Sperm Whale Metmyoglobin Research Articles

In Silico Insight into the Reductive Nitrosylation of Ferric Hemeproteins.

A combination of in silico methods was used to extend the experimental description of the reductive nitrosylation mechanism in ferric hemeproteins with the molecular details of the role of surrounding amino acids. The computational strategy consisted in the estimation of potential energy profiles for the transition process associated with the interactions of the coordinated N(NO) moiety with O(H2O) or O(OH-) as nucleophiles, and with distal amino acids as proton acceptors or affecting the stability of transition states. We inspected the reductive nitrosylation in three representative hemeproteins -sperm whale metmyoglobin, α subunit of human methemoglobin and nitrophorin 4 of Rhodnius prolixus. For each case, classical molecular dynamics simulations were performed in order to obtain relevant reactive conformations, and a potential energy profile for the reactive step was obtained using adiabatic mapping or nudged elastic band approaches at the QM/MM level. Specifically, we report the role of a charged Arg45 of myoglobin in destabilizing the transition state when H2O acts as nucleophile, differently to the neutral Pro43 of the hemoglobin subunit. The case of the nitrophorin is unique in that the access of the required water molecules is scarce, thus, preventing the reaction.

Resonance Raman Probes of the Internal Binding Pocket of Dehaloperoxidase from Amphitrite ornata

Using Resonance Raman spectroscopy and activity assays we have determined that there are potent inhibitors of DHP activity and these inhibitors play a major role in the biology of DHP. Resonance Raman spectroscopy can detect substrate or inhibitor binding by monitoring shifts in the core size marker modes, ν2 and ν3, and the vinyl substituent mode, νC=C, of the heme. Para-halogenated phenols bind internally, displacing the sixth position water molecule of the iron (in agreement with X-ray crystallography) resulting in a 5-coordinate high spin heme. Tri-halogenated phenols bind externally, forcing the distal histidine into the closed conformation (also in agreement with X-ray crystallography) resulting in a 6-coordinate high spin heme. The internal and external binding sites are supported by NMR data. X-ray crystallography shows when para-halogenated phenols bind internally, the halogen plugs into a hydrophobic cavity just above the back edge of the distal pocket that is analogous to the xenon 4 binding site in Sperm whale met-myoglobin often referred to as a “packing defect.” Analysis of the X-ray crystal structures of the 4-iodo-, 4-bromo-, and 4-chlorophenol/DHP complexes show a general trend in the position of the halogenated phenol with 4-iodophenol binding farthest into the cavity followed by 4-bromophenol, and 4-chlorophenol. Using RR spectroscopy, we demonstrate that the dissociation constants of the para-halogenated phenols mimic the trend observed in X-ray crystallography with 4-iodophenol being the most tightly bound in the distal pocket. DHP clearly demonstrates the importance of the hydrophobic cavity as an inherent selector for substrates entering the distal pocket by making use of the cavity-halogen hydrophobic interaction concomitantly preventing non-halogenated substrates from binding. Using activity assays, we demonstrate that internal binding of mono-halogenated phenols inhibits the function of DHP on the externally bound tri-halogenated substrates.

Bis-methionine Ligation to Heme Iron in the Streptococcal Cell Surface Protein Shp Facilitates Rapid Hemin Transfer to HtsA of the HtsABC Transporter

The surface protein Shp of Streptococcus pyogenes rapidly transfers its hemin to HtsA, the lipoprotein component of the HtsABC transporter, in a concerted two-step process with one kinetic phase. The structural basis and molecular mechanism of this hemin transfer have been explored by mutagenesis and truncation of Shp. The heme-binding domain of Shp is in the amino-terminal region and is functionally active by itself, although inclusion of the COOH-terminal domain speeds up the process approximately 10-fold. Single alanine replacements of the axial methionine 66 and 153 ligands (Shp(M66A) and Shp(M153A)) cause formation of pentacoordinate hemin-Met complexes. The association equilibrium constants for hemin binding to wild-type, M66A, and M153A Shp are 5,300, 22,000, and 38 microM(-1), respectively, showing that the Met(153)-Fe bond is critical for high affinity binding and that Met(66) destabilizes hemin binding to facilitate its rapid transfer. Shp(M66A) and Shp(M153A) rapidly bind to hemin-free HtsA (apoHtsA), forming stable transfer intermediates. These intermediates appear to be Shp-hemin-HtsA complexes with one axial ligand from each protein and decay to the products with rate constants of 0.4-3 s(-1). Thus, the M66A and M153A replacements alter the kinetic mechanism and unexpectedly slow down hemin transfer by stabilizing the intermediates. These results, in combination with the structure of the Shp heme-binding domain, allow us to propose a "plug-in" mechanism in which side chains from apoHtsA are inserted into the axial positions of hemin in Shp to extract it from the surface protein and pull it into the transporter active site.

The Mechanism of Direct Heme Transfer from the Streptococcal Cell Surface Protein Shp to HtsA of the HtsABC Transporter

The heme-binding proteins Shp and HtsA are part of the heme acquisition machinery found in Streptococcus pyogenes. The hexacoordinate heme (Fe(II)-protoporphyrin IX) or hemochrome form of holoShp (hemoShp) is stable in air in Tris-HCl buffer, pH 8.0, binds to apoHtsA with a K(d) of 120 +/- 18 microm, and transfers its heme to apoHtsA with a rate constant of 28 +/- 6s(-1) at 25 degrees C, pH 8.0. The hemoHtsA product then autoxidizes to the hexacoordinate hemin (Fe(III)-protoporphyrin IX) or hemichrome form (hemiHtsA) with an apparent rate constant of 0.017 +/- 0.002 s(-1). HemiShp also rapidly transfers hemin to apoHtsA through a hemiShp.apoHtsA complex (K(d) = 48 +/- 7 microM) at a rate approximately 40,000 times greater than the rate of simple hemin dissociation from hemiShp into solvent (k(transfer) = 43 +/- 3s(-1) versus k(-hemin) = 0.0003 +/- 0.00006 s(-1)). The rate constants for hemin binding to and dissociation from HtsA (k'(hemin) approximately 80 microm(-1) s(-1), k(-hemin) = 0.0026 +/- 0.0002 s(-1)) are 50- and 10-fold greater than the corresponding rate constants for Shp (k(hemin) approximately 1.6 microM(-1) s(-1), k(-hemin) = 0.0003 s(-1)), which implies that HtsA has a more accessible active site. However, the affinity of apoHtsA for hemin (k(hemin) approximately 31,000 microm(-1)) is roughly 5-fold greater than that of apoShp (k(hemin) approximately 5,300 microM(-1)), accounting for the net transfer from Shp to HstA. These results support a direct, rapid, and affinity-driven mechanism of heme and hemin transfer from the cell surface receptor Shp to the ATP-binding cassette transporter system.

19F NMR Characterization of the Thermodynamics and Dynamics of the Acid−Alkaline Transition in a Reconstituted Sperm Whale Metmyoglobin

A 19F NMR study on the acid-alkaline transition in sperm whale myoglobin reconstituted with a perfluoromethyl heme, 13,17-bis(2-carboxylatoethyl)-3,8-diethyl-2,12,18-trimethyl-7-trifluoromethylporphyrinatoiron(III), demonstrated that the thermodynamics of the transition is predominantly controlled by the stability of acidic form.

High Field and Multi-Frequency EPR in Single Crystals of Sperm Whale Met-Myoglobin: Determination of the Axial Zero-Field Splitting Constant and Frequency Dependence of the Linewidth

Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) measurements for frequencies from 28.5 GHz to 608.1 GHz and magnetic field up to 14 T have been performed on single crystals of sperm whale high-spin ( S =5/2) met-myoglobin. The EPR resonance field along the c * -axis deviates from the g =5.71 straight line at high frequencies. The axial zero-field splitting constant ( D ) of the met-myoglobin sample is evaluated to be 9.47±0.05 cm -1 by analyzing the resonance fields with the S =5/2 spin Hamiltonian including the D term. The angular dependence of EPR spectra in the a b plane has been also investigated at high frequencies. Two kinds of EPR spectra are observed corresponding to two kinds of different heme sites in the unit cell. A notable change in the linewidth of the spectrum along the c *-axis occurs above 350 GHz, suggesting that the dominant relaxation process changes around 350 GHz. The origins of the linewidth are discussed.

Intra- and Intermolecular Transfers of Protein Radicals in the Reactions of Sperm Whale Myoglobin with Hydrogen Peroxide

Reaction of sperm whale metmyoglobin (SwMb) with H2O2 produces a ferryl (MbFeIV=O) species and a protein radical and leads to the formation of oligomeric products. The ferryl species is maximally formed with one equivalent of H2O2, and the maximum yields of the dimer (28%) and trimer (17%) with 1 or 2 eq. Co-incubation of the SwMb Y151F mutant with native apoSwMb and H2O2 produced dimeric products, which requires radical transfer from the nondimerizing Y151F mutant to apoSwMb. Autoreduction of ferryl SwMb to the ferric state is biphasic with t = 3.4 and 25.9 min. An intramolecular autoreduction process is implicated at low protein concentrations, but oligomerization decreases the lifetime of the ferryl species at high protein concentrations. A fraction of the protein remained monomeric. This dimerization-resistant protein was in the ferryl state, but after autoreduction it underwent normal dimerization with H2O2. Proteolytic digestion established the presence of both dityrosine and isodityrosine cross-links in the oligomeric proteins, with the isodityrosine links primarily forged by Tyr151-Tyr151 coupling. The tyrosine content decreased by 47% in the dimer and 14% in the recovered monomer, but the yields of isodityrosine and dityrosine in the dimer were only 15.2 and 6.8% of the original tyrosine content. Approximately 23% of the lost tyrosines therefore have an alternative but unknown fate. The results clearly demonstrate the concurrence of intra- and intermolecular electron transfer processes involving Mb protein radicals. Intermolecular electron transfers that generate protein radicals on bystander proteins are likely to propagate the cellular damage initiated by the reaction of metalloproteins with H2O2.

マッコウクジラメトミオグロビン単結晶の高磁場、多周波EPRによる研究

マッコウクジラメトミオグロビン単結晶の高磁場、多周波EPRによる研究

Comparative Study of Tyrosine Radicals in Hemoglobin and Myoglobins Treated with Hydrogen Peroxide

The reactions of hydrogen peroxide with human methemoglobin, sperm whale metmyoglobin, and horse heart metmyoglobin were studied by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy at 10 K and room temperature. The singlet EPR signal, one of the three signals seen in these systems at 10 K, is characterized by a poorly resolved, but still detectable, hyperfine structure that can be used to assign it to a tyrosyl radical. The singlet is detectable as a quintet at room temperature in methemoglobin with identical spectral features to those of the well characterized tyrosyl radical in photosystem II. Hyperfine splitting constants found for Tyr radicals were used to find the rotation angle of the phenoxyl group. Analysis of these angles in the crystal structures suggests that the radical resides on Tyr151 in sperm whale myoglobin, Tyr133 in soybean leghemoglobin, and either αTyr42, βTyr35, or βTyr130 in hemoglobin. In the sperm whale metmyoglobin Tyr103Phe mutant, there is no detectable tyrosyl radical present. Yet the rotation angle of Tyr103 (134 o) is too large to account for the observed EPR spectrum in the wild type. Tyr103 is the closest to the heme. We suggest that Tyr103 is the initial site of the radical, which then rapidly migrates to Tyr151.

Two-state protein model with water interactions: influence of temperature on the intrinsic viscosity of myoglobin.

We describe a single-domain protein as a two-state system with water interactions. Around the unfolded apolar parts of the protein we incorporate the hydration effect by introducing hydrogen bonds between the water molecules in order to mimic the "icelike" shell structure. Intrinsic viscosity, proportional to the effective hydrodynamic volume, for sperm whale metmyoglobin is assigned from experimental data in the folded and in the denaturated state. By weighing statistically the two states against the degree of folding, we express the total intrinsic viscosity. The temperature dependence of the intrinsic viscosity, for different chemical potentials, is in good correspondence with experimental data [P. L. Privalov et al., J. Mol. Biol. 190, 487 (1986)]. Cold and warm unfolding, common to small globular proteins, is also a result of the model.

An EPR study of the peroxyl radicals induced by hydrogen peroxide in the haem proteins

The reaction of hydrogen peroxide H 2O 2 with horse heart metmyoglobin (HH metMb), sperm whale metmyoglobin (SW metMb) and human metHb (metHbA) was studied at pH 6–8 by low temperature (10 K) EPR spectroscopy with the emphasis on the peroxyl radicals formed during the reaction. The same type of peroxyl radical was found in both myoglobin systems, as was concluded from close similarities in the spectroscopic properties of the radicals and in their kinetic dependences. This is consistent with previous reports of the peroxyl radical being localised on the Trp14 of SW and HH myoglobins. There are two types of peroxyl radical found in the metHbA/H 2O 2 system, one (ROO-I) having spectral parameters, kinetic and pH dependences similar to those of the peroxyl radical found in both myoglobin systems. The other peroxyl radical (ROO-II) found in metHbA treated with H 2O 2 has slightly different, though distinguishable, spectral parameters and a significantly different kinetic dependence as compared to those of the peroxyl radical common for all three proteins studied (ROO-I). The concentration of ROO-I radical formed in the three proteins on addition of H 2O 2 correlates with the effectiveness of incorporating molecular oxygen into styrene oxide reported before for these three proteins. It is shown that a different distance from Trp14 to haem iron in the three proteins might be the structural basis for the different yield of the peroxyl radical and the different efficiency of incorporation of molecular oxygen into styrene. The site of the peroxyl radical found only in metHbA (ROO-II) is speculated to be the Trp37 residue of the β-subunit of HbA.

Solution NMR Determination of the Anisotropy and Orientation of the Paramagnetic Susceptibility Tensor as a Function of Temperature for Metmyoglobin Cyanide: Implications for the Population of Excited Electronic States

Comprehensive 1H NMR assignments of the heme cavity proton resonances of sperm whale metmyoglobin cyanide have provided the dipolar shifts for nonligated residues which, together with the crystal coordinates of carbonyl myoglobin, allow accurate determination of both the anisotropies and orientation of the paramagnetic susceptibility tensor, χ, in the molecular framework. The resulting axial, Δχax = 2.48 × 10-8 m3/mol, and rhombic anisotropy, Δχrh = −0.58 × 10-8 m3/mol, values at 25 °C determined from the most complete set of dipolar shifts are determined to 2% and 6% uncertainty, respectively, and agree well with theoretical estimates (Horrocks, W. D., Jr. and Greenberg, E. S. Mol. Phys. 1974, 27, 993−999). Numerically and spatially restricted input data sets lead to larger uncertainties in Δχax and Δχrh, but do not systematically bias the orientation of the tensor. Determination of the anisotropies and orientation over the temperature range 5−50 °C shows that the susceptibility tensor orientation is minimally influenced, with both anisotropies well-behaved, and with Δχax exhibiting a temperature behavior close to that predicted for the system. The quantitative determination of the magnetic anisotropies over temperature allows the quantitative separation of contact and dipolar shifts for the iron ligands. The heme contact shifts reflect the expected dominant π spin density at pyrrole positions, but the meso-protons exhibit low-field contact shifts indicative of unpaired spin in a σ orbital. Such delocalized σ spin density could arise from either deformation of the heme from planarity or the loss of σ/π separation for the dxz, dyz orbitals when the major magnetic axis is tilted strongly from the heme normal as is experimentally observed. The observed anomalous temperature dependencies of the heme methyl and axial His ring contact shifts, as well as that of the rhombic anisotropy, are all consistent with thermal population of the excited orbital state. The limitations for quanitatively determining the excited orbital state energy separation from the available NMR data are discussed.

Spin-resolved X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) simulation of metmyoglobin

Spin resolved multiple scattering (MS) calculations of Fe K-edge X-ray Absorption Near Edge Structure (XANES) of myoglobin are reported for the first time. The observed differences of the Fe K-edge XANES spectra of sperm whale metmyoglobin under spin transition as a function of temperature have been studied. The method allows one to compute separately spin effects and local structural effects. The results show that spin effects are confined in the absorption rising edge in the range 7111–7130 eV, while purely structural effects are dominant in the range 7130–7170 eV. Symmetry changes of the Fe coordination sphere mainly related to its movement towards the heme plane, coupled to an increase of axial asymmetry, can explain the XANES changes observed above 7130 eV without an appreciable change of the Fe-Np distance.

Influence of proximal side mutations on the molecular and electronic structure of cyanomet myoglobin: an 1H NMR study.

A series of proximal side mutants of sperm whale metmyoglobin (metMb) that involves residues which provide hydrogen bonds to the axial His and heme have been prepared, and the CO binding and solution molecular and electronic structure has been investigated by 1H NMR. These include Ser92(F7), whose O gamma serves as a hydrogen-bond acceptor to the axial His ring NdeltaH and whose O gamma H serves as hydrogen-bond donor to the 7-propionate carboxylate, and His97(FG3) whose ring provides the other hydrogen-bond donor to the 7-propionate carboxylate. 2D NMR data on the S92A-metMbCN, S92P-metMbCN and H97F-metMbCN show that the distal structure is completely conserved and that proximal side structural changes are highly localized. For the S92A-metMbCN, altered dipolar contacts to the F-helix backbone show that the axial His imidazole has rotated clockwise by approximately 10 degrees relative to a stationary heme, while in H97F-metMbCN, the altered heme-E helix backbone contacts reveal that the heme has rotated counterclockwise by approximately 3 degrees relative to a conserved axial His. The pattern of axial His rotation was qualitatively predicted by energy minimization calculations. The assignments and conserved structural elements allow the determination of a set of magnetic axes whose major magnetic axis is unchanged with respect to WT and confirms that local distal, and not proximal, interactions control the orientation of the major magnetic axis and, by inference, the degree and direction of tilt of the Fe-CN from the heme normal. The rhombic magnetic axes in S92A-metMbCN are rotated approximately 10 degrees in the opposite direction from the established approximately 10 degrees rotation for the axial His ring as expected. It is shown, moreover, that the pairwise alpha-, gamma-meso vs beta-, delta-meso-H hyperfine shift differences are well predicted by the change in the location of the rhombic magnetic axes. Carbon monoxide ligation rates experience minor but systematic perturbation for the S92A substitutions which confirms an influence (albeit very small) for axial His orientation on ligand affinity.

Solution and Crystal Structures of a Sperm Whale Myoglobin Triple Mutant That Mimics the Sulfide-binding Hemoglobin fromLucina pectinata

The bivalve mollusc Lucina pectinata harbors sulfide-oxidizing chemoautotrophic bacteria and expresses a monomeric hemoglobin I, HbI, with normal O2, but extraordinarily high sulfide affinity. The crystal structure of aquomet Lucina HbI has revealed an active site with three residues not commonly found in vertebrate globins: Phe(B10), Gln(E7), and Phe(E11) (Rizzi, M., Wittenberg, J. B., Coda, A., Fasano, M., Ascenzi, P., and Bolognesi, M. (1994) J. Mol. Biol. 244, 86-89). Engineering these three residues into sperm whale myoglobin results in a triple mutant with approximately 700-fold higher sulfide affinity than for wild-type. The single crystal x-ray structure of the aquomet derivative of the myoglobin triple mutant and the solution 1H NMR active site structures of the cyanomet derivatives of both the myoglobin mutant and Lucina HbI have been determined to examine further the structural origin of their unusually high sulfide affinities. The major differences in the distal pocket is that in the aquomet form the carbonyl of Gln64(E7) serves as a H-bond acceptor, whereas in the cyanomet form the amido group acts as H-bond donor to the bound ligand. Phe68(E11) is rotated approximately 90 degrees about chi2 and located approximately 1-2 A closer to the iron atom in the myoglobin triple mutant relative to its conformation in Lucina HbI. The change in orientation potentially eliminates the stabilizing interaction with sulfide and, together with the decrease in size of the distal pocket, accounts for the 7-fold lower sulfide affinity of the myoglobin mutant compared with that of Lucina HbI.

Site-specific spin trapping of tyrosine radicals in the oxidation of metmyoglobin by hydrogen peroxide.

The reaction between metmyoglobin and hydrogen peroxide produces both a ferryl-oxo heme and a globin-centred radical(s) from the two oxidizing equivalents of the hydrogen peroxide. Evidence has been presented for localization of the globin-centred radical on one tryptophan residue and tyrosines 103 and 151. When the spin-trapping agent 5,5-dimethyl-1-pyrroline N-oxide (DMPO) is included in the reaction mixture, a radical adduct has been detected, but the residue at which that adduct is formed has not been determined. Replacement of either tryptophans 7 and 14 or tyrosines 146 and 151 with phenylalanine has no effect on the formation of DMPO adduct in the reaction with hydrogen peroxide. When tyrosine 103 is replaced with phenylalanine, however, only DMPOX, a product of the oxidation of the spin-trap, is detected. Tyrosine-103 is, therefore, the site of radical adduct formation with DMPO. The spin trap 2-methyl-2-nitrosopropane (MNP), however, forms radical adducts with any recombinant sperm whale metmyoglobin that contains either tyrosine 103 or 151. Detailed spectral analysis of the DMPO and MNP radical adducts of isotopically substituted tyrosine radical yield complete structural determinations. The multiple sites of trapping support a model in which the unpaired electron density is spread over a number of residues in the population of metmyoglobin molecules, at least some of which are in equilibrium with each other.

Freeze-Trapping Isomorphous Xenon Derivatives of Protein Crystals

A simple and efficient method to prepare isomorphous derivatives of protein crystals with xenon as a heavy atom is described. The method consists of exposing a crystal to xenon gas of pressures above 5 atm (~ 0.5 MPa) for several minutes and subsequently shock-freezing the crystal to immobilize the xenon dissolved in the mother liquor and bound to the protein. Diffraction data can the be collected with the established techniques of protein cryocrystallography. Two types of high-pressure device are described to expose a protein crystal to the required xenon pressure, permitting rapid freeze-quenching after xenon exposure. One of these devices can be used for gas pressures up to and exceeding 5.0 MPa, with a gas consumption of a few millilitres of uncompressed gas. The technique has been tested with monoclinic crystals of sperm-whale metmyoglobin, which has four xenon binding sites. The results of these experiments are described and discussed. Potential applications of this technique include-besides the classical multiwavelength anomalous diffraction (MAD) or single isomorphous replacement with anomalous scattering (SIRAS) experiments-the derivation of low-angle phase information by modifying the electron density of the solvent regions within the crystal.

Electron-Transfer Reactions of Metalloproteins at Electrodes and Preparation of Electro-functional Devices.

Direct electron-transfer reactions of cytochrome c, ferredoxin and myoglobin at functional electrodes have been demonstrated and the functions of the suitable surfaces for the rapid electron-transfer have been discussed. Pyridyl promoter modified gold electrodes and positively charged polypeptide modified surfaces were effective for cytochrome c and ferredoxin, respectively. Highly hydrophilic surface of indium oxide electrodes gave well-defined voltammograms of both horse heart and sperm whale metmyoglobins. These functional electrodes are applicable to various bioelectrochemical measurements, to build up bioelectrocatalytic reactions with the aid of enzyme reactions, and to develop various electrofunctional devices on the basis of protein electrochemistry.

NMR relaxometric studies of water accessibility to haem cavity in horse heart and sperm whale myoglobin

AbstractThe measurement of longitudinal relaxation rates of water protons in solutions containing horse heart and sperm whale metmyoglobins at various pH values and temperatures shows that the two species differ essentially in the exchange lifetime, τM, of the water molecule in the haem cavity. The 1/T1 nuclear magnetic relaxation dispersion dispersion profiles support this view whereas 17O NMR spectroscopy shows that the exchange mechanism involves the whole water molecule. The lack of any 1H/2H isotope effect on the exchange rate suggests that the displacement of the coordinated water molecule from Fe(III) is not the rate‐determining step in the overall exchange process. In contrast to the parent species, no difference is detectable from the relaxometric investigations on the corresponding fluorometmyoglobin derivatives.

The amino acid sequence of hemoglobin III from the symbiont-harboring clamLucina pectinata

The cytoplasmic hemoglobin III from the gill of the symbiont-harboring clam Lucina pectinata consists of 152 amino acid residues, has a calculated Mm of 18,068, including heme, and has N-acetyl-serine as the N-terminal residue. Based on the alignment of its sequence with other vertebrate and nonvertebrate globins, it retains the invariant residues Phe45 at position CD1 and His98 at the proximal position F8, as well as the highly conserved Trp16 and Pro39 at positions A12 and C2, respectively. The most likely candidate for the distal residue at position E7 is Gln66. Lucina hemoglobin III shares 95 identical residues with hemoglobin II (J. D. Hockenhull-Johnson et al., J. Prot. Chem. 10, 609-622, 1991), including Tyr at position B10, which has been shown to be capable of entering the distal heme cavity and placing its hydroxyl group within a 2.8 A of the water molecule occupying the distal ligand position, by modeling the hemoglobin II sequence using the crystal structure of sperm whale metmyoglobin. The amino acid sequences of the two Lucina globins are compared in detail with the known sequences of mollusc globins, including seven cytoplasmic and 11 intracellular globins. Relative to 75% homology between the two Lucina globins (counting identical and conserved residues), both sequences have percent homology scores ranging from 36-49% when compared to the two groups of mollusc globins. The highest homology appears to exist between the Lucina globins and the cytoplasmic hemoglobin of Busycon canaliculatum.