Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 11, 2025

Millisecond Hydrogen/Deuterium-Exchange Mass Spectrometry for the Study of Alpha-Synuclein Structural Dynamics Under Physiological Conditions
Published on: June 23, 2022
Amyloid Fibers of α-Synuclein Catalyze Chemical Reactions
Istvan Horvath1, Pernilla Wittung-Stafshede1
1Department of Biology and Biological Engineering, Chalmers University of Technology, 412 96 Gothenburg, Sweden.
Abstract:
Amyloid fibers of the protein α-synuclein, found in Lewy body deposits, are hallmarks of Parkinson's disease. We here show that α-synuclein amyloids catalyze biologically relevant chemical reactions in vitro. Amyloid fibers, but not monomers, of α-synuclein catalyzed hydrolysis of the model ester para-nitrophenyl acetate and dephosphorylation of the model phosphoester para-nitrophenyl-orthophosphate. When His50 was replaced with Ala in α-synuclein, dephosphorylation but not esterase activity of amyloids was diminished. Truncation of the protein's C-terminus had no effect on fiber catalytic efficiency. Catalytic activity of α-synuclein fibers may be a new gain-of-function that plays a role in Parkinson's disease.
Related Concept Videos
Amyloid Fibrils
Amyloid deposits were observed as early as 1639 in the liver and the spleen. In 1854, Rudolph Virchow performed iodine staining,...
ATP Synthase: Mechanism
Protein Folding
Protein Structure Is Critical to Its Biological Function
Proteins perform a wide range of biological functions such as catalyzing chemical reactions, providing...
ATP and Macromolecule Synthesis
Most macromolecules are composed of single subunits, or building blocks, called monomers. The monomers combine with each other using covalent bonds to form larger molecules known as polymers.
Conversion of...
ATP Synthase: Structure

