A phosphoserine-lysine salt bridge within an α-helical peptide, the strongest α-helix side-chain interaction measured to date

Phosphorylation is ubiquitous in control of protein activity, yet its effects on protein structure are poorly understood. Here we investigate the effect of serine phosphorylation in the interior of an a-helix when a salt bridge is present between the phosphate group and a positively charged side chain (in this case lysine) at i,i + 4 spacing. The stabilization of the helix is considerable and can overcome the intrinsically low preference of phosphoserine for the interior of the helix. The effect is pH dependent, as both the lysine and phosphate groups are titratable, and so calculations are given for several charge combinations. These results, with our previous work, highlight the different, context-dependent effects of phosphorylation in the a-helix. The interaction between the phosphate(2)- group and the lysine side chain is the strongest yet recorded in helix-coil studies. The results are of interest both in de novo design of peptides and in understanding the structural modes of control by phosphorylation.