Exploring the interaction between monochloroacetic acid and transglutaminase: Spectroscopic analysis, computational...

Environmental exposure to the monochloroacetic acid (MCA), a disinfection by-product, poses a serious public health crisis, particularly through its interaction with skin barrier-associated proteins. In this study, a spectroscopy-based integrative strategy was employed to investigate the interaction between MCA and transglutaminase (TGase), a key enzyme involved in epidermal barrier integrity. UV-vis absorption, steady-state, time-resolved, three-dimensional, and synchronous fluorescence spectroscopy analyses, revealed that MCA bound to TGase predominantly via hydrogen bonding and van der Waals forces, following a static quenching mechanism. In addition, MCA altered the local microenvironment of TGase and induced conformational change. Thermodynamic analysis showed negative values of the free energy at different temperatures, indicating that the binding process was spontaneous. Molecular docking suggested that MCA binding induced conformational changes in TGase, likely due to interactions with the catalytic residues Asp255 and His274 within the active site. Furthermore, molecular dynamics simulations revealed that MCA binding enhanced the local conformational flexibility of TGase. Complementary in vitro assays linked these structural perturbations to altered TGase activity and impaired epidermal barrier function. This study elucidates the structure-function relationship underlying the MCA-TGase interaction and provides molecular-level insights into the potential dermal toxicity of MCA.