Helical structures, length

Random copolymers are similar to PEO but when the regular helical structure of the chains is demolished, the crystallinity is also destroyed. One of the simplest and most successful amorphous host polymers is an oxyethylene- oxymethylene structure in which medium length but statistically variable EO units are interspersed with methylene oxide groups. First described in 1990 [37], aPEO has the general structure... 

In summary, these recently obtained results demonstrate that certain amphi-pathic peptoid sequences designed to mimic both the helical structure and approximate length of magainin helices are also capable of selective and biomimetic antibacterial activity. These antibacterial peptoids are helical in both aqueous buffer and in the presence of lipid vesicles. Ineffective (non-antibacterial) peptoids exhibit weak, random coil-like CD, with no spectral intensification in the presence of lipid vesicles. Selective peptoids exhibit stronger CD signals in bacterial-mimetic vesicles than in mammalian-mimetic vesicles. Non-selective peptoids exhibit intensely helical CD in both types of vesicles. 

X-ray diffraction studies on gramicidin commenced as early as 1949 218-219> and this early work pointed to a helical structure 220). Recent work by Koeppe et al. 221) on gramicidin A crystallised from methanol (/%) and ethanol (.P212121) has shown that the helical channel has a diameter of about 5 A and a length of about 32 A in both cases. The inclusion complexes of gramicidin A with CsSCN and KSCN (P212121) have channels that are wider (6-8 A) and shorter (26 A) than the uncomplexed dimer 221 222). Furthermore there are two cation binding sites per channel situated either 2.5 A from either end of the channel or 2.5 A on each side of its centre 222) Unfortunately these data do not permit a choice to be made from the helical models (i)—(iv) and it is not certain if the helical canals studied are the same as those involved in membrane ion transport. 

A monoclinic unit-cell with a = 8.2 A (820 pm), b(fiber axis) = 10.30 A (1.030 nm), c — 7.90 A (790 pm), and /3 = 83.3° is used. The distance between the terminal oxygen atoms in the cellobiose unit is taken to be 10.3912 A (1.03912 nm). A left-handed, helical structure, with seven cellobiose residues in a pitch of 72.1 A (7.21 nm) was proposed. The packing arrangement involves the central reversed and comer chains, and a relative shift between them of 0.25 repeat length along the b axis. 

The reference 28 authors continue to detail experimental observations that place voltage sensor helices in positions within the membrane. Miller and coworkers conducted site-directed mutagenesis for all residues of helices Sl-S3. ° In these experiments, tryptophan (trp) residues were substituted for each amino acid in turn to determine which residues would be trp-tolerant. These experiments confirmed a-helical conformations for SI and S2 and showed that K+ channel function was altered when trp residues were placed in some (labeled non-trp-tolerant), but not all, positions. The same treatment for helix S3 yielded complex results. At S3 s N-terminal end the distribution of trp-tolerant positions were consistent with an a-helical structure, however, this was not the case at S3 s C-terminal end. Other tests indicated that S3 might be helical for its entire length and that the N-terminal end interfaces with both lipid and protein while the C-terminal end interfaces with water. Comparisons of trp-tolerant or trp-intolerant residues over several different Kv channel... 

The consistent solvent- and chain-length-dependent phenomena suggest that a helical structure is being formed however, double-helical, knotlike or alternatively folded structures could not be ruled out (Fig. 4). Double-helical structures are not believed to be present since there is no concentration dependence below 10 pmol for the 12-mer in acetonitrile at room temperature. To rule out misfolded knotlike structures, a series of oligomers were designed with a methyl group in the internal position of the helix (19-27) [28]. The... 

Applying the heUx coil theory to computational studies of the mPE backbone suggests that above a critical chain length of seven or eight repeat units the backbone can adopt a helical structure. The attachment of additional monomer units would further stabihze the helical structure and increase the cooperativity of the folding reaction [23]. 

Fig. 38 General mechanism of the nucleation and elongation stages of polymerization generating a helical structure (the arrows represent the interactions among repeating units). Secondary interactions light arrows), absent in the first turn of the helix, are the molecular origins of a less favorable nucleation event (i.e.,the critical chain length) beyond which propagation becomes more favorable...

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