lHeim_B

Tau13E phosphorylation.

AI Overview (Google's Gemini, March 26, 2026)

Yes, multiple phosphate (PO4) molecules can bind within the same functional regions or "pockets" of the tau protein, particularly in cases of hyperphosphorylation associated with Alzheimer’s disease.

Clustered Phosphorylation Sites: Tau is an intrinsically disordered protein (IDP) with about 85 potential phosphorylation sites. These sites are heavily clustered in the proline-rich region (residues 172-251) and the C-terminal tail (residues 368-441), which flank the microtubule-binding repeats. This high density means multiple phosphate groups often populate these regions simultaneously.
Binding Pocket Overlap: In the pathological, "hyperphosphorylated" state, the balance of kinases and phosphatases is disrupted, leading to the accumulation of many phosphate groups on a single tau molecule.
Specific Examples: Research shows that in Alzheimer’s diseased brains, hyperphosphorylated tau often has 5–9 phosphorylation sites modified, compared to only 2–3 in healthy adults.
Effect of Multiple Phosphates: The binding of multiple phosphates acts cumulatively. As more phosphate groups bind to tau, they remove the positive charge of the microtubule-binding region (MTBR), causing the tau protein to lose its affinity for microtubules, leading to aggregation.
Cooperative Binding: Phosphorylation at one site can sometimes prime or enhance phosphorylation at nearby sites within the same binding domain, facilitating the clustering of multiple phosphates.

In summary, the high concentration of potential sites in specific domains makes it likely that multiple phosphate groups reside in the same or closely positioned areas, directly causing the conformational changes that lead to pathology.

Order of binding	Receptor	Ligand	Affinity	Pocket ID	Residues that formed the binding pocket	Presence of SER, THR, TYR
1	Tau13E	PO4	-2.606	receptor_Tau13E_15	LYS-692 LEU-693 THR-694 PHE-695 ASN-698	THR-694
2	Tau13E	PO4	-2.573	receptor_Tau13E_18	VAL-604 GLN-605 SER-606 SER-610 LYS-611 ASP-612	SER-606 SER-610
3	Tau13E	PO4	-2.504	receptor_Tau13E_18	VAL-604 GLN-605 SER-606 SER-610 LYS-611 ASP-612	SER-606 SER-610
4	Tau13E	PO4	-2.449	receptor_Tau13E_2	LYS-660 LEU-661 ASP-662 PHE-663 ARG-666 VAL-667
5	Tau13E	PO4	-2.41	receptor_Tau13E_12	VAL-573 LYS-574 SER-575 THR-580 GLU-581	SER-575 THR-580
6	Tau13E	PO4	-2.328	receptor_Tau13E_12	VAL-573 LYS-574 SER-575 THR-580 GLU-581	SER-575 THR-580
7	Tau13E	PO4	-2.266	receptor_Tau13E_7	PRO-352 GLU-353 PRO-354 SER-355 GLU-356	SER-355
8	Tau13E	PO4	-2.172	receptor_Tau13E_12	VAL-573 LYS-574 SER-575 THR-580 GLU-581	SER-575 THR-580
9	Tau13E	PO4	-2.165	receptor_Tau13E_18	VAL-604 GLN-605 SER-606 SER-610 LYS-611 ASP-612	SER-606 SER-610