PMID: 10631975 , Related PDB id: 1C3T

Authors:

Lazar GA, Johnson EC, Desjarlais JR, Handel TM

Title:

Rotamer strain as a determinant of protein structural specificity.

Journal:

Protein Sci. 1999 Dec;8(12):2598-610.

Abstract:

We present direct evidence for a change in protein structural specificity due to hydrophobic core packing. High resolution structural analysis of a designed core variant of ubiquitin reveals that the protein is in slow exchange between two conformations. Examination of side-chain rotamers indicates that this dynamic response and the lower stability of the protein are coupled to greater strain and mobility in the core. The results suggest that manipulating the level of side-chain strain may be one way of fine tuning the stability and specificity of proteins.