Stabilization of partially folded conformation during alpha-synuclein oligomerization in both purified and cytosolic preparations |
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Authors: | Uversky V N Lee H J Li J Fink A L Lee S J |
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Institution: | Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California, Santa Cruz, California 95064, USA. |
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Abstract: | Aggregation of alpha-synuclein is tightly associated with many neurodegenerative diseases, such as Parkinson's disease, dementia with Lewy body, Lewy body variant of Alzheimer's disease, multiple system atrophy, and Hallervorden-Spatz disease, implicating a crucial role of aggregated forms of alpha-synuclein in the pathogenesis. Here, we examined the effect of elevated temperature on the oligomerization and structural changes of alpha-synuclein in the early stage of aggregation and show that self-assembly is crucial for the stabilization of a partially folded conformation. The efficiency of alpha-synuclein oligomerization increased proportional to the temperature increase, both in purified form and in crude cytosolic preparation. This oligomerization coincided with a small but reproducible change in the circular dichroism spectrum and an increase in the 1-anilinonaphthalene-8-sulfonic acid binding. The hydrodynamic dimensions of the dimer measured by size exclusion chromatography suggest a pre-molten globule-like structure. These data suggest that partially folded alpha-synuclein, which is unstable in the monomeric form, is stabilized by self-assembly and that these oligomers may evolve into the fibril nucleus. |
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