Figure 3. Membrane-embedded hIAPP peptides associate into α-helical pentamers.

(A) Pentameric assembly of membrane-bound hIAPP peptides obtained at the end of a 0.3 μs MD simulation at 300 K. Green: polar, white: non-polar, cyan: polar ionizable. (B) Helical wheel representation of hIAPP side chains 14–27. (C) Pentameric aggregate. The vector in the xy-plane represents the hydrophobic moment⁸⁹. The helix dipole moment (not shown) is along the z-axis. Color code (b and c): yellow: hydrophobic (large), light blue: polar ionizable, magenta: polar; gray: hydrophobic (small); pink: polar.