POPPeT: a New Method to Predict the Protection Factor of Backbone Amide Hydrogens

Hydrogen exchange (HX) has become an important tool to monitor protein structure and dynamics. The interpretation of HX data with respect to protein structure requires understanding of the factors that influence exchange. Simulated protein structures can be validated by comparing experimental deuteration profiles with the profiles derived from the modeled protein structure. To do this, we propose here a new method, POPPeT, for protection factor prediction based on protein motions that enable HX. By comparing POPPeT with two existing methods, the phenomenological approximation and COREX, we show enhanced predictability measured at both protection factor and deuteration level. This method can be subsequently used by modeling strategies for protein structure prediction.