Abstract:
The structural dynamic of the Cry4Ba toxin in aqueous solution was
investigated using the molecular dynamics simulation method (MD). The system
consists of 595 amino acids of the 65-kDa activated Cry4Ba protein located at the
center of the cube and surrounded by 21,065 water molecules. Energy minimization
of the system was performed prior to the simulations. The system was then subjected
to 200 ps of positional restrained MD simulations and was carried out for 4 ns with
unrestrained MD simulations. The properties of hydration water around Cry4Ba and
trend of Cry4Ba elasticity was studied. The solvent accessible surface area (SASA),
the root mean square (RMS) of position displacement, total energy and H-bond
number were analyzed. The influence of water molecules on Cry4Ba structure has
been examined using several structural functions. It was found that relative SASA of
the hydrophobic part has a tendency to increase and the number of hydrogen bonds
between water molecules has a tendency to increase as well. The values of the RMSD
at each domain were increasing throughout the simulations, indicating that the
structure of proteins has a tendency to change. All of the results clearly demonstrate
that water may assist in the preliminary process of membrane insertion and pore
formation in mosquito-larval gut cell membrane by the Cry4Ba toxin