Dresden 2017 – scientific programme

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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik

BP 56: Protein Structure and Dynamics

BP 56.9: Talk

Thursday, March 23, 2017, 17:15–17:30, SCH A251

A rigid core amplifies the binding affinity of multivalent ligands — •Susanne Liese and Roland R. Netz — Department of Physics, Free University Berlin, Arnimallee 14, 14195 Berlin, Germany

Multivalent interaction achieves strong, yet reversible binding through the simultaneous formation of multiple, identical bonds. The strength of multivalent binding is determined by the interplay between gain in binding enthalpy and entropic loss due to the reduction of conformational and rotational degrees of freedom upon ligand binding. We compare the binding affinities of rigid and flexible multivalent ligands. While flexible polymer based scaffolds are unsuitable to design high affinity multivalent ligands, rigid ligands with a stiff core that is similar in size to the receptor, amplify the binding affinity by several orders of magnitude. The general design principles, which we derive, might be of great importance to improve rational multivalent ligand design.