Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40108192›Full record

ArticleScientific reports2025

Comparative structural insights and functional analysis for the distinct unbound states of Human AGO proteins.

Panos Kakoulidis, Eleni I Theotoki, Vasiliki I Pantazopoulou, Ioannis S Vlachos, Ioannis Z Emiris, Dimitrios J Stravopodis, Ema Anastasiadou

Abstract readComparative Study
In one paragraph

Article in Scientific reports, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
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  3. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Panos KakoulidisDepartment of Informatics and Telecommunications, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 16122, Athens, Greece. pkakoulidis@di.uoa.gr.
Eleni I TheotokiCenter of Basic Research, Biomedical Research Foundation of the Academy of Athens, 4 Soranou Ephessiou St, 11527, Athens, Greece.
Vasiliki I PantazopoulouDepartment of Pathology, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 11527, Athens, Greece.
Ioannis S VlachosBroad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Merkin Building, 415 Main St, Cambridge, MA, 02142, USA.
Ioannis Z EmirisDepartment of Informatics and Telecommunications, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 16122, Athens, Greece.
Dimitrios J StravopodisSection of Cell Biology and Biophysics, Department of Biology, School of Science, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 15701, Athens, Greece.
Ema AnastasiadouCenter of Basic Research, Biomedical Research Foundation of the Academy of Athens, 4 Soranou Ephessiou St, 11527, Athens, Greece.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The four human Argonaute (AGO) proteins, critical in RNA interference and gene regulation, exhibit high sequence and structural similarity but differ functionally. We investigated the underexplored structural relationships of these paralogs through microsecond-scale molecular dynamics simulations. Our findings reveal that AGO proteins adopt similar, yet unsynchronized, open-close states. We observed similar and unique local conformations, interdomain distances and intramolecular interactions. Conformational differences at GW182/ZSWIM8 interaction sites and in catalytic/pseudo-catalytic tetrads were minimal. Tetrads display conserved movements, interacting with distant miRNA binding residues. We pinpointed long common protein subsequences with consistent molecular movement but varying solvent accessibility per AGO. We observed diverse conformational patterns at the post-transcriptional sites of the AGOs, except for AGO4. By combining simulation data with large datasets of experimental structures and AlphaFold's predictions, we identified proteins with genomic and proteomic similarities. Some of the identified proteins operate in the mitosis pathway, sharing mitosis-related interactors and miRNA targets. Additionally, we suggest that AGOs interact with a mitosis initiator, zinc ion, by predicting potential binding sites and detecting structurally similar proteins with the same function. These findings further advance our understanding for the human AGO protein family and their role in central cellular processes.

Indexed as

Argonaute ProteinsBinding SitesHumansMicroRNAsMolecular Dynamics SimulationProtein BindingProtein ConformationArgonaute ProteinsMicroRNAs

Identifiers

PMID40108192
PMCPMC11923369

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.