Studies on effects of selected phytochemicals on hen egg white lysozyme amyloidogenesis

Abstract

Amyloids are a class of ordered protein aggregates which have been implicated in the onset of several degenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, Type II diabetes and so on. Despite extensive research, the exact mechanism and the driving factors for the amyloidogenesis process remain elusive. Identifying molecules which can effectively inhibit and/or disaggregate the fibrils may be one effective therapeutic strategy against amyloidosis. In the current study, few phytochemicals were selected to study their effects on amyloid formation of hen egg white lysozyme (HEWL). The selected compounds exhibited significant inhibitory as well as disaggregation effects on HEWL amyloids as monitored by thioflavin T assay, field emission scanning electron microscopy and circular dichroism studies. Further, we attempted to understand the underlying mechanism of action using an array of biophysical studies like intrinsic fluorescence, ANS fluorescence, acrylamide quenching assay and so on. Computational approach was also employed to get an insight on the interaction(s) between the selected compounds and the proteins. Thus the current study will throw light on the key factors that drive amyloid formation and hence will be helpful for development of effective therapeutics against amyloidosis.