Non-polymerizable Tropomyosin and Control of the Superprecipitation of Actomyosin

Abstract

Non-polymerizable tropomyosin was prepared by the digestion of several C-terminal residues of tropomyosin with carboxypeptidase A [EC 3.4.12.2]. The intrinsic viscosity and molecular weight of the non-polymerizable tropomyosin were almost the same as those of untreated tropomyosin. Like untreated tropomyosin, the non-polymerizable tropomyosin in combination with troponin repressed the superprecipitation of actomyosin in the absence of calcium, while this repression was released by addition of calcium. However, the curve representing the superprecipitation rate as a function of pCa was less steep than that found with actomyosin containing untreated tropomyosin: in the former case, the rate increased to a plateau over about 2 pCa units, while in the latter case, it did so over about 1 pCa unit. These experimental results provide evidence that the "co-operation" in the regulation mechanism of skeletal muscle contraction, which is indicated by the steep curve of the contraction versus pCa relation, is mediated by tropomyosin-tropomyosin interaction along the thin filament.