Single Sulfhydryl Group Research Articles

Mapping of Disulfide Bonds within the Amino-terminal Extracellular Domain of the Inhibitory Glycine Receptor

The strychnine-sensitive glycine receptor (GlyR) is a ligand-gated chloride channel and a member of the superfamily of cysteine loop (Cys-loop) neurotransmitter receptors, which also comprises the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR). Within the extracellular domain (ECD), the eponymous Cys-loop harbors two conserved cysteines, assumed to be linked by a superfamily-specific disulfide bond. The GlyR ECD carries three additional cysteine residues, two are predicted to form a second, GlyR-specific bond. The configuration of none of the cysteines of GlyR, however, had been determined directly. Based on a crystal structure of the nAChRalpha1 ECD, we generated a model of the human GlyRalpha1 where close proximity of the respective cysteines was consistent with the formation of both the Cys-loop and the GlyR-specific disulfide bonds. To identify native disulfide bonds, the GlyRalpha1 ECD was heterologously expressed and refolded under oxidative conditions. By matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry, we detected tryptic fragments of the ECD indicative of disulfide bond formation for both pairs of cysteines, as proposed by modeling. The identity of tryptic fragments was confirmed using chemical modification of cysteine and lysine residues. As evident from circular dichroism spectroscopy, mutagenesis of single cysteines did not impair refolding of the ECD in vitro, whereas it led to partial or complete intracellular retention and consequently to a loss of function of full-length GlyR subunits in human embryonic kidney 293 cells. Our results indicate that the GlyR ECD forms both a Cys-loop and a GlyR-specific disulfide bond. In addition, cysteine residues appear to be important for protein maturation in vivo.

Enhancement of Electrochemical Signal on Gold Electrodes by Polyvalent Esterase−Dendrimer Clusters

5'-Maleimide-oligodeoxynucleotide was conjugated with single sulfhydryl group of cystamine core poly(amidoamine) dendrimers of different generations. Amino groups on the dendrimer moiety were modified with maleimide and coupled to the cysteine 118 of esterase 2 from Alicyclobacillus acidocaldarius in a site-specific manner. Polyvalent esterase-dendrimer-oligodeoxynucleotide clusters were hybridized to capture oligodeoxynucleotides immobilized on a gold electrode. The amperometric signal of p-aminophenol was detected following the esterase-catalyzed hydrolysis of p-aminophenylbutyrate. The multiple anchoring of the esterase reporter via generation 3-and generation 5-derived clusters exhibited 10- and 100-fold signal enhancement, respectively, as compared to monovalent esterase-oligonucleotide conjugate. The polyvalent and monovalent reporters were comparable in their abilities regarding mismatch discrimination.

Synthesis of Sulfhydryl Cross-Linking Poly(Ethylene Glycol)-Peptides and Glycopeptides as Carriers for Gene Delivery

Sulfhydryl cross-linking poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)-peptides and glycopeptides were prepared and tested for spontaneous polymerization by disulfide bond formation when bound to plasmid DNA, resulting in stable PEG-peptide and glycopeptide DNA condensates. A 20 amino acid synthetic peptide possessing a single sulfhydryl group on the N-terminal cysteine, with two or five internal acetamidomethyl (Acm)-protected cysteine residues, was reacted with either PEG vinyl sulfone or iodoacetamide tyrosinamide triantennary N-glycan. Following RP-HPLC purification, Acm groups were removed by silver tetrafluoroborate to generate sulfhydryl cross-linking PEG-peptides and glycopeptide that were characterized by either (1)H NMR or LC-MS. Sulfhydryl cross-linking PEG-peptides and glycopeptides were found to bind to plasmid DNA and undergo disulfide cross-linking resulting in stable DNA condensates with potential utility for in vivo gene delivery.

S-Transnitrosylation of albumin in human plasma and blood in vitro and in vivo in the rat

S-Nitrosoalbumin (SNOALB) is the most abundant physiological circulating nitric oxide (NO) carrier regulating NO-dependent biological actions in humans. The mechanisms of its formation and biological actions are still incompletely understood. Nitrosation by authentic NO and S-transnitrosylation of the single sulfhydryl group located at Cys-34 of human albumin by the physiological S-nitroso compounds S-nitrosocysteine (SNOC) and S-nitrosoglutathione (GSNO) are two possible mechanisms. On a quantitative basis, we investigated by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry the contribution of these two mechanisms to SNOALB formation in human plasma and blood in vitro. GSNO and SNOC (0–100 μM) rapidly and efficiently (recovery=35%) S-transnitrosylated albumin to form SNOALB. NO (100 μM) S-nitrosated albumin to SNOALB at a considerably lower extent (recovery=5%). The putative NO-donating drugs glyceryl trinitrate and sodium nitroprusside (each 100 μM) failed completely in S-nitrosating albumin. Bubbling NO into human plasma and blood resulted in formation of SNOALB that inhibited ADP-induced platelet aggregation. Infusion of GS 15NO in the rat resulted in formation of S 15NOALB, [ 15N]nitrate and [ 15N]nitrite. Our results suggest that S-transnitrosylation of albumin by SNOC and GSNO could be a more favored mechanism for the formation of SNOALB in the circulation in vivo than S-nitrosation of albumin by NO itself.

Chemical modification of rat hepatic microsomes with N-ethylmaleimide results in inactivation of both UDP- N-acetylglucosamine-dependent stimulation of glucuronidation and UDP-glucuronic acid uptake

Chemical modification of rat hepatic microsomes with N-ethylmaleimide (NEM) resulted in inactivation of UDP- N-acetylglucosamine (UDP-GlcNAc)-dependent stimulation of glucuronidation of p-nitrophenol. Inactivation kinetics and pH dependence were in agreement with the modification of a single sulfhydryl group. NEM also inactivated the uptake of UDP-glucuronic acid (UDP-GlcUA) but not UDP-glucose. With various sulfhydryl-modifying reagents, the inactivation of UDP-GlcUA uptake was linked to that of glucuronidation. UDP-GlcUA protected against NEM-sensitive inactivation of both UDP-GlcNAc-dependent stimulation of glucuronidation and UDP-GlcUA uptake, suggesting that the sulfhydryl group is located within or near the UDP-GlcUA binding site of the microsomal protein involved in the stimulation. Using microsomes labeled with biotin-conjugated maleimide and immunopurification with anti-peptide antibody against UDP-glucuronosyltransferase family 1 (UGT1) isozymes, immunopurified UGT1s were found to be labeled with the maleimide and UDP-GlcUA protected against the labeling as it did with the NEM-sensitive inactivation. These data suggest the involvement of a sulfhydryl residue of microsomal protein in the UDP-GlcNAc-dependent stimulation mechanism via the stimulation of UDP-GlcUA uptake into microsomal vesicles.

Kinetics of peroxynitrite reaction with amino acids and human serum albumin

S-Nitrosoalbumin (SNOALB) is the most abundant physiological circulating nitric oxide (NO) carrier regulating NO-dependent biological actions in humans. The mechanisms of its formation and biological actions are still incompletely understood. Nitrosation by authentic NO and S-transnitrosylation of the single sulfhydryl group located at Cys-34 of human albumin by the physiological S-nitroso compounds S-nitrosocysteine (SNOC) and S-nitrosoglutathione (GSNO) are two possible mechanisms. On a quantitative basis, we investigated by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry the contribution of these two mechanisms to SNOALB formation in human plasma and blood in vitro. GSNO and SNOC (0–100 μM) rapidly and efficiently (recovery=35%) S-transnitrosylated albumin to form SNOALB. NO (100 μM) S-nitrosated albumin to SNOALB at a considerably lower extent (recovery=5%). The putative NO-donating drugs glyceryl trinitrate and sodium nitroprusside (each 100 μM) failed completely in S-nitrosating albumin. Bubbling NO into human plasma and blood resulted in formation of SNOALB that inhibited ADP-induced platelet aggregation. Infusion of GS15NO in the rat resulted in formation of S15NOALB, [15N]nitrate and [15N]nitrite. Our results suggest that S-transnitrosylation of albumin by SNOC and GSNO could be a more favored mechanism for the formation of SNOALB in the circulation in vivo than S-nitrosation of albumin by NO itself.

Intramolecular oxidation of cytochrome c by covalently attached sulfoaromatic molecules

Two photosensitive molecules, 1-maleimidopyrene-3,6,8-trisulfonate (MPTS) and N-acetylaminoethyl-1-aminonaphthalene-5-sulfonate (AEDANS), are employed to drive the intramolecular oxidation of the heme residue in cytochrome c. Intense pulse illumination (60–120 MW cm −2) of MPTS and AEDANS in the aqueous solution by the third harmonic frequency of Nd–Yag laser drives a two successive-photon process of the dyes. The oxidized products originating from the dyes react with variety of electron donors. MPTS and AEDANS residues were covalently linked the Saccharomyces cerevisiae iso-1-cytochrome c by labeling of its single sulfhydryl group. When pulsed by intensive laser beam the heme of the labeled ferrocytochrome c undergoes fast oxidation. Transient absorption spectroscopy was used to directly measure the rate constants for the photoinduced electron-transfer reaction from the ferros heme group to the oxidized dyes. The rate constant was found to be (3.6±0.4)×10 4 s −1 for MPTS derivative. The rate of the heme oxidation in AEDANS derivative was faster than response time of our detection system (20 ns). Rapid photooxidation of cytochrome c makes it a useful tool for fast initiation of electron transfer in oxidized direction within complexes of cytochrome c with the other redox proteins.

Accessibility of protein sulfhydryl groups to nitroxyl spin labels

3-(2-Methenylindane-1,3-dione)-1-oxyl-2,2,5,5-tetramethylpyrroline (5-InVSL) is an effective nitroxyl spin label of biological macromolecules, attached rigidly due to its bulky planar side group and the anchoring capability of its oxo groups to protein via hydrogen bonding. Comparing an integral membrane protein, the Ca 2+-ATPase of sarcoplasmic reticulum (M.W. 113 kD) and the water-soluble hemoglobin (M.W. 64 kD) several notable differences were observed in the labeling processes. Hemoglobin has a single sulfhydryl group in the protein interior (β93), whereas Ca 2+-ATPase has two classes of labeling sites which have different accessibilities to the aqueous phase. Since the single labeling site of hemoglobin is not exposed to the aqueous phase the labeling efficiency depends on steric hindrance arising due to the bulky side group which, on the other hand, is rather useful for limiting segmental motion of this label in Ca 2+-ATPase. As a consequence, paramagnetic quenching is proposed for the calibration of spectral parameters used in saturation-transfer ESR of spin-labeled hemoglobin with 5-InVSL, to mask the signals of nitroxyls released via the retro-Michael reaction.

Probing the Active Site of the Reconstituted Carnitine Carrier from Rat Liver Mitochondria with Sulfhydryl Reagents. A Cysteine Residue is Localized in or Near the Substrate Binding Site

The interaction of sulfhydryl reagents with the carnitine carrier of rat liver mitochondria was studied in detail in proteoliposomes. The addition of N-ethylmaleimide, mercurials at low concentrations, Cu(2+)-phenanthroline and diamide modified a single sulfhydryl group (the class II group) that is involved in transport function. The treatment of the inhibited protein with 1,4-dithioerythritol led to full recovery of carnitine exchange except for N-ethylmaleimide. Evidence is provided that the addition of carnitine to the carrier blocks the interaction of the sulfhydryl reagents with the protein. This result strongly suggests that the critical cysteine residue is localized in, or near, the substrate binding site. Interaction of other cysteine residues in the carrier protein with high concentrations of mercurials modified another class of sulfhydryl groups (the class I group) that are not directly involved in carnitine transport. The oxidized and reduced forms of the carnitine carrier show slightly different molecular masses on SDS/PAGE. Disulfide bridge(s) induced by Cu(2+)-phenanthroline and diamide are present in a single polypeptide part of the protein and induced no disulfide bridges between two polypeptide chains.

Probing the Active Site of the Reconstituted Carnitine Carrier from Rat Liver Mitochondria with Sulfhydryl Reagents. A Cysteine Residue is Localized in or Near the Substrate Binding Site

The interaction of sulfhydryl reagents with the carnitine carrier of rat liver mitochondria was studied in detail in proteoliposomes. The addition of N-ethylmaleimide, mercurials at low concentrations, Cu(2+)-phenanthroline and diamide modified a single sulfhydryl group (the class II group) that is involved in transport function. The treatment of the inhibited protein with 1,4-dithioerythritol led to full recovery of carnitine exchange except for N-ethylmaleimide. Evidence is provided that the addition of carnitine to the carrier blocks the interaction of the sulfhydryl reagents with the protein. This result strongly suggests that the critical cysteine residue is localized in, or near, the substrate binding site. Interaction of other cysteine residues in the carrier protein with high concentrations of mercurials modified another class of sulfhydryl groups (the class I group) that are not directly involved in carnitine transport. The oxidized and reduced forms of the carnitine carrier show slightly different molecular masses on SDS/PAGE. Disulfide bridge(s) induced by Cu(2+)-phenanthroline and diamide are present in a single polypeptide part of the protein and induced no disulfide bridges between two polypeptide chains.

Probing the Active Site of the Reconstituted Carnitine Carrier from Rat Liver Mitochondria with Sulfhydryl Reagents. A Cysteine Residue is Localized in or Near the Substrate Binding Site

The interaction of sulfhydryl reagents with the carnitine carrier of rat liver mitochondria was studied in detail in proteoliposomes. The addition of N-ethylmaleimide, mercurials at low concentrations, Cu2+-phenanthroline and diamide modified a single sulfhydryl group (the class II group) that is involved in transport function. The treatment of the inhibited protein with 1,4-dithioerythritol led to full recovery of carnitine exchange except for N-ethylmaleimide. Evidence is provided that the addition of carnitine to the carrier blocks the interaction of the sulfhydryl reagents with the protein. This result strongly suggests that the critical cysteine residue is localized in, or near, the substrate binding site. Interaction of other cysteine residues in the carrier protein with high concentrations of mercurials modified another class of sulfhydryl groups (the class I group) that are not directly involved in carnitine transport. The oxidized and reduced forms of the carnitine carrier show slightly different molecular masses on SDS/PAGE. Disulfide bridge(s) induced by Cu2+-phenanthroline and diamide are present in a single polypeptide part of the protein and induced no disulfide bridges between two polypeptide chains.

Design of a Ruthenium-Cytochrome c Derivative to Measure Electron Transfer to the Initial Acceptor in Cytochrome c Oxidase

A ruthenium-labeled cytochrome c derivative was prepared to meet two design criteria: the ruthenium group must transfer an electron rapidly to the heme group, but not alter the interaction with cytochrome c oxidase. Site-directed mutagenesis was used to replace His39 on the backside of yeast C102T iso-1-cytochrome c with a cysteine residue, and the single sulfhydryl group was labeled with (4-bromomethyl-4' methylbipyridine) (bis-bipyridine)ruthenium(II) to form Ru-39-cytochrome c (cyt c). There is an efficient pathway for electron transfer from the ruthenium group to the heme group of Ru-39-cyt c comprising 13 covalent bonds and one hydrogen bond. Electron transfer from the excited state Ru(II*) to ferric heme c occurred with a rate constant of (6.0 +/- 2.0) x 10(5) s-1, followed by electron transfer from ferrous heme c to Ru(III) with a rate constant of (1.0 +/- 0.2) x 10(6) s-1. Laser excitation of a complex between Ru-39-cyt c and beef cytochrome c oxidase in low ionic strength buffer (5 mM phosphate, pH7) resulted in electron transfer from photoreduced heme c to CuA with a rate constant of (6 +/- 2) x 10(4) s-1, followed by electron transfer from CuA to heme a with a rate constant of (1.8 +/- 0.3) x 10(4) s-1. Increasing the ionic strength to 100 mM leads to bimolecular kinetics as the complex is dissociated. The second-order rate constant is (2.5 +/- 0.4) x 10(7) M-1s-1 at 230 mM ionic strength, nearly the same as that of wild-type iso-1-cytochrome c.

Intramolecular electron transfer in cytochrome b5 labeled with ruthenium(II) polypyridine complexes: rate measurements in the Marcus inverted region

Three derivatives of recombinant T65C-cytochrome b 5 were produced by labeling the single sulfhydryl group at Cys-65 with (4-(bromomethyl)-4'-methylbipyridine)bis(bipridine)ruthenium(2+), (4-bromomethyl-4'-methylbipyridine)bis(4,4'-dimethylbipyridine)ruthenium(2+), and (4-(bromomethyl)-4'-methylbipyridine)(bipyrimidine)-(bipyridine)ruthenium(2+). The ruthenium labels are linked to the heme iron through a well-defined 12-covalent-bond path and provide a range of free energies of reaction which bracket the expected reorganizational energy of 0.94 eV

Intracomplex electron transfer between ruthenium-65-cytochrome b5 and position-82 variants of yeast iso-1-cytochrome c.

We tested the idea that the aromatic ring on the invariant residue Phe-82 in cytochrome c acts as an electron-transfer bridge between cytochrome c and cytochrome b5. Ru-65-cyt b5 was prepared by labeling the single sulfhydryl group on T65C cytochrome b5 with [4-(bromomethyl)-4'-methylbipyridine][bis(bipyridine)]ruthenium 2+ as previously described [Willie, A., Stayton, P.S., Sligar, S.G., Durham, B., & Millett, F. (1992) Biochemistry 31, 7237-7242]. Laser excitation of the complex formed between Ru-65-cyt b5 and Saccharomyces cerevisiae iso-1-cytochrome c at low ionic strength results in rapid electron transfer from the excited-state Ru(II*) to the heme group of Ru-65-cyt b5 followed by biphasic electron transfer to the heme group of cytochrome c with rate constants of (1.0 +/- 0.2) x 10(5) s-1 and (2.0 +/- 0.04) x 10(4) s-1. Variants of iso-1-cytochrome c substituted at Phe-82 with Tyr, Gly, Leu, and Ile have fast-phase rate constants of 0.4, 1.9, 2.1, and 2.0 x 10(5) s-1 and slow-phase rate constants of 5.3, 3.5, 2.4, and 2.0 x 10(3) s-1, respectively. Increasing the ionic strength to 50 mM results in single-phase intracomplex electron transfer with rate constants of 3.8, 3.1, 3.0, 5.0, and 4.5 x 10(4) s-1 for the wild-type, Tyr, Gly, Leu, and Ile variants, respectively. These results demonstrate that an aromatic side chain at residue 82 is not needed for rapid electron transfer with cytochrome b5. Furthermore, two conformational forms of the complex are present at low ionic strength with fast and slow electron-transfer rates.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Genetic engineering of redox donor sites: measurement of intracomplex electron transfer between ruthenium-65-cytochrome b5 and cytochrome c.

The de novo design and synthesis of ruthenium-labeled cytochrome b5 that is optimized for the measurement of intracomplex electron transfer to cytochrome c are described. A single cysteine was substituted for Thr-65 of rat liver cytochrome b5 by recombinant DNA techniques [Stayton, P. S., Fisher, M. T., & Sligar, S. G. (1988) J. Biol. Chem. 263, 13544-13548]. The single sulfhydryl group on T65C cytochrome b5 was then labeled with [4-(bromomethyl)-4'-methylbipyridine] (bisbipyridine)ruthenium2+ to form Ru-65-cyt b5. The ruthenium group at Cys-65 is only 12 A from the heme group of cytochrome b5 but is not located at the binding site for cytochrome c. Laser excitation of the complex between Ru-65-cyt b5 and cytochrome c results in electron transfer from the excited state Ru(II*) to the heme group of Ru-65-cyt b5 with a rate constant greater than 10(6) s-1. Subsequent electron transfer from the heme group of Ru-65-cyt b5 to the heme group of cytochrome c is biphasic, with a fast-phase rate constant of (4 +/- 1) x 10(5) s-1 and a slow-phase rate constant of (3 +/- 1) x 10(4) s-1. This suggests that the complex can assume two different conformations with different electron-transfer properties. The reaction becomes monophasic and the rate constant decreases as the ionic strength is increased, indicating dissociation of the complex.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Photoinduced electron transfer between cytochrome c peroxidase and yeast cytochrome c labeled at Cys 102 with (4-bromomethyl-4'-methylbipyridine)[bis(bipyridine)]ruthenium2+.

The synthesis of (4-bromomethyl-4'-methylbipyridine) [bis(bipyridine)]ruthenium(II) hexafluorophosphate is described. This new reagent was found to selectively label the single sulfhydryl group at Cys-102 on yeast iso-1-cytochrome c to form the (dimethylbipyridine-Cys-102-cytochrome c)[bis(bipyridine)]ruthenium derivative (Ru-102-cyt c). Excitation of Ru-102-cyt c with a short light flash resulted in formation of excited-state Ru(II*), which rapidly transferred an electron to the ferric heme group to form Fe(II). When the cytochrome c peroxidase compound I (CMPI) was present in the solution, electron transfer from photoreduced Fe(II) in Ru-102-cyt c to the radical site in CMPI was observed. At high ionic strength (100 mM sodium phosphate and 25 mM EDTA, pH 7), second-order kinetics were observed with a rate constant of (7.5 +/- 0.7) x 10(7) M-1 s-1. The second-order rate constant for native iso-1-cytochrome c was (6.7 +/- 0.7) x 10(7) M-1 s-1 under these conditions. The second-order rate constant for electron transfer from Ru-102-cyt c to the radical site in CMPI increased as the ionic strength was decreased, reaching a value of (4.8 +/- 0.5) x 10(8) M-1 s-1 in 40 mM EDTA, pH 7. At lower ionic strength, a complex was formed between Ru-102-cyt c and CMPI, and the rate for intracomplex electron transfer to the radical site was found to be greater than 50,000 s-1.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Intramolecular long-range electron transfer in the hemerythrin monomer: A pulse radiolysis study

The single sulfhydryl group (Cys-50) of the methemerythrin from Phascolosoma gouldii reacts with 5,5′dithiobis(2-nitrobenzoic acid) to form a mixed disulfide. The pulse radiolytically generated formate radical reduces this mixed disulfide to its radical anion. In turn, the disulfide radical anion reduces the protein two-iron center over a nomical distance of 13 Å. The rate constant for this intramolecular electron transfer is approximately 15 s −1 at room temperature, pH 7. Between the two redox centers there is an equilibrium driving force of 0.78 V, measured by differential pulsed polarography.

Labile disulfide bonds in human placental insulin receptor.

The disulfide crosslinking pattern of human placental insulin receptor was investigated using selective reduction with tributylphosphine followed by alkylation with N-[3H]ethylmaleimide. Insulin receptor contains a single sulfhydryl group in each beta subunit whose alkylation with N-[3H]ethylmaleimide inhibits receptor autophosphorylation. Alkylation is partially inhibited by ATP or the nonhydrolyzable substrate analog adenosine 5'-[beta,gamma-imido]triphosphate when the nucleotides are added as Mn2+ complexes. Neither insulin nor 6 M guanidinium chloride renders additional sulfhydryl groups accessible to alkylation. When the receptor is reduced under drastic conditions with tributylphosphine in guanidinium chloride, 32 of the 37 sulfhydryl groups in the receptor's alpha subunit can be alkylated with N-[3H]ethylmaleimide. Surprisingly only three of the 10 cysteines in the beta subunit become titratable under identical conditions. By using highly selective reducing conditions, we were able to determine quantitatively the maximum number of disulfide bridges that link the two alpha beta halves to form the tetrameric structure and those that couple the alpha to the beta subunits. Liberation of two sulfhydryl groups in the alpha and one in the beta subunit resulted in formation of alpha beta dimers. Free beta subunit was formed when an additional disulfide bond was reduced. It is remarkable that the tetrameric structure of this highly complex receptor molecule, which contains a large number of cysteine residues, is maintained by such a small number of disulfide bonds. Three models of the arrangement of the labile disulfide bonds, consistent with these findings, are proposed.

P-Hydroxybenzoate hydroxylase from Pseudomonas desmolytica: Relative molecular mass, amino acid composition, and reactivity of sulfhydryl groups.

The relative molecular mass (Mr) of p-hydroxybenzoate hydroxylase from Pseudomonas desmolytica was measured by SDS-PAGE and gel filtration. The enzyme was a dimer of identical subunits with Mr of 44,000 and with one mole of FAD per subunit. The isoelectric point was 4.9. The amino acid composition was also identified. The enzyme contained 6 sulfhydryl groups per FAD. Modification of the groups with p-chloromereuribenzoate accompanied inactivation which obeyed a biphasic kinetics. The faster reaction corresponded to 80% of the total inactivation. p-Hydroxybenzoate and chloride ion (an inhibitor with respect to NADPH) increased the rate of the faster inactivation reaction, but NADPH had a protective effect. p-Hydroxybenzoate markedly restricted the amount of sulfhydryl groups reactive to p-chloromercuribenzoate. The fast phase inactivation could be ascribed to modification of a single sulfhydryl group. The results are highly indicative of the existence of a sulfhydryl group in the NADPH-binding site.

Circular dichroic study of the conformational stability of sulfhydryl-blocked bovine serum albumin

1. 1. The blockage of the single sulfhydryl-group of bovine serum albumin does not alter the secondary structure, although the α-helical structure is destabilized since lower concentrations of guanidine and of urea unfold the protein. 2. 2. What happens to the previously helical structure depends upon the reagent used to block the sulfhydryl-group. Bovine serum albumin derivatized with 5, 5'-dithiobis-(2-nitrobenzoic acid) and iodoacetate preferentially acquire the β-structure in high concentrations of guanidine and urea, whereas iodoacetamide-derivatized bovine serum albumin acquires primarily the random coil structure. 3. 3. Part of the helical structure is also lost in 5–6 mM sodium dodecyl sulfate; thionitrobenzoate-bovine serum albumin shows an increase in the random coil, whereas the two alkylated proteins display the increase both in β-structure and random coil. 4. 4. Carboxymethylation or carboxamidomethylation of fully reduced bovine serum albumin results in a drastic change in the secondary structure of the protein with a substantial decrease in α-helix and a corresponding increase in both β-structure and random coil. These extensively alkylated proteins also display differences in denaturation profiles in solutions of guanidine and urea.