Similarity of Ca2+‐bound conformations of morphine and Met‐enkephalin: A computational study Journal Articles uri icon

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abstract

  • The conformations of the free and Ca2+‐bound forms of morphine and Met‐enkephalin were compared based on an earlier proposal that extracellular Ca2+ may dictate the bioactive conformations of peptide hormones and drugs. A Monte Carlo with energy minimization method was used to calculate Met‐enkephalin in the absence and presence of Ca2+. The Ca2+‐bound conformation of Met‐enkephalin was found to have an overall shape that matched well with that of morphine. In contrast, the uncomplexed Met‐enkephalin did not have such a match. The data suggest that a ternary association of μ‐receptor, its ligands and Ca2+ may be an initial process in the signal transduction mechanism of opioid peptides.

publication date

  • November 7, 1994