Principles of Quantitative Estimation of the Chaperone-Like Activity

Molecular chaperones are able to interact with unfolded states of the protein molecule preventing their aggregation and facilitating folding of the polypeptide chain into the native structure. An understanding of the mechanism of protein aggregation is required to estimate the efficiency of action of chaperones in the test systems based on the suppression of aggregation of protein substrates. The kinetic regimes of aggregation of proteins are discussed. The analysis of the aggregation kinetics of proteins shows that after passing the lag phase, aggregation follows, as a rule, first order kinetics. The quantitative characterization methods of the ability of chaperones to prevent aggregation of protein substrates have been elaborated. 