Changes in non-core regions stabilise plastocyanin from the thermophilic cyanobacterium Phormidium laminosum

We report a theoretical investigation on the different stabilities of two plastocyanins. The first one belongs to the thermophilic cyanobacterium Phormidium laminosum and the second one belongs to its mesophilic relative Synechocystis sp. These proteins share the same topology and secondary-structure elements; however, the melting temperatures of their oxidised species differ by approximately 15 K. Long-time-scale molecular dynamics simulations, performed at different temperatures, show that the thermophilic protein optimises a set of intramolecular interactions (interstrand hydrogen bonding, salt bridging and hydrophobic clustering) within the region that comprises the strands β₅ and β₆, loop L₅ and the helix. This region exhibits most of the differences in the primary sequence between the two proteins and, in addition, it is involved in the interaction with known physiological partners. Further work is in progress to unveil the specific structural features responsible for the different thermal stability of the two proteins.