Molecular mechanisms of cardiac actomyosin transforming from rigor state to post-rigor state

Sudden cardiac death contributed to half of all deaths from cardiovascular diseases. The mechanism of the kinetic cycle of cardiac myosin is crucial for heart protection and drug development. The state change in the myosin kinetic cycle from the rigor state to the post-rigor state is fundamental to explain binding and dissociation. Here, we used β-cardiac myosin in the rigor and post-rigor states to model the actomyosin complexes. Molecular dynamics simulations, electrostatic analysis, and energetic analysis of actomyosin complexes were performed in this work. The results showed that there are fewer interactions and lower electrostatic binding strength in the post-rigor state than in the rigor state. In the post-rigor state, there were higher free binding energy, fewer salt bridges, and fewer hydrogen bonds. The results showed a lower binding affinity in the post-rigor state than in the rigor state. The decrease in the binding affinity provided important conditions for dissociation of the myosin from the actin filament. Although previous studies focused mostly on the binding process, this study provides evidence of dissociation, which is even more important in the myosin kinetic cycle. This research on the mechanism of myosin kinetic cycles provides a novel direction for future genetic disease studies.