Lipid interaction and membrane perturbation of human islet amyloid polypeptide monomer and dimer by molecular dynamics simulations

PLoS One. 2012;7(5):e38191. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0038191. Epub 2012 May 31.

Abstract

The aggregation of human islet amyloid polypeptide (hIAPP or amylin) is associated with the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes mellitus. Increasing evidence suggests that the interaction of hIAPP with β-cell membranes plays a crucial role in cytotoxicity. However, the hIAPP-lipid interaction and subsequent membrane perturbation is not well understood at atomic level. In this study, as a first step to gain insight into the mechanism of hIAPP-induced cytotoxicity, we have investigated the detailed interactions of hIAPP monomer and dimer with anionic palmitoyloleolyophosphatidylglycerol (POPG) bilayer using all-atom molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. Multiple MD simulations have been performed by employing the initial configurations where the N-terminal region of hIAPP is pre-inserted in POPG bilayer. Our simulations show that electrostatic interaction between hIAPP and POPG bilayer plays a major role in peptide-lipid interaction. In particular, the N-terminal positively-charged residues Lys1 and Arg11 make a dominant contribution to the interaction. During peptide-lipid interaction process, peptide dimerization occurs mostly through the C-terminal 20-37 region containing the amyloidogenic 20-29-residue segment. Membrane-bound hIAPP dimers display a pronounced ability of membrane perturbation than monomers. The higher bilayer perturbation propensity of hIAPP dimer likely results from the cooperativity of the peptide-peptide interaction (or peptide aggregation). This study provides insight into the hIAPP-membrane interaction and the molecular mechanism of membrane disruption by hIAPP oligomers.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Amino Acid Sequence
  • Cell Membrane / chemistry
  • Cell Membrane / metabolism*
  • Humans
  • Islet Amyloid Polypeptide / chemistry*
  • Islet Amyloid Polypeptide / metabolism*
  • Lipid Bilayers / chemistry
  • Lipid Bilayers / metabolism
  • Lipid Metabolism*
  • Molecular Dynamics Simulation*
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Peptide Fragments / chemistry
  • Peptide Fragments / metabolism
  • Phosphatidylcholines / metabolism
  • Protein Multimerization*
  • Protein Structure, Secondary
  • Solvents / chemistry
  • Static Electricity

Substances

  • Islet Amyloid Polypeptide
  • Lipid Bilayers
  • Peptide Fragments
  • Phosphatidylcholines
  • Solvents
  • 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoylphosphatidylcholine