Anna (2013) NMR STRUCTURAL AND BINDING STUDIES OF RECOMBINANT PROTEINS OF BIOTECHNOLOGICAL INTEREST. [Tesi di dottorato]

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Item Type: Tesi di dottorato
Resource language: English
Title: NMR STRUCTURAL AND BINDING STUDIES OF RECOMBINANT PROTEINS OF BIOTECHNOLOGICAL INTEREST
Creators:
Creators
Email
Mercurio, Flavia Anna
flaviaanna.mercurio@unina.it
Date: 26 March 2013
Number of Pages: 119
Institution: Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II
Department: Farmacia
Scuola di dottorato: Biotecnologie
Dottorato: Scienze biotecnologiche
Ciclo di dottorato: 25
Coordinatore del Corso di dottorato:
nome
email
Sannia, Giovanni
sannia@unina.it
Tutor:
nome
email
Leone, Marilisa
marilisa.leone@cnr.it
Rossi, Filomena
filrossi@unina.it
Date: 26 March 2013
Number of Pages: 119
Keywords: NMR, SAM DOMAINS
Settori scientifico-disciplinari del MIUR: Area 03 - Scienze chimiche > CHIM/03 - Chimica generale e inorganica
Aree tematiche (7° programma Quadro): BIOTECNOLOGIE, PRODOTTI ALIMENTARI E AGRICOLTURA > Scienze della vita, biotecnologia e biochimica per prodotti e processi non-alimentari sostenibili
Date Deposited: 03 Apr 2013 14:32
Last Modified: 15 Apr 2016 01:00
URI: http://www.fedoa.unina.it/id/eprint/9114

Collection description

My PhD thesis has been focused on studies carried out by different experimental and computational techniques, such as NMR (Nuclear Magnetic Resonance), SPR (Surface Plasmon Resonance), ITC (Isothermal Titration Calorimetry), molecular docking, mutagenesis, of Sam (Sterile alpha motif) domains containing proteins that play important roles in physiological or pathological processes. Protein-protein interactions are essential for the assembly, regulation, and localization of functional protein complexes in the cell. The analysis of these interactions at molecular level is of great interest in many biotechnological fields, as it provides useful information for the design of molecules able to mimic the binding sites and thus, presenting potential therapeutic applications. Protein-protein associations are mediated by specific domains, such as Sam domains. Within this thesis two heterotypic Sam-Sam interactions were studied in details: 1) the EphA2-Sam/Odin-Sam1 complex; 2) the Odin-Sam1/Arap3-Sam association. The tyrosine kinase receptor EphA2 plays a fundamental role in tumorigenesis. The process of EphA2 endocytosis and consequent degradation has been investigated as potential route to reduce tumor malignancy. Odin belongs to the ANKS (Ankyrin repeat domain containing and Sam) protein family; it contains two Sam domains in tandem (Sam1 and Sam2), and is able to regulate EphA2 receptor endocytosis. Instead, Arap3 (Arf GAP, Rho GAP, Ankyrin repeat and PH domains) is a protein involved in the phosphoinositol-3-kinase (PI3K) signaling pathways, which regulates biological processes connected to cell motility. Firstly, by multidimensional (2D and 3D) NMR methods, the solution structure of Odin-Sam1 was determined. It consists of five -helices and represents a canonical Sam domain fold. Afterwards, binding studies with EphA2-Sam, and Arap3-Sam were conducted. SPR and ITC experiments revealed a low micromolar binding affinity of Odin-Sam1 for both EphA2-Sam and Arap3-Sam. The reciprocal interaction surfaces of these Sam domains were identified by NMR chemical shift perturbation experiments, and 3D models of the complexes were built by molecular docking techniques. These studies suggested that Odin-Sam1/EphA2-Sam and Odin-Sam1/Arap3-Sam complexes might adopt the canonical Sam-Sam interaction topology called "Mid-Loop/End-Helix", where the central portion of Odin-Sam1 and the C-terminal helix of either Arap3-Sam and EphA2-Sam contribute the binding surfaces. A peptide, named Sam3, which encompasses the central portion of the Odin-Sam1 involved in complexes formation with EphA2-Sam and Arap3-Sam, together with its C-terminal helix, was synthesized and analyzed by 2D NMR techniques. The peptide reveals unstructured in phosphate buffer, whereas it shows propensity to adopt more ordered helical structures in water/trifluoroethanol mixtures. Based on the new structural insights gained within my thesis, libraries of molecules (peptides and peptido-mimetics), that could selectively interfere with Odin-Sam1/EphA2-Sam or Odin-Sam1/Arap3-Sam associations, and prove useful in therapeutic and diagnostic applications, will be designed in the near future.

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