Dynamics of the C-terminal region of TnI in the troponin complex in solution

The determination of crystal structures of the troponin complex (Takeda et al. 2003. Nature. 424:35–41; Vinogradova et al. 2005. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA. 102:5038–5043) has advanced knowledge of the regulation of muscle contraction at the molecular level. However, there are domains important for actin binding that are not visualized. We present evidence that the C-terminal region of troponin I (TnI residues 135–182) is flexible in solution and has no stable secondary structure. We use NMR spectroscopy to observe the backbone dynamics of skeletal [2H, 13C, 15N]-TnI in the troponin complex in the presence of Ca2+ or EGTA/Mg2+. Residues in this region give stronger signals than the remainder of TnI, and chemical shift index values indicate little secondary structure, suggesting a very flexible region. This is confirmed by NMR relaxation measurements. Unlike TnC and other regions of TnI in the complex, the C-terminal region of TnI is not affected by Ca2+ binding. Relaxation measurements and reduced spectral density analysis are consistent with the C-terminal region of TnI being a tethered domain connected to the rest of the troponin complex by a flexible linker, residues 137–146, followed by a collapsed region with at most nascent secondary structure.