3w1d
Structure of a pressure sensitive YFP variant YFP-G3
Structural highlights
FunctionGFP_AEQVI Energy-transfer acceptor. Its role is to transduce the blue chemiluminescence of the protein aequorin into green fluorescent light by energy transfer. Fluoresces in vivo upon receiving energy from the Ca(2+)-activated photoprotein aequorin. Publication Abstract from PubMedFluorescent protein-based indicators for intracellular environment conditions such as pH and ion concentrations are commonly used to study the status and dynamics of living cells. Despite being an important factor in many biological processes, the development of an indicator for the physicochemical state of water, such as pressure, viscosity and temperature, however, has been neglected. We here found a novel mutation that dramatically enhances the pressure dependency of the yellow fluorescent protein (YFP) by inserting several glycines into it. The crystal structure of the mutant showed that the tyrosine near the chromophore flipped toward the outside of the beta-can structure, resulting in the entry of a few water molecules near the chromophore. In response to changes in hydrostatic pressure, a spectrum shift and an intensity change of the fluorescence were observed. By measuring the fluorescence of the YFP mutant, we succeeded in measuring the intracellular pressure change in living cell. This study shows a new strategy of design to engineer fluorescent protein indicators to sense hydrostatic pressure. Glycine insertion makes yellow fluorescent protein sensitive to hydrostatic pressure.,Watanabe TM, Imada K, Yoshizawa K, Nishiyama M, Kato C, Abe F, Morikawa TJ, Kinoshita M, Fujita H, Yanagida T PLoS One. 2013 Aug 27;8(8):e73212. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0073212. PMID:24014139[1] From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine. See AlsoReferences
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