Structural and thermodynamic strategies for site-specific DNA binding proteins

Background: Site-specific protein-DNA complexes vary greatly in structural properties and in the thermodynamic strategy far achieving an appropriate binding free energy. A better understanding of the structural and energetic engineering principles might lead to rational methods for modification or design of such proteins. Results: A novel analysis of ten site-specific protein-DNA complexes reveals a striking correspondence between the degree of imposed DNA distortion and the thermodynamic parameters of each system. For complexes with relatively undistorted DNA, favorable enthalpy change drives unfavorable entropy change, whereas for complexes with highly distorted DNA, unfavorable DeltaH degrees is driven by favorable DeltaS degrees. We show for the first time that protein-DNA associations have isothermal enthalpy-entropy compensation, distinct from temperature-dependent compensation, so DeltaH degrees and DeltaS degrees do not vary independently. All complexes have favorable DeltaH degrees from direct protein-DNA recognition interactions and favorable DeltaS degrees from water release. Systems that strongly distort the DNA nevertheless have net unfavorable DeltaH degrees as the result of molecular strain, primarily associated with the base pair destacking. These systems have little coupled protein folding and the strained interface suffers less immobilization, so DeltaS degrees is net favorable. By contrast, systems with little DNA distortion have net favorable DeltaH degrees, which must be counterbalanced by net unfavorable DeltaS degrees, derived from loss of vibrational entropy (a result of isothermal enthalpy-entropy compensation) and from coupling between DNA binding and protein folding. Conclusions: Isothermal enthalpy-entropy compensation implies that a structurally optimal, unstrained fit is achieved only at the cost of entropically unfavorable immobilization, whereas an enthalpically weaker, strained interface entails smaller entropic penalties.