Crystal structures of cables formed by the acetylated and unacetylated forms of the Schizosaccharomyces pombe tropomyosin ortholog Tpm.

Cables formed by head-to-tail polymerization of tropomyosin, localized along the length of sarcomeric and cytoskeletal actin filaments, play a key role in regulating a wide range of motile and contractile processes. The stability of tropomyosin cables, their interaction with actin filaments and the functional properties of the resulting co-filaments are thought to be affected by N-terminal acetylation of tropomyosin. Here, we present high-resolution structures of cables formed by acetylated and unacetylated Schizosaccharomyces pombe tropomyosin ortholog Tpm.

Biochemical characterization of cardiac α-actin mutations A21V and D26N implicated in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

Familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) affects .2% of the world's population and is inherited in an autosomal dominant manner. Mutations in cardiac α-actin are the cause in 1%-5% of all observed cases.

The non-muscle actinopathy-associated mutation E334Q in cytoskeletal γ-actin perturbs interaction of actin filaments with myosin and ADF/cofilin family proteins.

Various heterozygous cytoskeletal γ-actin mutations have been shown to cause Baraitser-Winter cerebrofrontofacial syndrome, non-syndromic hearing loss, or isolated eye coloboma. Here, we report the biochemical characterization of human cytoskeletal γ-actin carrying mutation E334Q, a mutation that leads to a hitherto unspecified non-muscle actinopathy. Following expression, purification, and removal of linker and thymosin β4 tag sequences, the p.

Distinct actin-tropomyosin cofilament populations drive the functional diversification of cytoskeletal myosin motor complexes.

The effects of N-terminal acetylation of the high molecular weight tropomyosin isoforms Tpm1.6 and Tpm2.1 and the low molecular weight isoforms Tpm1.

Assessment of the Contribution of a Thermodynamic and Mechanical Destabilization of Myosin-Binding Protein C Domain C2 to the Pathomechanism of Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy-Causing Double Mutation .

Mutations in the gene encoding cardiac myosin-binding protein-C (MyBPC), a thick filament assembly protein that stabilizes sarcomeric structure and regulates cardiac function, are a common cause for the development of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. About 10% of carriers of the Δ25bp variant of , which is common in individuals from South Asia, are also carriers of the D389V variant on the same allele. Compared with noncarriers and those with alone, indicators for the development of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy occur with increased frequency in carriers.

CORE-MD II: A fast, adaptive, and accurate enhanced sampling method.

In this paper, we present a fast and adaptive correlation guided enhanced sampling method (CORE-MD II). The CORE-MD II technique relies, in part, on partitioning of the entire pathway into short trajectories that we refer to as instances. The sampling within each instance is accelerated by adaptive path-dependent metadynamics simulations.

Improvement of image resolution by combining enhanced confocal microscopy and quantum dot triexciton imaging.

Super-resolution fluorescence imaging provides critically improved information about the composition, organization, and dynamics of subcellular structures. Quantum dot triexciton imaging (QDTI) has been introduced as an easy-to-use sub-diffraction imaging method that achieves an almost 2-fold improvement in resolution when used with conventional confocal microscopes. Here, we report an overall 3-fold increase in lateral and axial resolution compared to conventional confocal microscopes by combining QDTI with state-of-the-art commercial laser scanning microscope systems.

Structural and Biochemical Characterization of a Dye-Decolorizing Peroxidase from .

A novel cytoplasmic dye-decolorizing peroxidase from was investigated that oxidizes anthraquinone dyes, lignin model compounds, and general peroxidase substrates such as ABTS efficiently. Unlike related enzymes, an aspartate residue replaces the first glycine of the conserved GXXDG motif in DyPA. In solution, DyPA exists as a stable dimer with the side chain of Asp146 contributing to the stabilization of the dimer interface by extending the hydrogen bond network connecting two monomers.

Muscle myosin performance measured with a synthetic nanomachine reveals a class-specific Ca -sensitivity of the frog myosin II isoform.

Key Points: A nanomachine made of an ensemble of seven heavy-meromyosin (HMM) fragments of muscle myosin interacting with an actin filament is able to mimic the half-sarcomere generating steady force and constant-velocity shortening. To preserve Ca as a free parameter, the Ca -insensitive gelsolin fragment TL40 is used to attach the correctly oriented actin filament to the laser-trapped bead acting as a force transducer. The new method reveals that the performance of the nanomachine powered by myosin from frog hind-limb muscles depends on [Ca ], an effect mediated by a Ca -binding site in the regulatory light chain of HMM.

Mechanochemical properties of human myosin-1C are modulated by isoform-specific differences in the N-terminal extension.

Myosin-1C is a single-headed, short-tailed member of the myosin class I subfamily that supports a variety of actin-based functions in the cytosol and nucleus. In vertebrates, alternative splicing of the MYO1C gene leads to the production of three isoforms, myosin-1C, myosin-1C, and myosin-1C, that carry N-terminal extensions of different lengths. However, it is not clear how these extensions affect the chemomechanical coupling of human myosin-1C isoforms.

Small Molecule Effectors of Myosin Function.

Several small molecule effectors of myosin function that target the motor domains of myosin classes I, II, V, and VI have been identified. Four distinct binding sites in the myosin motor domain have been reported with unique properties and mechanisms of action. This chapter describes the structural basis and activities of known small molecule effectors that allosterically target the myosin motor domain.