Peptide binding landscapes: Specificity and homophilicity across sequence space in a lattice model

Peptide aggregation frequently involves sequences with strong homophilic binding character, i.e., sequences that self-assemble with like species in a crowded cellular environment, in the face of a multitude of other peptides or proteins as potential heterophilic binding partners. What kinds of sequences display a strong tendency towards homophilic binding and self-assembly, and what are the origins of this behavior? Here, we consider how sequence specificity in oligomerization processes plays out in a simple two-dimensional (2D) lattice statistical-thermodynamic peptide model that permits exhaustive examination of the entire sequence and configurational landscapes. We find that sequences with strong self-specificities have either alternating hydrophobic and hydrophilic residues or short patches of hydrophobic residues, both which minimize intramolecular hydrophobic interactions in part due to the constraints of the 2D lattice. We also find that these specificities are highly sensitive to entropic and free energetic features of the unbound conformational state, such that direct binding interaction energies alone do not capture the complete behavior. These results suggest that the ability of particular peptide sequences to self-assemble and aggregate in a many-protein environment reflects a precise balance of direct binding interactions and behavior in the unbound (monomeric) state.