Molecular Insights into the Effect of S262 Phosphorylation on the Binding of Tau₂₅₆–₂₆₇ to Microtubule and Its Self-Aggregation

Aberrantly phosphorylated Tau protein dissociating from microtubule and aggregating into intracellular fibrillary inclusions is closely associated with tauopathies, including Alzheimer's disease, chronic traumatic encephalopathy, and corticobasal degeneration. Previous experiments reported that the tauopathies-associated post-translational modification serine 262 phosphorylation (S262p) is linked to the Tau-microtubule interaction and Tau self-aggregation. However, the underlying molecular mechanism is not well understood. By utilizing all-atom molecular dynamics (MD) and replica exchange MD (REMD) simulations, we investigated the impact of S262 phosphorylation on the binding of Tau256-267 to microtubule and the conformational ensemble of Tau256-267. The results reveal that phosphorylation of S262 could reduce the binding affinity of Tau256-267 to microtubule and slightly induce an expanded state of Tau256-267 and microtubule complex. Subsequent analyses show that the S262p variant impedes the H-bonds formed by Tau256-267 and microtubule, resulting in a weaker molecular interaction and less contact area. REMD simulations show that phosphorylation of S262 displays a preventive ability in the self-aggregation of Tau256-267 by weakening the pairwise residue interaction and attenuating the K259-E264 salt bridge of the Tau256-267 peptide. These findings offer detailed mechanistic insights into S262p-caused tau detachment and aggregation, contributing to a deeper understanding of tauopathies and offering potential avenues for the design of therapeutic targets.