Co-fibrillogenesis of wild-type and D76N β2-microglobulin: The crucial role of fibrillar seeds

The amyloidogenic variant of ß2-microglobulin, D76N, can readily convert into genuine fibrils under physiological conditions and primes in vitro the fibrillogenesis of the wild-type ß2-microglobulin. By Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy, we have demonstrated that the amyloid transformation of wild-type ß2-microglobulin can be induced by the variant only after its complete fibrillar conversion. Our current findings are consistent with preliminary data in which we have shown a seeding effect of fibrils formed from D76N or the natural truncated form of ß2-microglobulin lacking the first six N-terminal residues. Interestingly, the hybrid wild-type/variant fibrillar material acquired a thermodynamic stability similar to that of homogenous D76Nß2-microglobulin fibrils and significantly higher than the wild-type homogeneous fibrils prepared at neutral pH in the presence of 20% trifluoroethanol. These results suggest that the surface ofD76Nß2-microglobulin fibrils can favor the transition of the wild-type protein into an amyloid conformation leading to a rapid integration into fibrils. The chaperone crystallin, which is a mild modulator of the lag phase of the variant fibrillogenesis, potently inhibits fibril elongation of the wild-type even once it is absorbed on D76Nß2-microglobulin fibrils.