Biology subjects

Heinrich, F.

Publications and source records attributed to Heinrich, F..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2019

Discrete populations of isotype-switched memory B lymphocytes are maintained in murine spleen and bone marrow

Here we describe tissue-resident memory B lymphocytes of spleen and bone marrow. Single cell transcriptomes and B cell receptor repertoires identify several exclusive populations of isotype-switched memory B cells (Bsm) in murine spleen and bone marrow, and one interconnected population of 10-20%. A population of marginal zone-like Bsm is located exclusively in the spleen while a novel population of quiescent Bsm is located exclusively in the bone marrow. Cells of two further populations, present in both, spleen and bone marrow, differ in repertoire between the two organs, i.e. are resident as well. Finally, another interconnected population of Bsm of the B1 lineage is present in spleen and bone marrow. In the bone marrow, all Bsm individually dock onto VCAM1+ stromal cells, resting in terms of activation, proliferation and mobility. The discrete B cell memory of bone marrow may be key to rapid secondary humoral responses to systemic antigens.

immunology↗

bioRxiv2019

Steering Molecular Dynamics Simulations of Membrane-Associated Proteins with Neutron Reflection Results

We present a method to incorporate structural results from neutron reflectometry, a technique that determines interfacial structures such as protein-membrane complexes at a solid surface, into molecular dynamics simulations. By analyzing component volume occupancy profiles, which describe the one-dimensional distribution of a particular molecular component within an interfacial architecture, we construct a real-space constraint in the form of a biasing potential for the simulation that vanishes when the simulated and experimental profiles agree. This approach improves the correspondence between simulation and experiment, as shown for an earlier investigation where an NR-derived structure was well captured by an independent MD simulation, and may lead to faster equilibration of ensemble structures. We further show that time averaging of the observable when biasing with this approach permits fluctuations about the average, which are necessary for conformational exploration of the protein. The method described here also provides insights into systems that are characterized by NR and MD when the two show slight differences in their profiles. This is particularly valuable for studies of proteins at interfaces that contain disordered regions since the conformation of such regions is difficult to judge from the analysis of one-dimensional experimental profiles and take prohibitively long to equilibrate in simulations.

biophysics↗

bioRxiv2019

Association of Model Neurotransmitters with Lipid Bilayer Membranes

Aimed to reproduce the results of electrophysiological studies of synaptic signal transduction, conventional models of neurotransmission are based on the specific binding of neurotransmitters to ligand-gated receptor ion channels. However, the complex kinetic behavior observed in synaptic transmission cannot be reproduced in a standard kinetic model without the ad hoc postulation of additional conformational channel states. On the other hand, if one invokes unspecific neuro-transmitter adsorption to the bilayer--a process not considered in the established models--the electrophysiological data can be rationalized with only the standard set of three conformational receptor states that also depend on this indirect coupling of neurotransmitters via their membrane interaction. Experimental verification has been difficult because binding affinities of neuro-transmitters to the lipid bilayer are low. We quantify this interaction with surface plasmon resonance to measure equilibrium dissociation constants in neurotransmitter membrane association. Neutron reflectometry on artificial membranes reveals the structural aspects of neurotransmitters association with zwitterionic and anionic bilayers. We establish that serotonin interacts non-specifically with the membrane at physiologically relevant concentrations whilst GABA ({gamma}-aminobutyric acid) does not. Surface plasmon resonance shows that serotonin adsorbs with millimolar affinity and neutron reflectometry shows that it penetrates the membrane deeply whereas GABA is excluded from the bilayer.\n\nSignificanceReceptor ion channels in the postsynaptic membrane and their neurotransmitter agonists enable fast communication between neuronal cells. Electrophysiology studies reveal surprisingly complex kinetics that apparently require a variety of protein conformational states for their quantitative interpretation, but an alternate hypothesis invoking neurotransmitter membrane association reduces the complexity of the underlying reaction schemes significantly. While their affinity may be low, and is hard to quantify experimentally, neurotransmitter membrane association can be relevant because of their large temporary concentration in the synaptic cleft. With thermodynamic and structural measurements we quantify membrane-bound states of serotonin, establishing this neurotransmitter as membrane-affine, whereas the affinity of the more hydrophilic GABA is too low to register in our sensitivity-optimized measurement techniques.

biophysics↗