The Application of an Emerging Technique for Protein-Protein Interaction Interface Mapping: The Combination of Photo-Initiated Cross-Linking Protein Nanoprobes with Mass Spectrometry

Protein-protein interaction was investigated using a protein nanoprobe capable of photo-initiated cross-linking in combination with high-resolution and tandem mass spectrometry. This emerging experimental approach introduces photo-analogs of amino acids within a protein sequence during its recombinant expression, preserves native protein structure and is suitable for mapping the contact between two proteins. The contact surface regions involved in the well-characterized interaction between two molecules of human 14-3-3 zeta regulatory protein were used as a model. The employed photo-initiated cross-linking techniques extend the number of residues shown to be within interaction distance in the contact surface of the 14-3-3 lambda dimer (Gln8-Met78). The results of this study are in agreement with our previously published data from molecular dynamic calculations based on high-resolution chemical cross-linking data and Hydrogen/Deuterium exchange mass spectrometry. The observed contact is also in accord with the 14-3-3 zeta X-ray crystal structure (PDB 3dhr). The results of the present work are relevant to the structural biology of transient interaction in the 14-3-3 zeta protein, and demonstrate the ability of the chosen methodology (the combination of photo-initiated cross-linking protein nanoprobes and mass spectrometry analysis) to map the protein-protein interface or regions with a flexible structure.