bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Generalized microscopic reversibility, kinetic co-operativity of enzymes and evolution
Authors: Ricard J
Published: August 2015

Generalized microscopic reversibility implies that the apparent rate of any catalytic process in a complex mechanism is paralleled by substrate desorption in such a way that this ratio is held constant within the reaction mechanism [Whitehead (1976) Biochem. J. 159, 449–456]. The physical and evolutionary significances of this concept, for both polymeric and monomeric enzymes, are discussed. For polymeric enzymes, generalized microscopic reversibility of necessity occurs if, within the same reaction sequence, the substrate stabilizes one type of conformation of the active site only. Generalized microscopic reversibility suppresses the kinetic co-operativity of the slow transition model [Ainslie, Shill & Neet (1972) J. Biol. Chem. 247, 7088–7096]. This situation is obtained if the free-energy difference between the corresponding transition states of the two enzyme forms is held constant along the reaction co-ordinate. This situation implies that the ‘extra costs’ of energy (required to pass each energy barrier) that are not covered by the corresponding binding energies of the transition states vary in a similar way along the two reaction co-ordinates. The regulatory behaviour of monomeric enzymes is discussed in the light of the concept of ‘catalytic perfection’ proposed by Albery & Knowles [(1976) Biochemistry 15, 5631–5640]. These authors claim that an enzyme will be catalytically ‘perfect’ when its catalytic efficiency is maximum. If this situation occurs for a monomeric enzyme obeying either the slow transition or the mnemonical model, it can be shown that the kinetic co-operativity disappears. In other words, kinetic co-operativity of a monomeric enzyme is ‘paid for’ at the expense of catalytic efficiency, and the monomeric enzyme cannot be simultaneously co-operative and catalytically very efficient. This is precisely what has been found experimentally in a number of cases.
The exocellular dd-carboxypeptidase-endopeptidase from Streptomyces albus G. Purification and chemical properties
Authors: Duez C , Frère J M , Geurts F , Ghuysen J M , Dierickx L , Delcambe L
Published: August 2015

The exocellular DD-carboxypeptidase-endopeptidase of Streptomyces albus G was purified to protein homogeneity and compared with the exocellular DD-carboxypeptidases-transpeptidases of Streptomyces R61 and Actinomadura R39. The S. albus G enzyme, as it is isolated, occurs in two forms. Enzyme I (30% of the total amount) and enzyme II (70% of the total amount) are identical in all respects, except that, by polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulphate, enzyme I has an apparent mol. wt. (9000) that is half of that found by molecular-sieve filtration under non-denaturing conditions. Irrespective of the technique used, enzyme II has an apparent mol. wt. of about 18500.
The covalent structure of cartilage collagen. Amino acid sequence of residues 552–661 of bovine α1(II) chains
Authors: Francis Gillian , Butler William T. , Finch John Edward
Published: August 2015

The covalent structure of the first 111 residues from the N-terminus of peptide α1(II)-CB10 from bovine nasal-cartilage collagen is presented. This region comprises residues 552–661 of the α1(II) chain. The sequence was determined by automated Edman degradation of peptide α1(II)-CB10 and of peptides produced by cleavage with trypsin and hydroxylamine. Comparison of this region of the α1(II) chain with the homologous segment of the α1(I) chain indicated a homology level of 85%, slightly higher than that of 81% reported for the N-terminal region of the α1(II) chain (Butler, Miller & Finch (1976) Biochemistry15, 3000–3006). The occurrence of two residues of glycosylated hydroxylysine was established at positions 564 and 603, the first present exclusively as galactosylhydroxylysine and the latter as a mixture of galactosylhydroxylysine and glucosylgalactosylhydroxylysine. Also, two residues at positions 648 and 657 were tentatively identified as glycosylated hydroxylysines. The amino acid sequences adjacent to the hydroxylysine residues so far identified in the α1(II) chain were compared with the homologous regions of the α1(I) and α2 chains, but no obvious prerequisite for hydroxylation could be seen. From comparison with the homologous sequence of the α1(I) chain, it appears that the α1(II)-chain sequence presented here contains three more amino acids than that reported for the α1(I) chain. This triplet would be interposed between residues 63 and 64 of the reported sequence of peptide α1(I)-CB7 from calf skin collagen. Data on the purification of the subpeptides and their amino acid compositions have been deposited as Supplementary Publication SUP 50087 (7 pages) at the British Library Lending Division, Boston Spa, Wetherby, West Yorkshire LS23 7BQ, U.K., from whom copies can be obtained on the terms indicated in Biochem. J. (1978) 169, 5.
Stimulation of intestinal calcium-binding-protein mRNA synthesis in the nucleus of vitamin D-deficient chicks by 1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol
Authors: Spencer R. , Charman M. , Lawson D. E. M.
Published: August 2015

Stimulation of intestinal calcium transport by the hormone 1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol appears to involve RNA transcriptions and the synthesis of new proteins. Although one of these proteins has been identified as calcium-binding protein, no RNA molecules specifically induced by the hormone in the nucleus have been identified. Nuclear RNA from intestine of vitamin D-deficient chicks before and at various time intervals after treatment with the hormone or cholecalciferol was tested for its ability to code for calcium-binding protein in a cell-free system. Calcium-binding-protein mRNA could only just be detected in the intestinal nuclei 2h after dosing with these steroids which is the same time that it was first observed in the polyribosomes. Thus 1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol induces the production of new calcium-binding protein by stimulating the formation and rapid release from the nucleus of new mRNA molecules for this protein. Polyribosomal translation of the mRNA continued only as long as it was being synthesized, and the maximum rate of synthesis following a pulse dose of 125ng of the hormone was the same as that observed after prolonged stimulation with cholecalciferol. The possibility that other 1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol-dependent events may be occurring in the nucleus in the lag period between accumulation of the hormone in the intestine and the appearance of active calcium-binding-protein mRNA, and that these may ultimately control the synthesis of that mRNA, is discussed.
Phospholipid composition and metabolism in mouse muscular dystrophy
Authors: Kwok Chea T. , Austin Lawrence
Published: August 2015

1. The composition and metabolism of phospholipids were studied in various tissues from both normal and dystrophic mice of the 129 ReJ strain. Phospholipids extracted from forebrain, spinal cord, sciatic nerve and plasma were fractionated by t.l.c. and measured. 2. Very significant alterations were found in the choline phospholipids from these tissues, except forebrain. Plasma phosphatidylcholine in the dystrophic mouse was increased by 38%. There was a 2-fold increase in lysophosphatidylcholine in the spinal cord of dystrophic mice. The sciatic nerve showed a marked decrease in sphingomyelin content, which is approximately half of that in the controls. 3. Five enzymes involved in phosphatidylcholine metabolism [namely cholinephosphotransferase (EC 2.7.8.2); phospholipases A (EC 3.1.1.4, EC 3.1.1.32); lysophospholipase (EC 3.1.1.5); lysophosphatidylcholine acyltransferase (EC 2.3.1.23); phospholipase C (EC 3.1.4.3)] were studied in tissue preparations from forebrain, spinal cord, sciatic nerves, gastrocnemius muscles and liver. 4. Activities of phospholipases A and C were significantly increased, about 5-fold and 60% respectively, in gastrocnemius muscle of dystrophic mice compared with controls. Phospholipases A also showed 50% higher activity in the sciatic nerves of dystrophic than of normal mice. Lysophosphatidylcholine acyltransferase activities were significantly increased in the sciatic nerves and spinal cord, by 50–100% over that of the controls. The forebrain and spinal cord from dystrophic mice, however, had only 60% of lysophospholipase activities of that of the normal control. Cholinephosphotransferase activity was unchanged in these tissues from both normal and dystrophic mice. 5. It is suggested that are number of features of mouse muscular dystrophy related to altered membrane structure and function can be rationalized in terms of changes in lipid composition and metabolism.
The fate of 14C in glucose 6-phosphate synthesized from [1-14C]Ribose 5-phosphate by enzymes of rat liver
Authors: Williams J F , Clark M G , Blackmore P F
Published: August 2015

1. Glucose 5-phosphate was synthesized from ribose 5-phosphate by an enzyme extract prepared from an acetone-dried powder of rat liver. Three rates of ribose 5-phosphate utilization were observed during incubation for 17 h. An analysis of intermediates and products formed throughout the incubation revealed that as much as 20% of the substrate carbon could not be accounted for. 2. With [1-14C]ribose 5-phosphate as substrate, the specific radioactivity of [14C]glucose 6-phosphate formed was determined at 1, 2, 5 and 30 min and 3, 8 and 17 h. It increased rapidly to 1.9-fold the initial specific radioactivity of [1-14C]ribose 5-phosphate at 3 h and then decreased to a value approximately equal to that of the substrate at 6 h, and finally at 17 h reached a value 0.8-fold that of the initial substrate [1-14C]ribose 5-phosphate. 3. The specific radioactivity of [14C]ribose 5-phosphate decreased to approx. 50% of its inital value during the first 3 h of the incubation and thereafter remained unchanged. 4. The distribution of 14C in the six carbon atoms of [14C]glucose 6-phosphate formed from [1-14C]ribose 5-phosphate at 1, 2, 5 and 30 min and 3, 8 and 17 h was determined. The early time intervals (1–30 min) were characterized by large amounts of 14C in C-2 and in C-6 and with C-1 and C-3 being unlabelled. In contrast, the later time intervals (3–17 h) were characterized by the appearance of 14C in C-1 and C-3 and decreasing amounts of 14C in C-2 and C-6. 5. It is concluded that neither the currently accepted reaction sequence for the non-oxidative pentose phosphate pathway nor the ‘defined’ pentose phosphate-cycle mechanism can be reconciled with the labelling patterns observed in glucose 6-phosphate formed during the inital 3 h of the incubation.
Effects of glucagon and N6O2′-dibutyryladenosine 3′:5′-cyclic monophosphate on calcium transport in isolated rat liver mitochondria
Authors: Hughes B P , Barritt G J
Published: August 2015

1. The administration of glucagon to fed rats by intraperitoneal injection, or the perfusion of livers from fed rats with glucagon by the method of Mortimore [Mortimore (1963) Am.J. Physiol. 204, 699–704] was associated with increases of 15- and 5-fold respectively, in the time for which a given load of exogenous Ca2+ is retained by mitochondria subsequently isolated from the liver. This effect of glucagon was (a) also induced by N6O2′-dibutyryl cyclic AMP, (b) completely blocked by cycloheximide, (c) relatively slow in onset (15–60 min) and (d) associated with a stimulation of about 20% in the rates of ADP-stimulated oxygen utilization and Ca2+ transport measured in the presence of succinate. 2. Perfusion of livers with glucagon resulted in the isolation of mitochandria which showed a 50% increase, no significant change and a 40% increase in the concentrations of endogenous Ca, Mg and Pi respectively, when compared with mitochondria isolated from control perfused livers. 3. The administration of insulin or adrenaline to fed rats induced increases of 10- and 8-fold respectively, in the time for which Ca2+ is retained by isolated liver mitochondria. Perfusion of livers with insulin had no effect on mitochondrial Ca2+ retention time. 4. The perfusion of livers from starved rats with glucagon, or the administration of either glucagon or insulin to starved rats, increased by about 2.5- and 15-fold respectively, the time for which isolated mitochondria retain Ca2+. 5. Mechanisms which may be responsible for the observed alterations in Ca2+-retention time are discussed.
The regulation of extramitochondrial free calcium ion concentration by rat liver mitochondria
Authors: Nicholls David G.
Published: August 2015

The mechanism whereby rat liver mitochondria regulate the extramitochondrial concentration of free Ca2+ was investigated. At 30°C and pH7.0, mitochondria can maintain a steady-state pCa2+0 (the negative logarithm of the free extramitochondrial Ca2+ concentration) of 6.1 (0.8μm). This represents a true steady state, as slight displacements in pCa2+0 away from 6.1 result in net Ca2+ uptake or efflux in order to restore pCa2+0 to its original value. In the absence of added permeant weak acid, the steady-state pCa2+0 is virtually independent of the Ca2+ accumulated in the matrix until 60nmol of Ca2+/mg of protein has been taken up. The steady-state pCa2+0 is also independent of the membrane potential, as long as the latter parameter is above a critical value. When the membrane potential is below this value, pCa2+0 is variable and appears to be governed by thermodynamic equilibration of Ca2+ across a Ca2+ uniport. Permeant weak acids increase, and N-ethylmaleimide decreases, the capacity of mitochondria to buffer pCa2+0 in the region of 6 (1μm-free Ca2+) while accumulating Ca2+. Permeant acids delay the build-up of the transmembrane pH gradient as Ca2+ is accumulated, and consequently delay the fall in membrane potential to values insufficient to maintain a pCa2+0 of 6. The steady-state pCa2+0 is affected by temperature, incubation pH and Mg2+. The activity of the Ca2+ uniport, rather than that of the respiratory chain, is rate-limiting when pCa2+0 is greater than 5.3 (free Ca2+ less than 5μm). When the Ca2+ electrochemical gradient is in excess, the activity of the uniport decreases by 2-fold for every 0.12 increase in pCa2+0 (fall in free Ca2+). At pCa2+0 6.1, the activity of the Ca2+ uniport is kinetically limited to 5nmol of Ca2+/min per mg of protein, even when the Ca2+ electrochemical gradient is large. A steady-state cycling of Ca2+ through independent influx and efflux pathways provides a model which is kinetically and thermodynamically consistent with the present observations, and which predicts an extremely precise regulation of pCa2+0 by liver mitochondria in vivo.
Interaction of progestins with steroid receptors in human uterus
Authors: Kasid Attan , Buckshee Kamal , Hingorani Veera , Laumas Kesho R.
Published: August 2015

Norethindrone (17β-hydroxy-19-nor-17α-pregn-4-en-20-yn-3-one) and norethindrone acetate (17β-acetoxy-19-nor-17α-pregn-4-en-20-yn-3-one) interfered to a varying degree, by competitive inhibition, with the binding of progesterone and oestradiol to respective cytoplasmic receptors in the human uterus. Progesterone binding to 4S macromolecule was saturable and co-specific for progestins. Competitors like norgestrel (17β-hydroxy-18-methyl-19-nor-17α-pregn-4-en-20-yn-3-one), 19-norprogesterone, medroxyprogesterone acetate (17α-acetoxy-6α-methylpregn-4-ene-3,20-dione) and compound R5020 (17,21-dimethyl-19-norpregna-4,9-diene-3,20-dione) possessed higher binding affinities for the progestin receptor. The dissociation constant (Kd) for the progesterone–receptor interaction was 0.6–1.6nm and the receptor concentration ranged between 6600 and 8200 sites/cell. Norethindrone and norethindrone acetate competed for the progesterone receptor with inhibition constants (Ki) of 6.8 and 72nm respectively. Gradient displacement and competitive-receptor assays indicated that norethindrone acetate-binding affinity for progestin receptor was approximately one-tenth that of norethindrone and progesterone. The progestins also inhibited oestradiol binding to 4.6S oestrogenic receptor by 8–12%, involving interaction at the oestradiol-binding site with a calculated Ki value of 0.5–0.8μm. The competitive interaction of progestins with steroid receptors may be of putative importance in explaining the progestin action at the target site.
The acidic ribosomal phosphoprotein of eukaryotes and its relationship to ribosomal proteins L7 and L12 of Escherichia coli
Authors: Leader D P , Coia A A
Published: August 2015

The acidic ribosomal phosphoprotein, Lgamma, of Krebs II ascites cells was further characterized and compared with proteins L7 and L12 of Escherichia coli. Ribosomal protein Lgamma was selectively removed from 60S sibosomal subunits by 50% ethanol and 1M-NH4Cl, and antibodies raised against protein Lgamma cross-reacted with E. coli protein L12 in immunodiffusion experiments. These and other, previously reported, data support the proposal that the uekaryotic counterpart of E. coli proteins L7 and L12 is phosphorylated.
Utlization of d-3-hydroxy[3-14C]butyrate for lipogenesis in vivo in lactating rat mammary gland
Authors: Robinson A M , Williamson D H
Published: August 2015

Incorporation of D-3-hydroxy[3-14C]butyrate into lipid in vivo suggests that lactating mammary gland is a major site of ketone-body utilization. The incorporation decreases in short-term insulin deficiency (2h) and on starvation (24h), but increases again on refeeding (2h). The activity of cytosolic acetoacetyl-CoA synthetase parallels the changes in nutritional state, but is not affected by short-term insulin deficiency.
Variation in tissue carnitine concentrations with age and sex in the rat
Authors: Borum Peggy R.
Published: August 2015

Diabetes, starvation and various hormonal treatments are known to alter drastically carnitine concentrations in the body. Before the mechanisms controlling carnitine metabolism could be determined, it was necessary to establish normal carnitine concentrations in both sexes at different ages. Carnitine was assayed in plasma, liver, heart and skeletal muscle of rats from birth to weaning. The plasma carnitine increased rapidly during the first 2 days after birth. Carnitine in both heart and skeletal muscle increased, whereas liver concentrations declined during the first week of life. A carnitine-free diet containing sufficient precursors for carnitine biosynthesis was fed to weanling rats. Groups of ten male and ten female rats were killed each week for 10 consecutive weeks. Carnitine was determined in plasma, liver, heart, skeletal muscle, urine and epididymis in the male. There was no difference in carnitine concentrations between the sexes at weaning. Plasma, heart and muscle concentrations were higher in adult male rats than in adult females. However, liver carnitine and urinary carnitine concentrations were higher in adult female than in adult male rats. The epididymal carnitine concentration increased very rapidly during 50 to 70 days of age and the differences in carnitine concentrations between the sexes also became apparent during this time. Thus both the age and the sex of the human subject or experimental animal must be considered when investigating carnitine metabolism.
Studies of a factor from dystrophic mouse muscle inhibitory towards protein synthesis
Authors: Petryshyn R A , Nicholls D M
Published: August 2015

A substance inhibitory to protein synthesis was purified from mouse skeletal muscle by gel filtration and ion-exchange chromatography, as well as by centrifugation on sucrose gradients. The molecular weight of the inhibitor, determined by sodium dodecyl sulphate/polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis, was 71000. The inhibitory activity was insensitive to ribonuclease A, deoxyribonuclease I and phospholipase C. It was sensitive to Pronase treatment but insensitive to heat-treatment and trypsin degradation. The present results, taken together with previous studies, indicate that the site of action of the inhibitor is not on the initiation phase of protein synthesis but rather at a step after the binding of aminoacyl-tRNA to ribosomes. The increased inhibitor activity found in dystrophic muscle is discussed.
Acetyl-coenzyme A deacylase activity in liver is not an artifact. Subcellular distribution and substrate specificity of acetyl-coenzyme A deacylase activities in rat liver
Authors: Grigat Klaus-P. , Koppe Klaus , Seufert Claus-D. , Söling Hans-D
Published: August 2015

Whole liver and isolated liver mitochondria are able to release free acetate, especially under conditions of increased fatty acid oxidation. In the present paper it is shown that rat liver contains acetyl-CoA deacylase (EC 3.1.2.1) activity (0.72μmol/min per g wet wt. of liver at 30°C and 0.5mm-acetyl-CoA). At 0.5mm-acetyl-CoA 73% of total enzyme activity was found in the mitochondria, 8% in the lysosomal fraction and 19% in the postmicrosomal supernatant. Mitochondrial subfractionation shows that mitochondrial acetyl-CoA deacylase activity is restricted to the matrix space. Mitochondrial acetyl-CoA deacylase showed almost no activity with either butyryl- or hexanoyl-CoA. Acetyl-CoA hydrolase activity from purified rat liver lysosomes exhibited a very low affinity for acetyl-CoA (apparent Km>15mm compared with an apparent Km value of 0.5mm for the mitochondrial enzyme) and reacted at about the same rate with acetyl-, n-butyryl- and hexanoyl-CoA. We could not confirm the findings of Costa & Snoswell [(1975) Biochem. J.152, 167–172] according to which mitochondrial acetyl-CoA deacylase was considered to be an artifact resulting from the combined actions of acetyl-CoA–l-carnitine acetyltransferase (EC 2.3.1.7) and acetylcarnitine hydrolase. The results are in line with the concept that free acetate released by the liver under physiological conditions stems from the intramitochondrial deacylation of acetyl-CoA.
Polypeptide-chain stoicheiometry and lipoic acid content of the pyruvate dehydrogenase complex of Escherichia coli
Authors: Hale G , Perham R N
Published: August 2015

The pyruvate dehydrogenase multienzyme complex was isolated from Escherichia coli grown in the presence of [35S]sulphate. The three component enzymes were separated by sodium dodecyl sulphate/polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis and the molar ratios of the three polypeptide chains were determined by measurement of the radioactivity in each band. The chain ratio of lipoamide dehydrogenase to lipoate acetyltransferase approached unity, but there was a molar excess of chains of the pyruvate decarboxylase component. The 35S-labelled complex was also used in a new determination of the total lipoic acid content. It was found that each polypeptide chain of the lipoate acetyltransferase component appears to bear at least three lipoyl groups.
Intraspecies heterogeneity of epidermal keratins isolated from bovine hoof and snout
Authors: Lee L D , Kubilus J , Baden H P
Published: August 2015

The alpha-keratins, the principal components of the tonafilaments, were extracted, characterized and compared in bovine hoof and snout epidermis. The alpha-fibrous proteins of these tissues are similar with respect to their molecular weights, amino acid composition and percentage of helical structure. However, distinct differences in the polypeptides comprising these proteins were observed. Sodium dodecyl sulphate/polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis of these proteins consistently showed that the polypeptide chain in snout, designated as band B (mol.wt. 67,000), was completely absent from hoof preparations. This was confirmed with several alternative preparative procedures. The peptides produced by digestion of the intact keratins from hoof and snout with CNBr were distinctly different. Finally, digestion of keratins from hoof and snout with trypsin yielded products that differed in size and resistance to further digestion. Thus, in addition to the interspecies polypeptide heterogeneity documented in the literature, this report establishes the intraspecies heterogeneity of keratins and suggests that these differences are due to either the expression of different gene products or differences in post-translational modifications in these two tissues.
Glycolipids and fatty acids of two dog kidney cell lines
Authors: Hougland A E , Gaush C R , Mayberry W R
Published: August 2015

Glycolipid and fatty acid compositions were studied in whole cells and plasma membranes from two dog kidney cell lines (Madin-Darby and SV40-transformed cells) grown in monolayer and suspension cultures. Glycolipids, which account for 5% or less of the total lipids in dog kidney cells, were substantially increased in plasma membranes relative to whole cells. Sialoglycolipids more complex than a Tay-Sachs-like ganglioside were not found in any whole-cell or plasma-membrane preparation of this study. Dog kidney cells transformed by SV40 virus contained primarily a less complex sialoglycolipid, haematoside. Neutral glycolipids comprised 26-43% of the total glycolipid content in Madin-Darby preparations, whereas in transformed cells and membranes neutral glycolipids constituted only 1-22% of the total glycolipid content. Ceramide trihexoside was found in Madin-Darby cultures, but not in transformed cultures. The values for short-chain fatty acids from neutral glycolipids and for saturated fatty acids were generally higher than the values for these fatty acids in calf serum.
β-2-Thienyl-dl-alanine as an inhibitor of phenylalanine hydroxylase and phenylalanine intestinal transport
Authors: Wapnir Raul A. , Moak Gary S.
Published: August 2015

The inhibitory properties of β-2-thienyl-dl-alanine on rat phenylalanine hydroxylase from crude liver and kidney homogenates were assessed in vitro and in vivo, as well as its effects on the intestinal transport of phenylalanine, by using a perfusion procedure in vivo. The apparent Km for liver phenylalanine hydroxylase changed from 0.61mm in the absence of the inhibitor to 2.70mm in the presence of 24mm-β-2-thienyl-dl-alanine, with no significant change in the Vmax.. For kidney the corresponding values were 0.50 and 1.60mm respectively. A single dose of β-2-thienyl-dl-alanine (2mmol/kg) failed to inhibit phenylalanine hydroxylase in either organ. Repeated injections during a 4-day period caused a decline of the enzymic activity to about 40% of controls. Intestinal absorption of phenylalanine when perfused at 0.2–2.0mm concentration was also competitively inhibited by β-2-thienyl-dl-alanine. Its Ki value was estimated at 81mm. The limited inhibitory effects of β-2-thienyl-dl-alanine towards hepatic phenylalanine hydroxylase and phenylalanine intestinal transport, and its rapid metabolism, as suggested by the small elimination of this compound in the urine and its virtual absence from animal tissues, are factors that restrict its potential usefulness as an inducer of phenylketonuria in rats or as an effective blocker of phenylalanine absorption by the gut.
A comparison of the substrate and electron-donor specificities of the methane mono-oxygenases from three strains of methane-oxidizing bacteria
Authors: Stirling D I , Colby J , Dalton H
Published: August 2015

1. Methane mono-oxygenase from Methylosinus trichosporium has the same broad substrate specificity as the analogous enzyme from Methylococcus capsulatus (Bath); the enzyme from Methylomonas methanica is more specific. 2. Contrary to previous reports, NAD(P)H and not ascorbate is the required electron donor for the enzyme from Methylosinus trichosporium. 3. It is concluded that these three bacteria contain similar methane mono-oxygenases.
‘Affinity’ chromatography of steroid-transforming enzymes with a non-steroidal ligand
Authors: Renwick A G , Chambers S M , Willcox P
Published: August 2015

The chromatographic behaviour of an avian oestradiol-17 beta dehydrogenase, the 3(17) beta-hydroxy steroid dehydrogenase from Pseudomonas testosteroni and cortisone reductase from Streptomyces dehydrogenans was studied on columns of p-(phenoxypropoxy)aniline attached to CNBr-activated Sepharose. The ligand was effective in adsorbing the oestradiol dehydrogenase from a partially purified extract of chicken liver, and the cortisone reductase was perferentially retained when mixtures of the three dehydrogenases were applied to columns in 10mM-buffer. Under these conditions the 3(17)beta-hydroxy steroid dehydrogenase was eluted in the front, but was adsorbed in the presence of 3 M-KCl. beta-N-Acetylglucosaminidase present in the liver preparation was not retained by the ligand, whereas lactate dehydrogenase from rabbit muscle was adsorbed in a manner similar to the retention pattern found on affinity chromatography with !2′,5′-ADP–Sepharose. The mean overall purification of the oestradiol dehydrogenase was 13-fold, with a mean recovery of 53%. p-(Phenoxypropoxy)aniline offers promise for the purification of steroid-transforming enzymes where elution with substrate or cofactor is not wanted. It is also suggested that the ligand may be of service in the purification of receptors of hormonal steroids.
Troponin C-like proteins (calmodulins) from mammalian smooth muscle and other tissues
Authors: Grand R J , Perry S V , Weeks R A
Published: August 2015

1. An acidic protein with properties similar to those of troponin C from rabbit skeletal muscle has been shown to be present in bovine and rabbit smooth muscles, chicken gizzard and rabbit liver, kidney and lung. 2. A simple new method involving the use of organic solvents is described for the purification of the troponin C-like proteins from various tissues. 3. The troponin C-like proteins can be distinguished from rabbit skeletal-muscle toponin C by their electrophoretic behaviour on polyacrylamide gels at pH 8.3 in the presence and absence of Ca2+. The troponin C-like proteins have been shown to form complexes with rabbit skeletal-muscle troponin I that migrate on electrophoresis in polyacrylamide gels. 4. Behaviour on electrophoresis, amino acid analysis and the patterns of CNBr digests on polyacrylamide gels indicate that the troponin C-like proteins from bovine uterus and aorta, rabbit uterus, and liver and chicken gizzard are very similar to, if not identical with, bovine brain modulator protein. 5. With bovine cardiac muscle the organic-solvent method yields a preparation consisting of roughly similar amounts of troponin C and troponin C-like protein. 6. By the isotope-dilution technique, troponin C-like protein has been shown to represent 0.42% of the total protein in rabbit uterus. 7. In homogenates of smooth muscle, rabbit lung, kidney and brain, the troponin C-like proteins form a complex with other protein (or proteins) that requires Ca2+ for its formation and that is not dissociated in 9M-urea.
Some kinetic and other properties of the isoenzymes of aspartate aminotransferase isolated from sheep liver
Authors: Orlacchio A , Campos-Cavieres M , Pashev I , Munn E A
Published: August 2015

A method for the purification of mitochondrial isoenzyme of sheep liver aspartate aminotransferase (EC 2.6.1.1) is described. The final preparation is homogeneous by ultracentrifuge analyses and polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis and has a high specific activity (182 units/mg). The molecular weight determined by sedimentation equilibrium is 87,100 +/- 680. The amino acid composition is presented; it is similar to that of other mitochondrial isoenzymes, but with a higher content of tyrosine and threonine. Subforms have been detected. On isoelectric focusing a broad band was obtained, with pI 9.14. The properties of the mitochondrial aspartate aminotransferase are compared with those of the cytoplasmic isoenzyme. The Km for L-aspartate and 2-oxoglutarate for the cytoplasmic enzyme were 2.96 +/- 0.20 mM and 0.093 +/- 0.010 mM respectively; the corresponding values for the mitochondrial form were 0.40 +/- 0.12 mM and 0.98 +/- 0.14 mM. Cytoplasmic aspartate aminotransferase showed substrate inhibition by concentrations of 2-oxoglutarate above 0.25 mM in the presence of aspartate up to 2mM. The mitochondrial isoenzyme was not inhibited in this way. Pi at pH 7.4 inhibited cytoplasmic holoenzyme activity by up to about 60% and mitochondrial holoenzyme activity up to 40%. The apparent dissociation constants for pyridoxal 5′-phosphate were 0.23 micrometer (cytoplasmic) and 0.062 micrometer (mitochondrial) and for pyridoxamine 5′-phosphate they were 70 micrometer (cytoplasmic) and 40 micrometer (mitochondrial). Pi competitively inhibited coenzyme binding to the apoenzymes; the inhibition constants at 37 degree C were 32 micrometer for the cytoplasmic isoenzyme and 19.5 micrometer for the mitochondrial form.
Kinetics and mechanism of action of aldehyde reductase from pig kidney
Authors: Davidson W S , Flynn T G
Published: August 2015

An improved procedure for purifying aldehyde reductase is described. Utilization of Blue Dextran–Sepharose 4B and elimination of hydroxyapatite chromatography greatly improves the yield and ease of purification. Starting with 340 g of kidney tissue (two pig kidneys) approx. 50 mg of purified reductase may be routinely and reproducibly obtained. The purified reductase was used to establish the kinetic reaction mechanism of the enzyme. Initial-velocity analysis and product-inhibition data revealed that pig kidney aldehyde reductase follows an Ordered Bi Bi reaction mechanism in which NADPH binds first before D-glyceraldehyde. The limiting Michaelis constants for D-glyceraldehyde and NADPH were 4.8 +/- 0.7 mM and 9.1 +/- 2.1 micrometer respectively. The mechanism is similar to that of another monomeric oxidoreductase, octopine dehydrogenase, towards which aldehyde reductase exhibits several similarities, but differs from that of other aldehyde reductases. Phenobarbital is a potent inhibitor of aldehyde reductase, inhibiting both substrate and cofactor non-competitively (Ki = 80.4 +/- 10.5 micrometer and 66.9 +/- 1.6 micrometer respectively). Barbiturate inhibition seems to be a common property of NADPH-dependent aldehyde reductases.
Control of 5-aminolaevulinate synthetase activity in Rhodopseudomonas spheroides. Binding of pyridoxal phosphate to 5-aminolaevulinate synthetase
Authors: Davies R C , Neuberger A
Published: August 2015

1. Pyridoxal 5′-phosphate is a cofactor essential for the enzymic activity of aminolaevulinate synthetase from Rhodopseudomonas spheroides. It also aids activation of the low-activity enzyme by trisulphides such as cystine trisulphide, whereas inactivation of enzyme is facilitated by its absence. 2. The fluorescence spectrum of purified high-activity enzyme is that expected for a pyridoxal phosphate–Schiff base, but the firmly bound cofactor does not appear to be at the active centre. In dilute solutions of enzyme this grouping is inaccessible to nucleophiles such as glycine, hydroxylamine, borohydride and cyanide, at pH 7.4. 3. An active-centre Schiff base is formed between enzyne and added pyridoxal phosphate, which is accessible to nucleophiles. Concentrated solutions of this enzyme–Schiff base on treatment with glycine yield apo- and semi-apoenzyme, which can re-bind pyridoxal phosphate. 4. Two types of binding of pyridoxal phosphate are distinguishable in dilute solution of enzyme, but these become indistinguishable when concentrated solutions are treated with cofactor. A change occurs in the susceptibility towards borohydride of the fluorescence of the “structural” pyridoxal phosphate. 5. One or two molecules of cofactor are bound per subunit of mol. wt. 50 000 in semiapo- or holo-enzyme. The fluorescence of pyridoxamine phosphate covalently bound to enzyme also indicates one to two nmol of reducible Schiff base per 7000 units of activity in purified and partially purified samples of enzyme. 6. Cyanide does not convert high-activity into low-activity enzyme, but with the enzyme-pyridoxal phosphate complex it forms a yellow fluorescent derivative that is enzymically active.
The intrinsic fluorescence of isolated central-nervous-system myelin-sheath preparations
Authors: Crang A J , Rumsby M G
Published: August 2015

The intrinsic fluorescence characteristics of tyrosine and tryptophan residues in the proteins of isolated central-nervous-system myelin were investigated to gain information concerning the location of these residues within the intact membrane system. Tryptophan fluorescence from isolated myelin has an emission maximum at 325 nm that appears to arise from at least two different populations of tryptophan residues. Further evidence for heterogeneity of tryptophan location in the membrane is obtained from quenching studies with chloroform and acrylamide. It is speculated that one tryptophan population is hydrophobically situated and may be derived from the proteolipid protein of myelin, whereas the other tryptophan population is located at the membrane surface and may arise from the extrinsic basic protein. A significant tyrosine fluorescence is detected from isolated myelin, indicating that some of these residues are not quenched by structural interactions within the lipid–protein membrane system. Studies with freeze-dried resuspended myelin suggest that the structural arrangement of protein components in the dried rehydrated membrane system differs significantly from that of the freshly isolated myelin membrane.
Mapping the membrane proteins of Newcastle-disease virus with a photoreactive glycolipid probe
Authors: Bramhall J S , Shiflett M A , Wisnieski B J
Published: August 2015

The envelope proteins of Newcastle-disease virus were preferentially labelled when a suspension of virus particles that contained the photoreactive probe 12-(4-azido-2-nitro-phenoxy)stearoyl[1-14C]glucosamine was irradiated. One of the proteins labelled was not readily accessible to surface labelling with 125I.
Aminotripeptidase, a cytosol enzyme from rabbit intestinal mucosa
Authors: Doumeng C , Maroux S
Published: August 2015

Aminotripeptidase, a cytosol enzyme from rabbit intestinal mucosa, was purified to homogeneity. The pure enzyme is a glycoprotein containing a very small amount of sugar. It is composed of only one subunit of 50,000 mol. wt. and possesses 1 zinc atom per molecule. Its specificity is primarily directed towards tripeptides with an N-terminal proline residue. However, the enzyme is also able to hydrolyse other tripeptides, except those with either a charged amino acid in the N-terminal position or a proline residue in the second position. The purified aminotripeptidase accounts for almost all the tripeptidase activity of the soluble fraction from intestinal mucosa.
Selective inactivation of lactate dehydrogenase of rat tissues by sodium deoxycholate
Authors: Lehnert T , Berlet H H
Published: August 2015

Soluble lactate dehydrogenase (EC 1.1.1.27) extracted from brain, skeletal and cardiac muscle and liver of rats, and purified isoenzymes LDH-1 and LDH-5, were incubated with sodium deoxycholate. Deoxycholate almost totally inactivated isoenzyme LDH-5 (A4), whereas it left isoenzyme LDH-1 (B4) unaffected. Tissue lactate dehydrogenase was inactivated to different degrees depending on the origin of the enzyme. Electrophoretic isoenzyme studies of tissue lactate dehydrogenase showed the loss of activity to be quantitatively related to the overall percentage of subunit A distributed among the homotetramer LDH-5 and the heterotetramers LDH-2, LDH-3 and LDH-4. It was concluded that subunit A of lactate dehydrogenase interacts selectively with deoxycholate, irrespective of its association with subunit B. Distinct changes in electrophoretic mobilities of deoxycholate-treated isoenzymes strongly indicated an indiscriminate binding of deoxycholate by all LDH isoenzymes, probably through hydrophobic interactions. The results suggest that the inactivation of the enzyme is non-competitive, but the basis of the selectivity of deoxycholate towards subunit A is not known at present.
The amino acid sequence of cytochrome c′ from the purple sulphur bacterium Chromatium vinosum
Authors: Ambler R P , Daniel M , Meyer T E , Bartsch R G , Kamen M D
Published: August 2015

An amino acid sequence is proposed for the cytochrome c′ from the photosynthetic purple sulphur bacterium Chromatium vinosum strain D. It is single polypeptide chain of 131 residues, with haem-attachment cysteine residues at positions 121 and 124. The results discredit an earlier report [Dus, Bartsch & Kamen (1962) J. Biol. Chem 237, 3083–3093] of a di-haem peptide sequence from this protein. The sequence belongs to the same class as the published Alcal!igenes and Rhodospirillum rubrum cytochrome c′ squences, but the resemblance is not close. Detailed evidence for the amino acid sequence of the protein has been deposited as Supplementary Publication SUP 50,093 (15 pp.) at the British Library Lending Division, Boston Spa, Wetherby, West Yorkshire LS23 7BQ, U.K., from whom copies may be obtained on the terms given in Biochem. J. (1978) 169, 5.
Cholesterol exchange as a function of cholesterol/phospholipid mole ratios
Authors: Poznansky M J , Czekanski S
Published: August 2015

The activation energy (Ea) for cholesterol exchange between dioleoyl phosphatidylcholine vesicles and erythrocyte ‘ghosts’ is measured as a function of molar percentage of cholesterol in both donor and acceptor membranes. A sharp increase in Ea occurs (from 39.9kJ/mol to 84kJ/mol) when the molar percentage of cholesterol decreases from 30 to 20%.
Effect of chronic ethanol administration on energy metabolism and phospholipase A2 activity in rat liver
Authors: Spach P I , Parce J W , Cunningham C C
Published: August 2015

1. For a period of 31 days male rats were given a liquid diet containing 36% of its energy as ethanol. Liver mitochondria from these animals demonstrated lowered respiratory control with succinate as substrate, a diminished energy-linked anilinonaphthalene-sulphonic acid fluorescence response, and lowered endogenous ATP concentrations. The phospholipid/protein ratio in mitochondria from these animals was unchanged; only minor alterations in the phospholipid fatty acid composition were observed. 2. In experiments where mitochondria were incubated at 18 degrees C in iso-osmotic sucrose (aging experiments), the above energy-linked properties were lost at an earlier time in organelles from ethanol-fed animals. Phospholipase A2 acitivty was depressed in mitochondria from control animals until respiratory control was lost and ATP was depleted. In contrast, no lag in the expression of phospholipase activity was observed in mitochondria from ethanol-fed rats. This loss of control of the phospholipase resulted in an earlier degradation of membrane phospholipids under the conditions of the aging experiments. 3. The ATPase (adenosine triphosphatase) activities, measured in freshly prepared tightly coupled mitochondria and in organelles uncoupled with carbonyl cyanide p-trifluoromethoxyphenylhydrazone, were not significantly different in ethanol-fed and liquid-diet control animals. When the mitochondria were aged at 18 degrees C, the activity increased with time of incubation in organelles from both groups of animals. A lag was observed, however, as the ATPase activity increased in control preparations. This lag was not present as APTase activity increased in mitochondria from ethanol-fed animals. 4. The significantly lowered values observed for energy-linked functions with succinate as an energy source demonstrate that ethanol elicits an alteration in liver mitochondria that affects the site II-site III regions of the oxidative-phosphorylation system. The apparent lack of control of the phospholipase A2 and ATPase activities in mitochondria from ethanol-fed animals suggests that the membrane microenvironment of these enzymes has been altered such that they can exert their catabolic effects more readily under conditions of mild perturbation. The fatty acid analyses demonstrate that the observed alterations both in the energy-linked functions and in control of the phospholipase and ATPase are not mediated through changes in the acyl chain composition of bulk-phase phospholipids.
Suppression of the formation of polyamines and macromolecules by dl-α-difluoromethylornithine and methylglyoxal bis(guanylhydrazone) in phytohaemagglutinin-activated human lymphocytes
Authors: Jänne Juhani , Hovi Tapani , Hölttä Erkki
Published: August 2015

1. The activation of human peripheral blood lymphocytes by phytohaemagglutinin in vitro was accompanied by striking increases in the concentrations of the natural polyamines putrescine, spermidine and spermine. 2. The enhanced accumulation of polyamines could be almost totally abolished by dl-α-difluoromethylornithine, a newly discovered irreversible inhibitor of l-ornithine decarboxylase (EC 4.1.1.17), or by methylglyoxal bis(guanylhydrazone) {1,1′-[(methylethanediylidene)dinitrilo]diguanidine}, an inhibitor of S-adenosyl-l-methionine decarboxylase (EC 4.1.1.50). The inhibition of polyamine accumulation was associated with a marked suppression of DNA synthesis, which was partially or totally reversed by low concentrations of exogenous putrescine, spermidine, spermine and cadaverine and by higher concentrations of 1,3-diaminopropane. 3. In contrast with some earlier studies, we found that methylglyoxal bis(guanylhydrazone), at concentrations that were sufficient to prevent polyamine accumulation, also caused a clear inhibition of protein synthesis in the activated lymphocytes. Similar results were obtained with difluoromethylornithine. The decrease in protein synthesis caused by both compounds preceded the impairment of DNA synthesis. The inhibition of protein synthesis by difluoromethylornithine was fully reversed by exogenous putrescine, spermidine and spermine, and that caused by methylglyoxal bis(guanylhydrazone) by spermidine and spermine. In further support of the idea that the inhibition of protein synthesis by these compounds was related to the polyamine depletion, we found that difluoromethylornithine caused a dose-dependent decrease in the incorporation of [14C]leucine into lymphocyte proteins which closely correlated with the decreased concentrations of cellular spermidine. 4. Difluoromethylornithine and methylglyoxal bis(guanylhydrazone) also elicited a variable depression in the incorporation of [3H]uridine and [14C]adenine into total RNA. The apparent turnover of lymphocyte RNA remained essentially unchanged in spite of severe polyamine depletion brought about by difluoromethylornithine. 5. The present results, as well as confirming the anti-proliferative action of the inhibitors of polyamine biosynthesis, suggest that polyamine depletion may interfere with reactions at different levels of gene expression.