Structural highlights
Disease
[PSPB_HUMAN] Defects in SFTPB are the cause of pulmonary surfactant metabolism dysfunction type 1 (SMDP1) [MIM:265120]; also called pulmonary alveolar proteinosis due to surfactant protein B deficiency. A rare lung disorder due to impaired surfactant homeostasis. It is characterized by alveolar filling with floccular material that stains positive using the periodic acid-Schiff method and is derived from surfactant phospholipids and protein components. Excessive lipoproteins accumulation in the alveoli results in severe respiratory distress.[1] Genetic variations in SFTPB are a cause of susceptibility to respiratory distress syndrome in premature infants (RDS) [MIM:267450]. RDS is a lung disease affecting usually premature newborn infants. It is characterized by deficient gas exchange, diffuse atelectasis, high-permeability lung edema and fibrin-rich alveolar deposits called 'hyaline membranes'. Note=A variation Ile to Thr at position 131 influences the association between specific alleles of SFTPA1 and respiratory distress syndrome in premature infants.[2]
Function
[PSPB_HUMAN] Pulmonary surfactant-associated proteins promote alveolar stability by lowering the surface tension at the air-liquid interface in the peripheral air spaces. SP-B increases the collapse pressure of palmitic acid to nearly 70 millinewtons per meter.
Publication Abstract from PubMed
Synthetic peptides based on the N-terminal domain of human surfactant protein B (SP-B1-25; 25 amino acid residues; NH2-FPIPLPYCWLCRALIKRIQAMIPKG) retain important lung activities of the full-length, 79-residue protein. Here, we used physical techniques to examine the secondary conformation of SP-B1-25 in aqueous, lipid and structure-promoting environments. Circular dichroism and conventional, 12C-Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy each indicated a predominate alpha-helical conformation for SP-B1-25 in phosphate-buffered saline, liposomes of 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl phosphatidylglycerol and the structure-promoting solvent hexafluoroisopropanol; FTIR spectra also showed significant beta- and random conformations for peptide in these three environments. In further experiments designed to map secondary structure to specific residues, isotope-enhanced FTIR spectroscopy was performed with 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl phosphatidylglycerol liposomes and a suite of SP-B1-25 peptides labeled with 13C-carbonyl groups at either single or multiple sites. Combining these 13C-enhanced FTIR results with energy minimizations and molecular simulations indicated the following model for SP-B1-25 in 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl phosphatidylglycerol: beta-sheet (residues 1-6), alpha-helix (residues 8-22) and random (residues 23-25) conformations. Analogous structural motifs are observed in the corresponding homologous N-terminal regions of several proteins that also share the 'saposin-like' (i.e. 5-helix bundle) folding pattern of full-length, human SP-B. In future studies, 13C-enhanced FTIR spectroscopy and energy minimizations may be of general use in defining backbone conformations at amino acid resolution, particularly for peptides or proteins in membrane environments.
Conformational mapping of the N-terminal segment of surfactant protein B in lipid using 13C-enhanced Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy.,Gordon LM, Lee KY, Lipp MM, Zasadzinski JA, Walther FJ, Sherman MA, Waring AJ J Pept Res. 2000 Apr;55(4):330-47. PMID:10798379[3]
From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.
References
- ↑ Ballard PL, Nogee LM, Beers MF, Ballard RA, Planer BC, Polk L, deMello DE, Moxley MA, Longmore WJ. Partial deficiency of surfactant protein B in an infant with chronic lung disease. Pediatrics. 1995 Dec;96(6):1046-52. PMID:7491219
- ↑ Haataja R, Ramet M, Marttila R, Hallman M. Surfactant proteins A and B as interactive genetic determinants of neonatal respiratory distress syndrome. Hum Mol Genet. 2000 Nov 1;9(18):2751-60. PMID:11063734
- ↑ Gordon LM, Lee KY, Lipp MM, Zasadzinski JA, Walther FJ, Sherman MA, Waring AJ. Conformational mapping of the N-terminal segment of surfactant protein B in lipid using 13C-enhanced Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. J Pept Res. 2000 Apr;55(4):330-47. PMID:10798379
