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Sensitivity of Water Dynamics to Biologically Significant Surfaces of Monomeric Insulin: Role of Topology and Electrostatic Interactions

In addition to the biologically active monomer of the protein Insulin circulating in human blood, the molecule also exists in dimeric and hexameric forms that are used as storage. The Insulin monomer contains two distinct surfaces, namely the dimer forming surface (DFS) and the hexamer forming surface (HFS) that are specifically designed to facilitate the formation of the dimer and the hexamer, respectively. In order to characterize the structural and dynamical behaviour of interfacial water molecules near these two surfaces (DFS and HFS), we performed atomistic molecular dynamics simulations of Insulin with explicit water. Dynamical characterization reveals that the structural relaxation of the hydrogen bonds formed between the residues of DFS and the interfacial water molecules is faster than those formed between water and that of the HFS. Furthermore, the residence times of water molecules in the protein hydration layer for both the DFS and HFS are found to be significantly higher than those for some of the other proteins studied so far, such as HP-36 and lysozyme. The surface topography and the arrangement of amino acid residues work together to organize the water molecules in the hydration layer in order to provide them with a preferred orientation. HFS having a large polar solvent accessible surface area and a convex extensive nonpolar region, drives the surrounding water molecules to acquire predominantly a clathrate-like structure. In contrast, near the DFS, the surrounding water molecules acquire an inverted orientation owing to the flat curvature of hydrophobic surface and interrupted hydrophilic residual alignment. We have followed escape trajectory of several such quasi-bound water molecules from both the surfaces and constructed free energy surfaces of these water molecules.These free energy surfaces reveal the differences between the two hydration layers.