Bacterial and Cell-Free Production of APP671-726 Containing Amyloid Precursor Protein Transmembrane and Metal-Binding Domains

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O. V. Bocharova^*, A. S. Urban, K. D. Nadezhdin, E. V. Bocharov, and A. S. Arseniev

Shemyakin–Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Russian Academy of Sciences, ul. Miklukho-Maklaya 16/10, 117997 Moscow, Russia; fax: +7 (495) 335-5033; E-mail: o.bocharova@gmail.com

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed.

Received May 13, 2013; Revision received August 12, 2013

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More than half of the mutations associated with familiar Alzheimer’s disease have been found in the transmembrane domain of amyloid precursor protein (APP). These pathogenic mutations presumably influence the APP transmembrane domain structural and dynamic properties and result in its conformational change or/and lateral dimerization. Despite much data about the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease, the initial steps of the pathogenesis remain unclear so far. For the investigation of the molecular basis of Alzheimer’s disease, we selected amyloid precursor protein fragment APP671-726 containing the transmembrane and metal-binding domains. This fragment is the substrate of the γ-secretase complex whose abnormal activity leads to the formation of amyloidogenic Aβ42 peptides. This work for the first time describes a highly effective cell-free APP671-726 production method and improved method of bacterial synthesis. Both methods yield milligram quantities of isotope-labeled protein for structural study by high resolution NMR spectroscopy in membrane mimicking milieus.

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KEY WORDS: amyloid precursor protein, transmembrane domain, recombinant protein, NMR spectroscopy

DOI: 10.1134/S0006297913110060

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