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Significance The microtubule-regulating protein tau is a prototypical intrinsically disordered protein (IDP) that plays an important physiological role in the human body; however, aggregates of tau are a pathological hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease. Here we demonstrate through simulations and experiments with an aggregating tau fragment that cosolvent interactions can significantly affect the balance between hydrogen bonds and salt bridge formation in IDPs, subsequently determining their preferred conformations. These subtle perturbations can dramatically shift IDPs from compact ensembles to extended ones, thereby influencing aggregate formation. These results lend considerable insight into the biophysics of the regulation and aggregation of IDPs. Intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) are a unique class of proteins that have no stable native structure, a feature that allows them to adopt a wide variety of extended and compact conformations that facilitate a large number of vital physiological functions. One of the most well-known IDPs is the microtubule-associated tau protein, which regulates microtubule growth in the nervous system. However, dysfunctions in tau can lead to tau oligomerization, fibril formation, and neurodegenerative disease, including Alzheimer’s disease. Using a combination of simulations and experiments, we explore the role of osmolytes in regulating the conformation and aggregation propensities of the R2/wt peptide, a fragment of tau containing the aggregating paired helical filament (PHF6*). We show that the osmolytes urea and trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) shift the population of IDP monomer structures, but that no new conformational ensembles emerge. Although urea halts aggregation, TMAO promotes the formation of compact oligomers (including helical oligomers) through a newly proposed mechanism of redistribution of water around the perimeter of the peptide. We put forth a “superposition of ensembles” hypothesis to rationalize the mechanism by which IDP structure and aggregation is regulated in the cell.

Microtubules (MTs) are hollow cytoskeletal filaments assembled from αβ-tubulin heterodimers. Tau, an unstructured protein found in neuronal axons, binds to MTs and regulates their dynamics. Aberrant Tau behavior is associated with neurodegenerative dementias, including Alzheimer’s. Here, we report on a direct force measurement between paclitaxel-stabilized MTs coated with distinct Tau isoforms by synchrotron small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) of MT-Tau mixtures under osmotic pressure (P). In going from bare MTs to MTs with Tau coverage near the physiological submonolayer regime (Tau/tubulin-dimer molar ratio; ΦTau= 1/10), isoforms with longer N-terminal tails (NTTs) sterically stabilized MTs, preventing bundling up toP B∼ 10,000–20,000 Pa, an order of magnitude larger than bare MTs. Tau with short NTTs showed little additional effect in suppressing the bundling pressure (P B∼ 1,000–2,000 Pa) over the same range. Remarkably, the abrupt increase inP Bobserved for longer isoforms suggests a mushroom to brush transition occurring at 1/13 < ΦTau< 1/10, which corresponds to MT-bound Tau with NTTs that are considerably more extended than SAXS data for Tau in solution indicate. Modeling of Tau-mediated MT–MT interactions supports the hypothesis that longer NTTs transition to a polyelectrolyte brush at higher coverages. Higher pressures resulted in isoform-independent irreversible bundling because the polyampholytic nature of Tau leads to short-range attractions. These findings suggest an isoform-dependent biological role for regulation by Tau, with longer isoforms conferring MT steric stabilization against aggregation either with other biomacromolecules or into tight bundles, preventing loss of function in the crowded axon environment.

Tau is an intrinsically unstructured microtubule (MT)-associated protein capable of binding to and organizing MTs into evenly spaced parallel assemblies known as \"MT bundles.\" How tau achieves MT bundling is enigmatic because each tau molecule possesses only one MT-binding region. To dissect this complex behavior, we have used a surface forces apparatus to measure the interaction forces of the six CNS tau isoforms when bound to mica substrates in vitro. Two types of measurements were performed for each isoform: symmetric configuration experiments measured the interactions between two tau-coated mica surfaces, whereas \"asymmetric\" experiments examined tau-coated surfaces interacting with a smooth bare mica surface. Depending on the configuration (of which there were 12), the forces were weakly adhesive, strongly adhesive, or purely repulsive. The equilibrium spacing was determined mainly by the length of the tau projection domain, in contrast to the adhesion force/energy, which was determined by the number of repeats in the MT-binding region. Taken together, the data are incompatible with tau acting as a monomer; rather, they indicate that two tau molecules associate in an antiparallel configuration held together by an electrostatic \"zipper\" of complementary salt bridges composed of the N-terminal and central regions of each tau monomer, with the C-terminal MT-binding regions extending outward from each end of the dimeric backbone. This tau dimer determines the length and strength of the linker holding two MTs together and could be the fundamental structural unit of tau, underlying both its normal and pathological action.

The axon-initial-segment (AIS) of mature neurons contains microtubule (MT) fascicles (linear bundles) implicated as retrograde diffusion barriers in the retention of MT-associated protein (MAP) tau inside axons. Tau dysfunction and leakage outside of the axon is associated with neurodegeneration. We report on the structure of steady-state MT bundles in varying concentrations of Mg 2+ or Ca 2+ divalent cations in mixtures containing αβ-tubulin, full-length tau, and GTP at 37 °C in a physiological buffer. A concentration-time kinetic phase diagram generated by synchrotron SAXS reveals a wide-spacing MT bundle phase (B ws ), a transient intermediate MT bundle phase (B int ), and a tubulin ring phase. SAXS with TEM of plastic-embedded samples provides evidence of a viscoelastic intervening network (IN) of complexes of tubulin oligomers and tau stabilizing MT bundles. In this model, αβ-tubulin oligomers in the IN are crosslinked by tau’s MT binding repeats, which also link αβ-tubulin oligomers to αβ-tubulin within the MT lattice. The model challenges whether the cross-bridging of MTs is attributed entirely to MAPs. Tubulin-tau complexes in the IN or bound to isolated MTs are potential sites for enzymatic modification of tau, promoting nucleation and growth of tau fibrils in tauopathies. X-ray scattering and electron microscopy are used in concert to show that complexes of tubulin oligomers and tau are building blocks of an intervening network that cross-bridge microtubules into bundles with the same linear geometry observed in neurons.

The microtubule (MT)-associated protein tau is important in neuronal development and in Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative diseases. Genetic analyses have established a cause-and-effect relationship between tau dysfunction/misregulation and neuronal cell death and dementia in frontotemporal dementia and parkinsonism associated with chromosome 17; several mutations causing this dementia lead to increased ratios of four-repeat (4R) to three-repeat (3R) wild-type tau, and an attractive hypothesis is that the abnormally high ratio of 4R to 3R tau might lead to neuronal cell death by altering normal tau functions in adult neurons. Thus, we tested whether 3R and 4R tau might differentially modulate the dynamic instability of MTs in vitro using video microscopy. Although both isoforms promoted MT polymerization and decreased the tubulin critical subunit concentration to approximately similar extents, 4R tau stabilized MTs significantly more strongly that 3R tau. For example, 4R tau suppressed the shortening rate, whereas 3R tau had little or no detectable effect. Similarly, 3R tau had no effect on the length shortened during a shortening event, whereas 4R tau strongly reduced this parameter. Further, when MTs were diluted into buffer containing 4R tau, the MTs were stabilized and shortened slowly. In contrast, when diluted into 3R tau, the MTs were unstable and shortened rapidly. Thus, 4R tau stabilizes MTs differently and significantly more strongly than 3R tau. We suggest a \"dosage effect\" or haploinsufficiency model in which both tau alleles must be active and properly regulated to produce appropriate amounts of each tau isoform to maintain MT dynamics within a tolerable window of activity.

Tau, an intrinsically disordered protein confined to neuronal axons, binds to and regulates microtubule dynamics. Although there have been observations of string-like microtubule fascicles in the axon initial segment (AIS) and hexagonal bundles in neurite-like processes in non-neuronal cells overexpressing Tau, cell-free reconstitutions have not replicated either geometry. Here we map out the energy landscape of Tau-mediated, GTP-dependent ‘active’ microtubule bundles at 37 °C, as revealed by synchrotron SAXS and TEM. Widely spaced bundles (wall-to-wall distance D w–w ≈25–41 nm) with hexagonal and string-like symmetry are observed, the latter mimicking bundles found in the AIS. A second energy minimum ( D w–w ≈16–23 nm) is revealed under osmotic pressure. The wide spacing results from a balance between repulsive forces, due to Tau’s projection domain (PD), and a stabilizing sum of transient sub- k B T cationic/anionic charge–charge attractions mediated by weakly penetrating opposing PDs. This landscape would be significantly affected by charge-altering modifications of Tau associated with neurodegeneration. Tau, an intrinsically disordered axonal protein, binds to and regulates microtubule dynamics. Here, the authors use SAXS and electron microscopy to examine the architectures of microtubule bundles, including those mimicking microtubule fascicles in the axon initial segment.

A strategy employing a combination of peptide nucleic acid (PNA) probes, an optically amplifying conjugated polymer (CP), and S1 nuclease enzyme is capable of detecting SNPs in a simple, rapid, and sensitive manner. The recognition is accomplished by sequence-specific hybridization between the uncharged, fluorescein-labeled PNA probe and the DNA sequence of interest. After subsequent treatment with S1 nuclease, the cationic water soluble CP electrostatically associates with the remaining anionic PNA/DNA complex, leading to sensitized emission of the labeled PNA probe via FRET from the CP. The generation of fluorescent signal is controlled by strand-specific electrostatic interactions and is governed by the complementarity of the probe/target pair. To assess the method, we compared the ability of the sensor system to detect normal, wild-type human DNA sequences, and those sequences containing a single base mutation. Specifically, we examined a PNA probe complementary to a region of the gene encoding the microtubule associated protein tau. The probe sequence covers a known point mutation implicated in a dominant neurodegenerative dementia known as frontotemporal dementia with parkinsonism linked to chromosome 17 (FTDP-17), which has clinical and molecular similarities to Alzheimer's disease. By using an appropriate PNA probe, the conjugated polymer poly[(9,9-bis(6′-N,N,N-trimethylammoniumhexylbromide)fluorene)-co-phenylene] and S1 nuclease, unambiguous FRET signaling is achieved for the wild-type DNA and not the mutant sequence harboring the SNP. Distance relationships in the CP/PNA assay are also discussed to highlight constraints and demonstrate improvements within the system.

The microtubule-associated protein tau regulates diverse and essential microtubule functions, from the nucleation and promotion of microtubule polymerization to the regulation of microtubule polarity and dynamics, as well as the spacing and bundling of axonal microtubules. Thermodynamic studies show that tau interacts with microtubules in the low- to mid-nanomolar range, implying moderate binding affinity. At the same time, it is well established that microtubule-bound tau does not undergo exchange with the bulk medium readily, suggesting that the tau-microtubule interaction is essentially irreversible. Given this dilemma, we investigated the mechanism of interaction between tau and microtubules in kinetic detail. Stopped-flow kinetic analysis reveals moderate binding affinity between tau and preassembled microtubules and rapid dissociation/association kinetics. In contrast, when microtubules are generated by copolymerization of tubulin and tau, a distinct population of microtubule-bound tau is observed, the binding of which seems irreversible. We propose that reversible binding occurs between tau and the surface of preassembled microtubules, whereas irreversible binding results when tau is coassembled with tubulin into a tau-microtubule copolymer. Because the latter is expected to be physiologically relevant, its characterization is of central importance.

The emergence of the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant in 2021 is associated with a global surge of cases in late 2021 and early 2022. Identifying the introduction of novel SARS-CoV-2 variants to a population is imperative to inform decisions by clinicians and public health officials. Here, we describe a quantitative reverse transcription PCR-based assay (RT-qPCR) targeting unique mutations in the Omicron BA.1/BA1.1 and BA.2 viral genomes. This assay accurately and precisely detect the presence of these Omicron variants in patient samples in less than four hours. Using this assay, we tested 270 clinical samples and detected the introduction of Omicron BA.1/BA1.1 and BA.2 in the Santa Barbara County (SBC) population in December 2021 and February 2022, respectively. Identifying Omicron variants using this RT-qPCR assay showed complete concordance with whole viral genome sequencing; both assays indicated that Omicron was the dominant variant in SB County. Our data substantiate that RT-qPCR-based virus detection assays offer a fast and inexpensive alternative to NGS for virus variant-specific detection approach, which allows streamlining the detection of Omicron variants in patient samples.

Aggregated and hyperphosphorylated Tau is one of the pathological hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease. Tau is a polyampholytic and intrinsically disordered protein (IDP). In this paper, we present for the first time experimental results on the ionic strength dependence of the radius of gyration ( R g ) of human Tau 4RS and 4RL isoforms. Synchrotron X-ray scattering revealed that 4RS R g is regulated from 65.4 to 58.5 Å and 4RL R g is regulated from 70.9 to 57.9 Å by varying ionic strength from 0.01 to 0.592 M. The R g of 4RL Tau is larger than 4RS at lower ionic strength. This result provides an insight into the ion-responsive nature of intrinsically disordered and polyampholytic Tau, and can be implicated to the further study of Tau-Tau and Tau-tubulin intermolecular structure in ionic environments. Graphical abstract