1-2-oleoylphosphatidylcholine and tryptophan-octyl-ester

The partitioning of native cytochrome b5 and a mutant form, where Trp-108 and Trp-112 were both replaced by Leu, into small unilamellar lipid vesicles was examined. The vesicles were made from phosphatidylcholines containing mono- and di-unsaturated acyl chains. As these amphipathic proteins self-associate in aqueous solution, the binding was not monitored by a simple lipid titration experiment but by an exchange assay using fluorescence quenching by brominated lipids. Each protein had a greater affinity for lipids containing mono-unsaturated chains than for vesicles containing di-unsaturated chains, and the affinities of both proteins increased in buffers of higher ionic strength. The native protein had a higher affinity than the mutant protein for all vesicles; the ratio of the affinities was relatively constant at approximately 30. This corresponds to a difference in the free energy of partitioning of 2 kcal mol(-)(1). The fluorescence quantum yields of both proteins were much lower in lipids with di-unsaturated chains whereas a similar lowering was not seen with a simple Trp compound. These data suggest that the decreased membrane hydrophobicity seen by the proteins in di-unsaturated membranes is not an inherent property of the bilayer but is induced by the insertion of the protein. Further, the similar behavior of the two proteins suggests this modulation is not sensitive to the amino acid side chains of the inserted domain.

Topics: Bromine; Chromatography, Gel; Cytochromes b5; Escherichia coli; Fluorescent Dyes; Lipid Bilayers; Membrane Proteins; Mutagenesis, Site-Directed; Osmolar Concentration; Phosphatidylcholines; Protein Binding; Spectrometry, Fluorescence; Tryptophan

The presence of tryptophan residues as intrinsic fluorophores in most proteins makes them an obvious choice for fluorescence spectroscopic analyses of such proteins. Membrane proteins have been reported to have a significantly higher tryptophan content than soluble proteins. The role of tryptophan residues in the structure and function of membrane proteins has attracted a lot of attention. Tryptophan residues in membrane proteins and peptides are believed to be distributed asymmetrically toward the interfacial region. Tryptophan octyl ester (TOE) is an important model for membrane-bound tryptophan residues. We have characterized this molecule as a fluorescent membrane probe in terms of its ionization, partitioning, and motional characteristics in unilamellar vesicles of dioleoylphosphatidylcholine. The ionization property of this molecule in model membranes has been studied by utilizing its pH-dependent fluorescence characteristics. Analysis of pH-dependent fluorescence intensity and emission maximum shows that deprotonation of the alpha-amino group of TOE occurs with an apparent pKa of approximately 7.5 in the membrane. The fluorescence lifetime of membrane-bound TOE also shows pH dependence. The fluorescence lifetimes of TOE have been interpreted by using the rotamer model for the fluorescence decay of tryptophan. Membrane/water partition coefficients of TOE were measured in both its protonated and deprotonated forms. No appreciable difference was found in its partitioning behavior with ionization. Analysis of fluorescence polarization of TOE as a function of pH showed that there is a decrease in polarization with increasing pH, implying more rotational freedom on deprotonation. This is further supported by pH-dependent red edge excitation shift and the apparent rotational correlation time of membrane-bound TOE. TOE should prove useful in monitoring the organization and dynamics of tryptophan residues incorporated into membranes.

Topics: Fluorescent Dyes; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; Kinetics; Liposomes; Membrane Proteins; Models, Chemical; Phosphatidylcholines; Spectrometry, Fluorescence; Tryptophan