bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The synthesis of hippurate from benzoate and glycine by rat liver mitochondria. Submitochondrial localization and kinetics
Authors: Gatley S J , Sherratt H S A
Published: August 2015

1. Rat liver mitochondria make hippurate at up to 4 nmol/min per mg of protein. The rate of synthesis supported by oxidation of glutamate with exogenous Pi present is identical with that supported by ATP plus oligomycin. Lower rates were obtained with other respiratory substrates, and when glutamate was used without Pi. 2. A matrix localization for hippurate synthesis is indicated by the latency of benzoyl-CoA synthetase and glycine N-acyltransferase to their extramitochondrial substrates, failure of exogenous benzoyl-CoA to inhibit incorporation of [14C]hippurate and inhibition of hippurate synthesis supported by ATP, but not glutamate, by carboxyatractyloside. 3. The relative activities of the individual enzymes and the mitochondrial content of benzoyl-CoA in the presence and absence of glycine suggest that hippurate synthesis is rate-limited by formation of benzoyl-CoA. 4. The increases in rates of ATP hydrolysis and of O2 consumption on the addition of benzoate and glycine were in good agreement with those required to support hippurate synthesis. The increase in respiration indicates that State-4 respiration [Chance & Williams (1957) Adv. Enzymol 17, 65-134] is not used, with these conditions, for ATP synthesis.
Formation of vitamin A in a freshwater fish. Isolation of retinoic acid
Authors: Barua A B , Goswami U C
Published: August 2015

The intestines of freshly caught Saccobranchus fossilis (a freshwater fish that contains dehydroretinol) became free from carotenoids and from vitamin A when the fish were starved for about 20 days. When beta-carotene was administered to such fish, retinoic acid could be isolated from the intestines after approx. 4h. When lutein was administered to such fish, dehydroretinol and 3-hydroxyretinol could be isolated from the intestines after approx. 5h.
Specific protein synthesis in isolated epithelium of guinea-pig seminal vesicle. General features
Authors: Veneziale Carlo M.
Published: August 2015

Four intrinsic soluble proteins are synthesized and secreted by sexually mature guinea-pig seminal-vesicle mucosa, which comprises a monolayer of a homogeneous columnar epithelial cell. All four proteins can be extracted readily in 154mm-NaCl from the organ's luminal constituents in which they are present in high concentration. They are referred to as proteins 1, 2, 3 and 4 in order of their elution during DEAE-cellulose column chromatography. Specific primary antibodies were harvested from goats that had been inoculated with the purified vesicular proteins; secondary antibodies were obtained from a donkey inoculated with goat γ-globulins. Double-antibody-immunoprecipitation techniques were developed to precipitate the vesicular proteins. Thus proteins newly synthesized from14C-labelled amino acids could be precipitated and the incorporated radioactivity assessed. Isolated seminal-vesicle mucosa, incubated in only a buffered salt solution containing glucose, readily synthesized the soluble secreted proteins from added [14C]lysine plus [14C]glycine, [14C]histidine plus [14C]glutamate, [14C]glutamine alone and [14C]arginine alone. The rates of incorporation (d.p.m./mg of total soluble protein) of labelled lysine and glycine and of labelled arginine were linear with time over 180min. With the other labelled precursors, rates diminished between 60 and 180min. Labelled protein could be detected after only 10–15min of incubation. Only 4–9% of the newly synthesized protein remained associated with the mucosa; the remainder was found in the cell-free incubation medium. The isolated seminal-vesicle mucosal preparation will provide a unique opportunity to study the synthesis and secretion of abundant cell-specific proteins by this androgen-dependent tissue.
Metabolism and transport of glutamine and glucose in vascularly perfused small intestine of the rat
Authors: Hanson Peter John , Parsons Dennis Shirley
Published: August 2015

1. The metabolism and transport of glutamine and glucose were investigated in a preparation of rat small intestine perfused through the vascular bed in vitro and in situ. 2. With glucose (7.5mm) or glutamine (4.5mm) in the lumen, approx. 40% of the substrate taken up appears unchanged on the vascular side. When glutamine (1.5mm) is also added to the vascular perfusate, metabolism of glutamine is increased and there is uptake of glutamine from both the vascular bed and lumen. Orientation of substrate (vascular bed or lumen) influences the value of alanine production/glutamine utilization and lactate production/glucose utilization. 3. Deprivation of food and metabolic acidosis have no effect upon the utilization of glutamine by unit length of jejunum. In fed rats, glutamine utilization is 44% of glucose utilization, but in rats deprived of food it is 112% of glucose utilization. 4. Glucose utilization and lactate production are not significantly altered by the presence of glutamine in the vascular bed or lumen. 5. With glucose only in the vascular perfusate, glucose utilization is the same in jejunum and ileum. Glutamine metabolism in the ileum is 28% lower than in the jejunum. 6. Glutamine utilization is dependent on the concentration of glutamine in the vascular perfusate, but is not significantly affected by the absence of glucose. 7. Results are discussed in relation to the role of intestinal glutamine metabolism and with respect to some problems of the transepithelial movement of substrates that are both transported and metabolized.
Dibutylchloromethyltin chloride, a covalent inhibitor of the adenosine triphosphate synthase complex
Authors: Cain Kelvin , Partis Michael D. , Griffiths David E.
Published: August 2015

1. The synthesis of dibutylchloromethyltin chloride, a new covalent inhibitor of the mitochondrial ATP synthase [oligomycin-sensitive ATPase (adenosine triphosphatase)] complex is described, together with a method for preparing dibutylchloro[3H]methyltin chloride. 2. Studies with the yeast mitochondrial oligomycin-sensitive ATPase complex show that dibutylchloromethyltin chloride inhibits both the membrane-bound enzyme and also the purified Triton X-100-dispersed preparation. 3. F1-ATPase is not inhibited even at 500nmol of dibutylchloromethyltin chloride/mg of protein, and the general inhibitory properties are similar to those of triethyltin, oligomycin and dicyclohexylcarbodi-imide, known energy-transfer inhibitors of oxidative phosphorylation. 4. Binding studies with yeast submitochondrial particles show that dibutylchloromethyltin chloride antagonizes the binding of triethyl[113Sn]tin, indicating that there is an interaction between the two inhibitor-binding sites. 5. Unlike triethyltin, inhibition by dibutylchloromethyltin chloride is due to a covalent interaction which titrates a component of the inner mitochondrial membrane present at a concentration of 8–9nmol/mg of protein. 6. All of the labelled component can be extracted with chloroform/methanol (2:1, v/v), and sodium dodecyl sulphate/polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis of the chloroform/methanol extract indicates that the labelled component has an apparent mol.wt. of 6000–8000. However, t.l.c. reveals the presence of only one labelled component which is lipophilic and non-protein and is distinct from the free inhibitor, mitochondrial phospholipids and the dicyclohexylcarbodi-imide-binding protein (subunit 9). 7. Inhibition of mitochondrial ATPase and oxidative phosphorylation is correlated with specific interaction with a non-protein lipophilic component of the mitochondrial inner membrane which is proposed to be a co-factor or intermediate of oxidative phosphorylation.
Influence of cations at the plasma membrane in controlling polysaccharide secretion from sycamore suspension cells
Authors: Morris Martin R. , Northcote D. H.
Published: August 2015

1. Three soluble polysaccharides and a soluble protein containing hydroxyproline were secreted by sycamore suspension cultures. l-[1-3H]Fucose was incorporated solely into the fucose of fucoxyloglucan and l-[1-14C]arabinose mainly into the arabinose of arabino-galactan. [U-14C]Glucose was a general precursor for soluble protein and polysaccharides. 2. The steady-state rate of secretion of all the polymers was increased within seconds of adding various electrolytes and polyelectrolytes to the growth medium. The increased secretion was induced by cations at the outer surface of the plasma membrane. It was brought about by a stimulation of the normal mechanisms of cell-wall polysaccharide secretion. It was partly inhibited by anaerobiosis or sodium arsenate and was unaffected by temperature changes in the range 0–35°C. 3. The precursor pool from which secretion was induced contained completely synthesized polysaccharides and was probably located in the Golgi-derived vesicles. The results indicated that the endoplasmic reticulum did not secrete polysaccharide directly to the cell exterior. 4. The various cations probably induced secretion by causing a depolarization of the negative electric potential of the cell surface, and this resulted in the fusion of vesicles with the plasma membrane. 5. Analogy with exocytosis and pinocytosis in various animal tissues suggested that the decreased surface potential brought about membrane fusion by causing an increase in plasma-membrane permeability to Ca2+. 6. The results showed that the fusion of vesicles with the plasma membrane was rate-limiting and a potential control point. Auxin-stimulated cell-wall deposition could be a result of a stimulated influx of Ca2+ causing vesicle fusion with the plasma membrane.
The cytochromes of Acanthamoeba castellanii
Authors: Edwards S W , Chagla A H , Griffiths A J , Lloyd D
Published: August 2015

1. Low-temperature difference spectra of gradient-purified mitochondria of Acanthamoeba castellanii reveal the presence of cytochromes b-555, b-562 and c-549, with a-type cytochromes having a broad asymmetrical maximum at 602 nm; these components were also observed in specta of whole cells. 2. The a-type cytochromes are unusual in that they have split Soret absorption maxima (at 442 and 449 nm) and an uncharacteristic CO difference spectrum. 3. CO difference spectra of whole cells and ‘microsomal’ membranes show large amounts of cytochrome P-420 compared with cytochrome P-450. 4. Difference spectra in the presence of cyanide indicate the presence of an a-type cytochrome and two cyanide-reacting components, one of which may be cytochrome a3. 5. Whole-cell respiration in a N2/O2 (19:1) atmosphere was decreased by 50%, suggesting the presence of a low-affinity oxidase. This lowered respiration is inhibited by 50% by CO, and the inhibition is partially light-reversible; photochemical action spectra suggest that cytochrome a3 contributes to this release of inhibition. Other CO-reacting oxidases are also present. 6. The results are discussed with the view that cytochrome a3 is present in A. castellanii, but its identification in CO difference spectra is obscured by other component(s).
Relationship between the reduction of oxygen, artificial acceptors and cytochrome P-450 by NADPH-cytochrome c reductase
Authors: Lyakhovich V , Mishin V , Pokrovsky A
Published: August 2015

The interaction of NADPH—cytochrome c reductase with oxygen, artificial acceptors and cytochrome P-450 was studied. The generation of superoxide anion radicals (O2-.) from the oxidation of adrenaline to adrenochrome catalysed by NADPH—cytochrome c reductase proceeds independently of the interaction of the enzyme with the artificial anaerobic acceptors cytochrome c or 2,6-dichlorophenol-indophenol. Propyl 3,4,5-trihydroxybenzoate inhibited competitively the adrenaline oxidation by isolated NADPH—cytochrome c reductase (Ki 3.2—4.7 micrometer) and inhibited non-competitively the cytochrome c reduction (Ki 92—109 micrometer). In contrast with the process of electron transfer to cytochrome c, the rate of reduction of cytochrome P-450 and the rate of oxidation of adrenaline in liver microsomal fraction are correlated. Hexobarbital increases the Vmax. of adrenaline oxidation without affecting the Km value, whereas metyrapone, a metabolic inhibitor decreases Vmax. without affecting the Km. From the results obtained, some conclusions about NADPH—cytochrome c reductase function were made.
Inhibition of glucose uptake and glycogenolysis by availability of oleate in well-oxygenated perfused skeletal muscle
Authors: Rennie Michael J. , Holloszy John O.
Published: August 2015

The effects of exogenous oleate on glucose uptake, lactate production and glycogen concentration in resting and contracting skeletal muscle were studied in the perfused rat hindquarter. In preliminary studies with aged erythrocytes at a haemoglobin concentration of 8g/100ml in the perfusion medium, 1.8mm-oleate had no effect on glucose uptake or lactate production. During these studies it became evident that O2 delivery was inadequate with aged erythrocytes. Perfusion with rejuvenated human erythrocytes at a haemoglobin concentration of 12g/100ml resulted in a 2-fold higher O2 uptake at rest and a 4-fold higher O2 uptake during muscle contraction than was obtained with aged erythrocytes. Rejuvenated erythrocytes were therefore used in subsequent experiments. Glucose uptake and lactate production by the well-oxygenated hindquarter were inhibited by one-third, both at rest and during muscle contraction, when 1.8mm-oleate was added to the perfusion medium. Addition of oleate also significantly protected against glycogen depletion in the fast-twitch red and slow-twitch red types of muscle, but not in white muscle, during sciatic-nerve stimulation. In the absence of added oleate, glucose was confined to the extracellular space in resting muscle. Addition of oleate resulted in intracellular glucose accumulation in red muscle. Contractile activity resulted in accumulation of intracellular glucose in all three muscle types, and this effect was significantly augmented in the red types of muscle by perfusion with oleate. The concentrations of citrate and glucose 6-phosphate were also increased in red muscle perfused with oleate. We conclude that, as in the heart, availability of fatty acids has an inhibitory effect on glucose uptake and glycogen utilization in well-oxygenated red skeletal muscle.
Rapid isolation of plasma membranes in high yield from cultured fibroblasts
Authors: Thom D , Powell A J , Lloyd C W , Rees D A
Published: August 2015

1. A method was developed which allows the rapid preparation of pure plasma membranes in high yield from cultured fibroblasts. 2. Cells are lysed in hypo-osmotic borate/EDTA and, after differential centrifugation, the membranes collected by centrifugation on a sucrose barrier. 3. Electron microscopy of the isolated material shows large membrane vesicles essentially free from contaminating organelles. 4. There is no detectable activity of the endoplasmic-reticulum enzyme marker, NADH2—lipoamide oxidoreductase (EC 1.6.4.3), and that of succinate dehydrogenase (EC 1.3.99.1), a marker for mitochondria, is substantially decreased. Chemical compositions are in good agreement with previous observations. 5. This study confirms the usefulness of applied isotopic markers for isolating plasma membranes.
Transport of adenine, hypoxanthine and uracil into Escherichia coli
Authors: Burton K
Published: August 2015

Uptake of adenine, hypoxanthine and uracil by an uncA strain of Escherichia coli is inhibited by uncouplers or when phosphate in the medium is replaced by less than 1 mM-arsenate, indicating a need for both a protonmotive force and phosphorylated metabolites. The rate of uptake of adenine or hypoxanthine was not markedly affected by a genetic deficiency of purine nucleoside phosphorylase. In two mutants with undetected adenine phosphoribosyltransferase, the rate of adenine uptake was about 30% of that in their parent strain, and evidence was obtained to confirm that adenine had then been utilized via purine nucleoside phosphorylase. In a strain deficient in both enzymes adenine uptake was about 1% of that shown by wild-type strains. Uptake of hypoxanthine was similarly limited in a strain lacking purine nucleoside phosphorylase, hypoxanthine phosphoribosyltransferase and guanine phosphoribosyltransferase. Deficiency of uracil phosphoribosyltransferase severely limits uracil uptake, but the defect can be circumvented by addition of inosine, which presumably provides ribose 1-phosphate for reversal of uridine phosphorylase. The results indicate that there are porter systems for adenine, hypoxanthine and uracil dependent on a protonmotive force and facilitated by intracellular metabolism of the free bases.
Phosphorylation of the inhibitory subunit of troponin in perfused hearts of mice deficient in phosphorylase kinase. Evidence for the phosphorylation of troponin by adenosine 3′:5′-phosphate-dependent protein kinase in vivo
Authors: England P J
Published: August 2015

When hearts from control and phosphorylase kinase-deficient (I strain) mice were perfused with 0.1 micrometer-DL-isoprenaline, there was a parallel increase in contraction, cyclic AMP concentration and troponin I phosphorylation. However, there was no increase in phosphorylase a in the I-strain hearts, whereas the control hearts showed a large increase. Assays of I-strain heart extracts showed a normal cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase activity but no phosphorylase kinase activity. It is concluded that troponin I is phosphorylated in intact hearts by protein kinase and not phosphorylase kinase.
A study of the kinetics of the muscarinic effect on phosphatidylinositol and phosphatidic acid metabolism in rat brain synaptosomes
Authors: Miller J C
Published: August 2015

The uptake of [32P]phosphate into phosphatidylinositol and phosphatidate was measured in synaptosomes incubated in Krebs-Ringer bicarbonate buffer, pH7.4. The apparent dissociation constants for acetylcholine and carbamoylcholine was estimated from the increase in 32P uptake caused by these agents. These apparent constants were similar for both phosphatidylinositol and phosphatidate and were 2.7 +/- 0.5 MICROmeter for acetylcholine and 12 +/- 2 micrometer for carbamoylcholine when Ca2+ concentration was 0.75 mM. Under the same conditions the inhibition of the carbamoylcholine-induced increase in 32P uptake, caused by atropine, is consistent with atropine being a competitive inhibitor, with an apparent inhibition constant of 0.35 +/- 0.05 micrometer. The apparent constants were dependent on the Ca2+ concentration, and were greater in 2.54 mM-Ca2+. The former values for the kinetic constants are similar to the muscarinic-receptor dissociation constant, which indicates that the binding of the agonist to the receptor may be rate-limiting in this series of reactions when the Ca2+ concentration is 0.75 mM.
Transmembrane migration (‘flip-flop’) of cholesterol in erythrocyte membranes
Authors: Kirby C J , Green C
Published: August 2015

After exchange with [14C]cholesterol-labelled plasma lipoproteins for 0.5-4h, erythrocytes were extracted with bile-salt solutions. The extracted cholesterol (mainly from the outside of the erythrocyte membrane) had the same specific radioactivity as the residual sterol. Thus cholesterol equilibrates rapidly (half-time less than 1 h) between the two sides of the membrane.
Stability of rat skin collagen during recovery from under-nutrition
Authors: Etherington D J
Published: August 2015

The growth of young rats was arrested for 6 weeks from 48 h after receiving an injection of L-[5-3H]proline. The 3H in the hydroxyproline of the newly synthesized skin collagen remained steady during under-nutrition and did not decrease during the subsequent recovery period. It was concluded that in this animal model the renewed growth did not induce degradation of the pre-existing collagen fibres.
Further characterization of collagen galactosyltransferase from chick embryos
Authors: Risteli L
Published: August 2015

Optimum extraction of collagen galactosyltransferase activity from chick embryos required relatively high concentrations of detergent and salt. The activity was inhibited by concanavalin A, and the enzyme had a high affinity for columns of this lectin coupled to agarose; these results suggest the presence of carbohydrate units in the enzyme molecule. Collagen galactosyltransferase was highly labile, and only 1% of the originally bound enzyme activity could be eluted from the concanavalin A-agarose column with a buffer containing methyl glucoside and ethylene glycol. The purification of the activity over the original supernatant of chick embryo homogenate was 250-300-fold, with the optimum reaction conditions for the purified transferase differing somewhat from those for crude enzyme preparations. The reaction was inhibited by glucose-free basement-membrane collagen, UDP and galactosylhydroxylsine, and also by Co2+ and a number of compounds resembling UDP-galactose. Hydroxylysine was also a weak inhibitor. Immobilized hydroxylysine and UDP-glucuronic acid did not bind the collagen galactosyltransferase, but the enzyme was retarded in a column of UDP-galacturonic acid linked to agarose.
Anomalous migration of leghaemoglobin on sodium dodecyl sulphate/polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis
Authors: Lehtovaara P
Published: August 2015

The estimate of the molecular weight of leghaemoglobin by sodium dodecyl sulphate/polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis is about 20% too low. This is due to an anomalously high limiting relative mobility. Leghaemoglobin binds 1.4 g of sodium dodecyl sulphate/g of protein with a concomitant decrease in the helical content from 71-72% to 49-51%.
Purification, characterization and inhibition of human skin collagenase
Authors: Woolley David E. , Glanville Robert W. , Roberts Dennis R. , Evanson John M.
Published: August 2015

1. The neutral collagenase released into the culture medium by explants of human skin tissue was purified by ultrafiltration and column chromatography. The final enzyme preparation had a specific activity against thermally reconstituted collagen fibrils of 32μg of collagen degraded/min per mg of enzyme protein, representing a 266-fold increase over that of the culture medium. Electrophoresis in polyacrylamide disc gels showed it to migrate as a single protein band from which enzyme activity could be eluted. Chromatographic and polyacrylamide-gel-elution experiments provided no evidence for the existence of more than one active collagenase. 2. The molecular weight of the enzyme estimated from gel filtration and sodium dodecyl sulphate/polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis was approx. 60000. The purified collagenase, having a pH optimum of 7.5–8.5, did not hydrolyse the synthetic collagen peptide 4-phenylazobenzyloxycarbonyl-Pro-Leu-Gly-Pro-d-Arg-OH and had no non-specific proteinase activity when examined against non-collagenous proteins. 3. It attacked undenatured collagen in solution at 25°C, producing the two characteristic products TCA(¾) and TCB(¼). Collagen types I, II and III were all cleaved in a similar manner by the enzyme at 25°C, but under similar conditions basement-membrane collagen appeared not to be susceptible to collagenase attack. At 37°C the enzyme attacked gelatin, producing initially three-quarter and one-quarter fragments of the α-chains, which were degraded further at a lower rate. As judged by the release of soluble hydroxyproline peptides and electron microscopy, the purified enzyme degraded insoluble collagen derived from human skin at 37°C, but at a rate much lower than that for reconstituted collagen fibrils. 4. Inhibition of the skin collagenase was obtained with EDTA, 1,10-phenanthroline, cysteine, dithiothreitol and sodium aurothiomaleate. Cartilage proteoglycans did not inhibit the enzyme. The serum proteins α2-macroglobulin and β1-anti-collagenase both inhibited the enzyme, but α1-anti-trypsin did not. 5. The physicochemical and enzymic properties of the skin enzyme are discussed in relation to those of other human collagenases.
The presence of dolichol in a lipid diphosphate N-acetylglucosamine from Saccharomyces cerevisiae (baker's yeast)
Authors: Reuvers F , Boer P , Hemming F W
Published: August 2015

The lipid moiety of a lipid diphosphate N-acetylglucosamine, an intermediate in glycosylation of proteins, was studied. Ozonolysis of the compound gave evidence for an alpha-saturated isoprene unit. Alkaline hydrolysis of the glycolipid, followed by high-pressure liquid chromatography, showed the presence of a series of polyprenol homologues identical with those isolated directly from Saccharomyces cerevisiae (baker's yeast). No particular homologue was preferred in the enzymic transfer of N-acetylglucosamine 1-phosphate to endogenous dolichol monophosphate.
Proteolytic and peroxidatic reactions of commercial horseradish peroxidase with myelin basic protein
Authors: Cammer Wendy , Bieler Lesley Z. , Norton William T.
Published: August 2015

Degradation of myelin basic protein during incubations with high concentrations of horseradish peroxidase has been demonstrated [Johnson & Cammer (1977) J. Histochem. Cytochem.25, 329–336]. Possible mechanisms for the interaction of the basic protein with peroxidase were investigated in the present study. Because the peroxidase samples previously observed to degrade basic protein were mixtures of isoenzymes, commercial preparations of the separated isoenzymes were tested, and all three degraded basic protein, but to various extents. Three other basic proteins, P2 protein from peripheral nerve myelin, lysozyme and cytochrome c, were not degraded by horseradish peroxidase under the same conditions. Inhibitor studies suggested a minor peroxidatic component in the reaction. Therefore the peroxidatic reaction with basic protein was studied by using low concentrations of peroxidase along with H2O2. Horseradish peroxidase plus H2O2 caused the destruction of basic protein, a reaction inhibited by cyanide, azide, ferrocyanide, tyrosine, di-iodotyrosine and catalase. Lactoperoxidase plus H2O2 and myoglobin plus H2O2 were also effective in destroying the myelin basic protein. Low concentrations of horseradish peroxidase plus H2O2 were not active against other basic proteins, but did destroy casein and fibrinogen. Although high concentrations of peroxidase alone degraded basic protein to low-molecular-weight products, suggesting the operation of a proteolytic enzyme contaminant in the absence of H2O2, incubations with catalytic concentrations of peroxidase in the presence of H2O2 converted basic protein into products with high molecular weights. Our data suggest a mechanism for the latter, peroxidatic, reaction where polymers would form by linking the tyrosine side chains in basic-protein molecules. These data show that the myelin basic protein is unusually susceptible to peroxidatic reactions.
Partial purification and properties of an acid nucleotidase from the postmicrosomal supernatant of rat spleen
Authors: Tjernshaugen Hans
Published: August 2015

1. The dephosphorylation of 3′-AMP, 3′-dAMP, 3′-CMP and 3′-dCMP was studied in the postmicrosomal supernatant of rat spleen and liver. In both organs 3′-AMP and 3′-dAMP were dephosphorylated at an appreciable rate, in both the presence and the absence of Mg2+. The pH optimum for this dephosphorylation was in the range 4.5–5.0. 3′-CMP and 3′-dCMP were very slowly degraded, though the activity towards 3′-dCMP increased somewhat in the presence of Mg2+. The optimum pH for this Mg2+-dependent dephosphorylation was 5.5–6.0. 2. The rate of dephosphorylation of 3′-AMP and 3′-dAMP per mg of protein was about 5 times as high in spleen as in liver. 3. The dephosphorylation of 3′-AMP could be ascribed to a single enzyme with pH optimum about 4.5. The activity towards 3′-dAMP could be resolved into one component coinciding with the 3′-dAMP-degrading enzyme, and one Mg2+-requiring component probably identical with the soluble deoxyinosine-activated nucleotidase. The dephosphorylation of 3′-dCMP seemed to be performed only by the latter enzyme. 4. The enzyme dephosphorylating 3′-AMP was purified 200-fold from the postmicrosomal supernatant and its physical and catalytic properties were compared with those of acid nucleotidase (EC 3.1.3.31) purified from rat liver lysosomes. The two enzymes were identical in all properties tested (substrate specificity, Km, molecular weight, response to phosphatase inhibitors), but some of the data differed from earlier reports on the acid nucleotidase. 5. The subcellular localization of the acid nucleotidase, its relationship to the acid phosphatase(s) and its role in the breakdown of nucleic acid constituents are discussed.
The oxygen-linked zinc-binding site of human haemoglobin
Authors: Gilman J G , Brewer G J
Published: August 2015

Zn2+ is known to increase the 02 affinity of human haemoglobin. Previous data suggested that Zn2+ exerts its effect by directly binding to haemoglobin, rather than by competing with or binding to 2,3-bisphosphoglycerate. It was also shown that there are two 02-linked zinc-binding sites in haemoglobin, and that Zn2+ does not significantly alter haemoglobin co-operativity or the alkaline Bohr effect. The effect of Zn2+ on 02 affinity of haemoglobin can also be observed for other haemoglobins as diverse as those of cow and chicken. This paper presents new data on the haemoglobin-zinc interaction for normal haemoglobin, des-His146beta-haemoglobin and N-ethylsuccinimide-haemoglobin of humans. For normal haemoglobin (0.05 mM in tetramers), at 20 degrees C in buffer containing 0.1 M-Cl-, 02-dissociation-curve experiments showed that the addition of 0.4-0.5 mM-ZnS04 did not change the Bohr effect between pH 6.71 and 7.29. Similar experiments, with “zinc-ion buffers”, showed that the value of the Hill coefficient, h, decreased only slightly if the concentration of free Zn2+ was held constant. For N-ethylsuccinimide-haemoglobin, Zn2+ caused less increase in O2 affinity than for normal haemoglobin. These studies, together with data on the equilibrium binding of Zn2+ to oxy-, deoxy- and des-His146beta-haemoglobins, suggest that zinc is chelated in oxyhaemoglobin by at least three amino acids, two of which are histidine-146beta and cysteine-93beta.
Preparation of internally labelled rat pituitary somatotropin (growth hormone)
Authors: Wallis M , Davies R V , Daniels M
Published: August 2015

Rat somatotropin (growth hormone) was labelled biosynthetically by incubating anterior pituitary lobes with radioactive amino acids for 24 h in a simple buffered salts medium containing glucose. The labelled hormone was isolated by preparative polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis or by chromatography on Sephadex G-100 and then DEAE-cellulose. The labelled material was pure by several criteria and cross-reacted immunologically with unlabelled rat somatotropin. When a mixture of 14C-labelled amino acids was used for labelling the protein, label could be introduced into these same amino acids of somatotropin, though relative specific radioactivities varied considerably. Somatotropin labelled by the procedures described in the present paper was suitable for structural studies and could be used for a variety of other biochemical experiments.
The pentose phosphate pathway in regenerating skeletal muscle
Authors: Wagner K R , Kauffman F C , Max S R
Published: August 2015

1. The activities of the oxidative enzymes (glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase and 6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase) and of the non-oxidative enzymes (transaldolase, tranketolase, ribose 5 phosphate isomerase and ribulose 5-phosphate 3-epimerase) of the pentose phosphate pathway were measured at various times during the first 24h of skeletal-muscle regeneration after administration of Marcaine, a mytoxic local anesthetic. 2. The activities of the oxidative enzymes increased after Marcaine injection and rose to 9 times control activities by 24h. 3. The activities of all non-oxidative enzymes were increased after Marcaine administration, but to a much smaller extent than the oxidative enzymes (1.1-1.7-fold). 4. Histochemical analysis localized glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase activity within muscle fibres of control and Marcaine-treated muscles. 5. Cycloheximide or actinomycin D prevented the increase in oxidative enzyme activities, suggesting a requirement for synthesis of protein and RNA.
Properties of energy-dependent calcium transport by rat liver microsomal fraction as revealed by initial-rate measurements
Authors: Bygrave F L
Published: August 2015

Measurements of the initial rate of Ca2+ transport by rat liver microsomal preparations reveal the existence of two phases of transport activity. The first, a phase of rapid transport, is complete by 3-5 min, at which time the second (slower) phase begins; this remains linear for up to at least 40 min. The initial phase is minimal in the absence of MgATP. The initial rate of Ca2+ transport reaches values as high as 25 nmol/min per mg of protein; the Km for Ca2+total is 1-2 micrometer and that for MgATPtotal about 500 micrometer. Ruthenium Red (3-5 nmol/mg of protein) has little effect on the initial rate of transport, whereas tributylin (2 micrometer) inhibits equally in a KC1- or a KNO3-containing medium. Compunds that collapse components of the proton electrochemical gradient in mitochondria (valinomycin and carbonyl cyanide m-chlorophenylhydrazone) each inhibit by 70-80% the initial rate of microsomal Ca2+ transport.
Phosphorus nuclear-magnetic-resonance studies of compartmentation in muscle
Authors: Busby S J W , Gadian D G , Radda G K , Richards R E , Seeley P J
Published: August 2015

1. Phosphorus nuclear-magnetic-resonance measurements were made on rat vastus lateralis muscle. 2. In the absence of oxygenation, the resonance from P1 broadens, as the ‘energy pool’ of the muscle gradually runs down. This, together with measurements of transverse relaxation times (T2) indicate that the intracellular pH is not uniform within the muscle volume. 3. Incubation of the muscle with acetate buffer at low pH (5.2) results in splitting of the P1 resonance into two components; one corresponds to phosphate in a low-pH environment and the other to phosphate in its original environment. These observations indicate that P1 is distributed among different compartments in the muscle cell. 4. Compartmentation of sugar phosphate (mainly glucose 6-phosphate) is also indicated by this method, but no evidence has been obtained for this type of compartmentation of ATP and phosphocreatine.
Comparison of α-methylphenylalanine and p-chlorophenylalanine as inducers of chronic hyperphenylalaninaemia in developing rats
Authors: Delvalle J A , Dienel G , Greengard O
Published: August 2015

alpha-Methylphenylalanine is a very weak competitive inhibitor of rat liver phenylalanine hydroxylase in vitro but a potent suppressor in vivo. The loss of the hepatic activity (the renal one is unaffected) becomes maximal (70-75% decrease; cf. control) 18h after the administration (per 10g body wt.) of 24 mumol of alpha-methylphenylalanine with or without 52 mumol of phenylalanine. Chronic suppression of hepatic phenylalanine hydroxylase was obtained by injections of alpha-methylphenylalanine plus phenylalanine to suckling rats, and by their addition to the diet after weaning. A series of comparisons of the effects of this treatment, and one with p-chlorophenylalanine, was then carried out. In both cases there was a rise (1.3-2-fold) in phenylalanine-pyruvate amino-transferase activity (but no change in four other enzyme activities) in the liver; in brain there was a rise in phosphoserine phosphatase activity, but the total activity and subcellular distribution of nine enzymes revealed no other abnormalities in cerebral development. Striking increases in the concentration of plasma phenylalanine during 26 of the 31 experimental days (with a transient fall at 18-22 days) were maintained by treatment with both analogues plus phenylalanine. However, p-chlorophenylalanine-treated animals had a 30-60% mortality rate and 27-52% decrease in body weight. Developing rats treated with alpha-methylphenylalanine, showing no growth deficit or signs of toxicity (e.g. cataracts), appear to be a more suitable model for the human disease of phenylketonuria. Their phenylalanine concentrations exhibited at least 20-40-fold increase during 50% of each of the first 18 days of life, and 30-fold after weaning.
The formation of lipid-linked sugars by cell-free preparations of lactating rabbit mammary gland
Authors: White D A
Published: August 2015

1. A lactating rabbit mammary-gland microsomal system catalysed the incorporation of mannose from GDP-[U-14C]mannose into three endogenous acceptors, (i) polyprenyl phosphate mannose, (ii) lipid-linked oligosaccharide and (iii) protein. 2. Synthesis of polyprenyl phosphate mannose was stimulated by addition of dolichol phosphate to the incubation medium and was reversed by addition of GDP. The product had properties identical with those of authentic dolichol phosphate mannose. 3. The oligosaccharides derived from acid hydrolysis of the lipid-linked oligosaccharide fraction were of six, eight and nine to ten monosaccharide units, the octasaccharide being the major species formed. The oligosaccharide appeared to be attached to the lipid via a pyrophosphate bridge, since strong alkaline hydrolysis liberated an oligosaccharide phosphate. 4. Polyprenyl phosphate mannose served as a mannose donor to lipid-linked oligosaccharides and protein. When added as exogenous substrate it gave rise to a lipid-linked oligosaccharide of about six units. 5. Incorporation of radioactivity in protein was low, but polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis of the protein fractions indicated that polypeptides of mol.wts. 115000, 75000 and 33000 were labelled.
The structure and function of glycoproteins synthesized during slime-polysaccharide production by membranes of the root-cap cells of maize (Zea mays)
Authors: Green J R , Northcote D H
Published: August 2015

The synthesis of the maize root slime polysaccharides was investigated by using [1-3H]-fucose as a marker for slime production. Three fractions were separated by centrifugation in a CsCl density gradient. Two of these were glycoproteins and occurred within the membranes of the cells of the root tip; the third was the slime polysaccharides. Radioactive pulse-chase experiments showed that the glycoproteins were precursors of the slime polysaccharides, and the carbohydrate portion of the glycoproteins had a similar composition to that of the free slime. The linkage between the protein and the carbohydrate of one of the glycoproteins was shown to be a xylose-threonine bond. It is postulated that the slime polysaccharides are synthesized and transported on proteins within the membrane system of the root tip.
Protein degradation rates in regions of the central nervous system in vivo during development
Authors: Dunlop D S , Elden W V , Lajtha A
Published: August 2015

The rate of protein degradation was estimated in several regions of rat brain at various ages by subtracting the rate of accumulation of protein from the rate of synthesis. The rate of degradation in cerebral hemisphere, which was 1.3%/h at 2 days of age, declined steadily with age, approaching the synthesis rate is about 30 days of age (0.8%/h). Degradation rates in the pons medulla, mid-brain and spinal cord were of a similar order to that in the cerebral hemisphere. The cerebellum had an exceptionally high rate of degradation in young rats, 1.9%/h at 2 days of age, which complemented its high rates of synthesis and accumulation. The degradation rate in the young was 2-2.5 times the rate in older rats and was approx. 65% of the synthesis rate during the more active phase of growth. The rapid accumulation of protein in the nervous system during the first week post partum was accompanied by high rates of breakdown, and was the result of a relatively small difference between that high rate of degradation and an even higher synthesis rate.
Contribution of cytochromes and proteins to the effect of ascorbic acid on artificial and microsomal hydroxylation systems containing oxygen and hydrogen peroxide
Authors: Chrastil J , Wilson J T
Published: August 2015

Hydroxylation systems containing cytochromes, proteins and ascorbic acid were studied at physiological pH (7.4) under O2 or N2 with added H2O2. Proteins inhibited aromatic hydroxylation of p-nitrophenol or oxidative demethylation of ethylmorphine in ascorbic acid-containing systems incubated under O2, but strongly activated the systems containing H2O2. Cytochrome c and partially purified cytochrome P-450 from rat liver microsomal preparations activated the system in either O2 or H2O2. The systems needed ascorbic acid (or other enol structures) for activation. Cytochrome iron participated probably in the activation of O2, whereas cytochrome protein participated in a free radical activation of H2O2 (or of O2).
Conformational variation in superhelical deoxyribonucleic acid
Authors: Campbell A M
Published: August 2015

Sedimentation experiments have shown that superhelical DNA undergoes a sharp structural transition at low ionic strength. Light-scattering experiments show that this is due to a change in conformation of the DNA rather than to a change in interactions among DNA molecules. The results show that two possible conformations can occur for superhelical DNA under routine experimental conditions and may explain the discrepancies in the number of early unwinding sites exposed by different techniques.
The heterogeneity of the lipoprotein lipase of rat epididymal adipose tissue
Authors: Ashby P , Tolson A M , Robinson D S
Published: August 2015

Lipoprotein lipase is heterogeneous, and it was suggested that the enzyme in adipose tissue is transformed from a species of mol. wt. approx. 120000 to forms of much higher molecular weight as it is secreted from the fat-cell. This paper demonstrates that the forms of higher molecular weight are probably artifacts. Enzyme preparations were characterized by gel filtration, by density-gradient centrifugation and by affinity chromatography. The results indicate that the enzyme forms of mol. wt. greater than 120000 result from an association of the enzyme with particulate material. It is therefore necessary to reconsider schemes that have recently been proposed for the synthesis and export of lipoprotein lipase.
Iron-binding fragments from the N-terminal and C-terminal regions of human lactoferrin
Authors: Bluard-Deconinck J M , Williams J , Evans R W , van Snick J , Osinski P A , Masson P L
Published: August 2015

Digestion of lactoferrin with pepsin at pH3.0 gave an iron-binding half-molecule that represents the C-terminal part of the native protein. Tryptic or chymotryptic digestion of 30%-iron-saturated lactoferrin yielded the N- and C-terminal half molecules, which could be separated by DEAE-Sephadex chromatography. The N- and C-terminal fragments did not show any immunological cross-reaction. The carbohydrate of lactoferrin was distributed equally between the two fragments.
Quantitative analysis of rat liver nucleolar and nucleoplasmic ribosomal ribonucleic acids
Authors: Dabeva M D , Dudov K P , Hadjiolov A A , Stoykova A S
Published: August 2015

rRNA from detergent-purified nuclei was fractionated quantitatively, by two independent methods, into nucleolar and nucleoplasmic RNA fractions. The two RNA fractions were analysed by urea/agar-gel electrophoresis and the amount of pre-rRNA (precursor of rRNA) and rRNA components was determined. The rRNA constitutes 35% of total nuclear RNA, of which two-thirds are in nucleolar RNA and one-third in nucleoplasmic RNA. The identified pre-rRNA components (45 S, 41 S, 39 S, 36 S, 32 S and 21 S) are confined to the nucleolus and constitute about 70% of its rRNA. The remaining 30% are represented by 28 S and 18 S rRNA, in a molar ratio of 1.4. The bulk of rRNA in nucleoplasmic RNA is represented by 28 S and 18 S rRNA in a molar ratio close to 1.0. Part of the mature rRNA species in nucleoplasmic RNA originate from ribosomes attached to the outer nuclear membrane, which resist detergent treatment. The absolute amount of nuclear pre-rRNA and rRNA components was evaluated. The amount of 32 S and 21 S pre-rRNA (2.9 × 10(4) and 2.5 × 10(4) molecules per nucleus respectively) is 2-3-fold higherthan that of 45 S, 41 S and 36 S pre-rRNA.
Resolution of the methane mono-oxygenase of Methylococcus capsulatus (Bath) into three components. Purification and properties of component C, a flavoprotein
Authors: Colby J , Dalton H
Published: August 2015

1. Ion-exchange chromatography resolves the methane mono-oxygenase from soluble extracts of Methylococcus capsulatus (Bath) into three fractions. 2. Fractions A and B are comparatively stable at 0 degrees C, whereas fraction C is very unstable unless kept in the presence of sodium thioglycollate (1-10 mM) or dithiothreitol (5-10mM). 3. The active component from fraction C was purified some 80-fold. 4. Purified component C has mol. wt. 42000. Its solutions are yellow with absorption maxima at 270 and 465 nm and a shoulder at 395 nm. The 465 nm peak is abolished by reduction with NADH or sodium dithionite, or by photoreduction in the presence of EDTA. A new spectral species, probably a neutral flavin semiquinone, is observed on partial reduction of component C. 5. No copper was detected in samples of purified component C, but the protein contains 1.3-1.5 atoms of iron/molecule. 6. On boiling, component C releases a yellow-green fluorescent material that has been identified as FAD from its absorption and fluorescence spectra and by t.l.c. 7. Component C contains 1 mol of FAD/mol of protein.
Co-operativity and the methods of plotting binding and steady-state kinetic data
Authors: Whitehead E P
Published: August 2015

The features that distinguish positive from negative co-operativity in double-reciprocal Eadie-Hofstee-Scatchard and Hanes plots, often incorrectly stated to be the sign of curvature or second derivatives, are explained. It is shown how to determine the ‘Hill exponent’ and interaciton free energies from curves in these plots, and in the simple plot of ligand binding or velocity against free ligand or substrate concentration. New types of plots, where the kind of co-operative behaviour is more obvious than in the traditional ones, are proposed.