Quaternary structure, aggregation and cytotoxicity of transthyretin

Transthyretin (TTR) with a Ser112-to-Ile mutation is known to cause amyloidosis with severe cardiomyopathy. We investigated the quaternary structure, aggregation and cytotoxicity of the S112I variant. This variant exists as a dimer at physiological pH, self-assembles into spherical aggregates and induces cell death in human neuroblastoma IMR-32 cells. In addition, we determined the neutron crystal structure of TTR at 2.0 Å resolution. The neutron structure revealed that the hydrogen-bond network involving His88 is important for the stabilization of the dimer-dimer and monomer-monomer interfaces.