Polyol and sugar osmolytes can shorten protein hydrogen bonds to modulate function

Polyol and sugar osmolytes are commonly used in therapeutic protein formulations. How they may affect protein structure and function is an important question. In this work, through NMR measurements, we show that glycerol and sorbitol (polyols), as well as glucose (sugar), can shorten protein backbone hydrogen bonds. The hydrogen bond shortening is also captured by molecular dynamics simulations, which suggest a hydrogen bond competition mechanism. Specifically, osmolytes weaken hydrogen bonds between the protein and solvent to strengthen those within the protein. Although the hydrogen bond change is small, with the average experimental cross hydrogen bond 3hJNC′ coupling of two proteins GB3 and TTHA increased by ~ 0.01 Hz by the three osmolytes (160 g/L), its effect on protein function should not be overlooked. This is exemplified by the PDZ3−peptide binding where several intermolecular hydrogen bonds are formed and osmolytes shift the equilibrium towards the bound state.