An Anion-π Interaction Strongly Stabilizes the β-Sheet Protein WW.

Anions have long been known to engage in stabilizing interactions with electron-deficient arenes. However, the precise nature and energetic contribution of anion-π interactions to protein stability remains a subject of debate. Here, we show that placing a negatively charged Asp in close proximity to electron-rich Phe in a reverse turn within the WW domain results in a favorable interaction that increases WW conformational stability by -1.3 kcal/mol.