Fig. 4: Polarized destabilization induced by client sequestration correlates with sites of recruited dimers to form higher-order sHSP oligomers.

a Asymmetric cryo-EM density maps of mjHSP16.5/lysozyme oligomers viewed along a 4-fold axis (top), internal slice view showing NTD/client densities (middle), and a 180° rotation (bottom). Map densities are colored by local resolution, with resolution ranges indicated for the 24-mer (left) and higher-order oligomers (center). An asterisk marks the alignment axis, and dotted rectangles highlight sites of dimer recruitment. Scale bar = 50 Å. b Schematic of the proposed “polarized assembly” model for sHSP client sequestration, where client-induced destabilization facilitates dimer/client recruitment and polydispersity, as described in the main text.