Q8 is known to bind two aromatic guests simultaneously and, in the presence of methyl viologen, to recognize N-terminal tryptophan over internal and C-terminal sequence isomers. Here, the binding of Q8 to aromatic peptides in the absence of methyl viologen was studied by isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC), 1 H NMR spectroscopy, and X-ray crystallography. The peptides studied were of sequence X-Gly-Gly, Gly-X-Gly, and Gly-Gly-X (X = Trp, Phe, Tyr, and His). Q8 selectively binds and dimerizes Trp-Gly-Gly (1) and Phe-Gly-Gly (4) with high affinity (ternary K = 10 9 -10 11 M -2 );binding constants for the other 10 peptides were too small to be measured by ITC. Both peptides bound in a stepwise manner, and peptide 4 bound with positive cooperativity. Crystal structures of Q8•1 and Q8•42 reveal the basis for selective recognition as simultaneous inclusion of the hydrophobic aromatic side chain into the cavity of Q8, and chelation of the proximal N-terminal ammonium group by carbonyl groups of Q8. The peptide sequence selectivity and positively cooperative dimerization reported here are, to the best of our knowledge, unprecedented for synthetic hosts in aqueous solution. Specific peptide recognition and dimerization by synthetic hosts such as Q8 should be important in the study of dimer-mediated biochemical processes and for the separation of peptides and proteins.2

The discovery of molecules that bind tightly and selectively to desired proteins continues to drive innovation at the interface of chemistry and biology. This paper describes the binding of human insulin by the synthetic receptor cucurbit[7]uril (Q7) in vitro. Isothermal titration calorimetry and fluorescence spectroscopy experiments show that Q7 binds to insulin with an equilibrium association constant of 1.5 × 106 M-1 and with 50-100-fold selectivity versus proteins that are much larger but lack an N-terminal aromatic residue, and >1000-fold selectivity versus an insulin variant lacking the N-terminal phenylalanine (Phe) residue. The crystal structure of the Q7•insulin complex shows that binding occurs at the N-terminal Phe residue and that the N-terminus unfolds to enable binding. These findings suggest that site-selective recognition is based on the properties inherent to a protein terminus, including the unique chemical epitope presented by the terminal residue and the greater freedom of the terminus to unfold, like the end of a ball of string, to accommodate binding. Insulin recognition was predicted accurately from studies on short peptides and exemplifies an approach to protein recognition by targeting the terminus.

Significance Events that occur between entry of the HIV-1 capsid into the cytoplasm of the target cell and the delivery of the viral genetic material into the nucleus constitute some of the less well understood processes in the viral life cycle. We demonstrated that PF74, a small-molecule inhibitor of HIV-1, and the host proteins CPSF6 and NUP153 bind to a preformed pocket within the CA protein hexamers that exist within the assembled capsid. Our results suggest that key features of the CA hexameric lattice remain intact upon docking at the nuclear pore. In addition, low molecular weight ligands that better mimic virus–host, protein–protein interactions at the intersubunit interfaces within the assembled viral capsid may offer novel avenues for therapeutic intervention.

Dimeric ligands of the transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) superfamily signal across cell membranes in a distinctive manner by assembling heterotetrameric complexes of structurally related serine/threonine-kinase receptor pairs. Unlike complexes of the bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) branch that apparently form due to avidity from membrane localization, TGF-beta complexes assemble cooperatively through recruitment of the low-affinity (type I) receptor by the ligand-bound high-affinity (type II) pair. Here we report the crystal structure of TGF-beta3 in complex with the extracellular domains of both pairs of receptors, revealing that the type I docks and becomes tethered via unique extensions at a composite ligand-type II interface. Disrupting the receptor-receptor interactions conferred by these extensions abolishes assembly of the signaling complex and signal transduction (Smad activation). Although structurally similar, BMP and TGF-beta receptors bind in dramatically different modes, mediating graded and switch-like assembly mechanisms that may have coevolved with branch-specific groups of cytoplasmic effectors.