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In heme-containing proteins the heme group is usually non-covalently bound in a pocket. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations have been performed to estimate the barrier height for heme–protein separation. In simulations of myoglobin dissolved in water, a force has been applied to pull the heme out of the binding pocket. With forces above 0.5 nN, the heme group is easily pulled out of the pocket in times of the order of tens of picoseconds. With weaker forces, heme release becomes too slow to be monitored in an MD simulation covering a couple of hundred picoseconds. These results are consistent with a free energy barrier to heme release of about 100 kJ/mol. The results show that the main energetic change that occurs during the release is a conversion of heme/protein Lennard–Jones energy into heme/water Lennard–Jones energy. The release is essentially barrierless in energy indicating that the main part of the barrier is entropic.

Structural insights into serpin-protease complexes reveal the inhibitory mechanism of serpins.

Inhibitors that belong to the serine protease inhibitor or serpin family have reactive centers that constitute a mobile loop with P1-P1' residues acting as a bait for cognate protease. Current hypotheses are conflicting as to whether the native serpin-protease complex is a tetrahedral intermediate with an intact inhibitor or an acyl-enzyme complex with a cleaved inhibitor P1-P1' peptide bond. Here we show that the P1' residue of the plasminogen activator inhibitor type 1 mutant (P1' Cys) became more accessible to radiolabeling in complex with urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA) compared with its complex with catalytically inactive anhydro-uPA, indicating that complex formation with cognate protease leads to a conformational change whereby the P1' residue becomes more accessible. Analysis of chemically blocked NH2 termini of serpin-protease complexes revealed that the P1-P1' peptide bonds of three different serpins are cleaved in the native complex with their cognate protease. Complex formation and reactive center cleavage were found to be rapid and coordinated events suggesting that cleavage of the reactive center loop and the subsequent loop insertion induce the conformational changes required to lock the serpin-protease complex.

Plasminogen activator inhibitor type 2 (PAI-2) is the only wild-type serpin that polymerizes spontaneously under physiological conditions. We show that PAI-2 loses its ability to polymerize following reduction of thiol groups, suggesting that an intramolecular disulfide bond is essential for the polymerization. A novel disulfide bond was identified between C79 (in the CD-loop) and C161 (at the bottom of helix F). Substitution mutants in which this disulfide bond was broken did not polymerize. Reactive center loop peptide insertion experiments and binding of bis-ANS to hydrophobic cavities indicate that the C79-C161 disulfide bond stabilizes PAI-2 in a polymerogenic conformation with an open A-beta-sheet. Elimination of this disulfide bond causes A-beta-sheet closure and abrogates the polymerization. The finding that cytosolic PAI-2 is mostly monomeric, whereas PAI-2 in the secretory pathway is prone to polymerize, suggests that the redox status of the cell could regulate PAI-2 polymerization. Taken together, our data suggest that the CD-loop functions as a redox-sensitive switch that converts PAI-2 between an active stable monomeric and a polymerogenic conformation, which is prone to form inactive polymers.

The slow, spontaneous release of hemin from earthworm, Lumbricus terrestris, hemoglobin has been studied under mild conditions in the presence of excess apomyoglobin. This important protein is surprisingly unstable. The reaction is best described as hemin released from the globin into water, followed by quick engulfment by apomyoglobin. The energetics of this reaction are compared with those of other types of hemoglobins. Anomalously low activation energy and enthalpy are counterbalanced by a negative entropy. These values reflect significant low frequency protein motion and dynamics of earthworm hemoglobin and may also indicate an open structure distal to the heme. This is also supported by the infrared spectrum of the carbonyl hemoprotein, which indicates several types of distal interactions with the bound CO. The reported low heme to polypeptide ratio for this protein may be due to facile heme and hemin release by the circulating protein.

Slow heme transfer from horseradish peroxidases C2 and A2, cytochrome c peroxidase, chloroperoxidase, and leghemoglobins to a heme acceptor protein, apomyoglobin, has been studied under mild conditions. The reaction is best described as heme release into water followed by quick engulfment by apomyoglobin. The energetics of the activated process are large and interpreted as connected to both polypeptide motions during release and the ordering of water around the heme during solvation. The free energy required to break the iron(III)-ligand 5 (L5) bond is a minor but crucial portion of the activation free energy. Donor-acceptor protein interactions are not involved in the transfer. Fast heme release from inactive protein has also been observed. Apoprotein recombination with porphyrins and hemes suggest that this lack of activity is a result of Fe-L5 bond breaking. Slow heme transfer from horseradish peroxidases C2 and A2, cytochrome c peroxidase, chloroperoxidase, and leghemoglobins to a heme acceptor protein, apomyoglobin, has been studied under mild conditions. The reaction is best described as heme release into water followed by quick engulfment by apomyoglobin. The energetics of the activated process are large and interpreted as connected to both polypeptide motions during release and the ordering of water around the heme during solvation. The free energy required to break the iron(III)-ligand 5 (L5) bond is a minor but crucial portion of the activation free energy. Donor-acceptor protein interactions are not involved in the transfer. Fast heme release from inactive protein has also been observed. Apoprotein recombination with porphyrins and hemes suggest that this lack of activity is a result of Fe-L5 bond breaking. Upprättat; 1991; 20080613 (ysko)

The reduction of lactoperoxidase with sodium dithionite has been studied by means of stopped-flow spectrophotometry in an anaerobic system. Under pseudo-first-order conditions the rate constant was found to be linearly dependent on the square root of the dithionite concentration, which confirms the monomeric radical, SO2- as the reducing species. The second-order rate constant is moderately influenced by increased ionic strength but drastically increased at lower pH. The pH dependence supports the previously suggested existence of a carboxyl group, essential to the different enzymatic functions of lactoperoxidase. The second-order rate constant for the reduction of lactoperoxidase at pH 7.0 (kappa 1 = 1.3 X 10(5) M-1 s-1) was about three times higher than the rate constant for the reduction of cyanide-bound lactoperoxidase and two times the rate constant for the reduction of the fluoride-lactoperoxidase complex.

The dithionite ion is catalytically disproportionated by lactoperoxidase with Km = 0.36 mM in 100 mM glycine HCl pH 3.0. The products formed are thiosulfate and hydrogensulfite ions. The rate of reaction is considerably increased at low pH with a pKa at 3-3.5 possibly indicating the involvement of a carboxyl group. The reaction is competitively inhibited by hydrogensulfite, Ki = 5.5 mM in 100 mM glycine HCl pH 3.50. Four different spectral forms of reduced lactoperoxidase appear during the reaction. The first two forms are found during the lag phase of the reaction. The third form, which is interpreted as a ternary complex, exists under the dismutation phase. After exhaustion of the substrate a visible spectrum similar to that of lactoperoxidase H2O2 compound III appears. A mechanistic model for the lactoperoxidase dismutation of the dithionite ion is proposed and discussed.

Lactoperoxidase is an animal protein which participates in antimicrobial mechanisms [I]. Its electron donor profile differs from that of plant peroxidases regarding halide ions [2]. Isolation procedures are available but somewhat tedious [3--S]. Plant isoperoxidases with different affinities for aromatic substrates can be separated on phenylSepharoseR [6]. This observation has now been developed into an isolation procedure for LP. Its essential features are alternations between column materials with ionic and hydrophobic binding forces. The opposite requirements for ionic strength minimize the number of dialyses. The binding of LP to phenyland octyl-Sepharose is compared to the binding of horseradish peroxidase to both Sepharoses. Attempts are made to relate these adsorptions to optically operable equilibria between the peroxidases and free, aromatic ligands. Plant peroxidases can be isolated by means of affinity chromatography on hydroxamic acid-BioGel AR [7]. An imidazolecarrying polysaccharide binds hemoglobin and myoglobin specifically and unspecifically [8]. Sepharose-concanavalin A binds the glycoprotein HRP [9,10].

Carbonylhorseradish peroxidase isoenzyme C2 (EC 1.11.1.7) exhibits two bands in the infrared spectrum attributable to the ligand CO at 1933.5 and 1905 cm−1. Replacement of H2O by D2O results in shifts to both bands to new positions at 1932.5 and 1902.5 cm−1. The results indicate strong hydrogen bonding to the terminal oxygen of CO, of strength comparable to that recently observed for oxyhemoglobin and oxymyoglobin.

A multitude of external signals induce extensive phosphorylation of Oncoprotein 18 (Op18), which suggests a putative role for this protein in signal transduction. We have recently identified two distinct proline-directed kinase families that phosphorylates Op18 with overlapping but distinct site preference. These two kinase families, mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinases and cyclin-dependent cdc2 kinases, are involved in receptor- and cell cycle-regulated phosphorylation events, respectively. In the present study, site-specific phosphorylation of Op18 in response to stimulation of the antigen receptor-associated CD3 complex was analyzed in the Jurkat T cell-line. The results show that CD3-induced phosphorylation of Ser-25 of Op18, which is the primary MAP kinase phosphorylation site, can be induced by an apparently protein kinase C (PKC)-independent signal transduction pathway. We also demonstrate that Ser-16 of Op18 is specifically phosphorylated in response to the Ca2+ signal generated by CD3 stimulation or by the Ca2+ ionophore ionomycin. Ser-16 phosphorylation occurs independently of both PKC and MAP kinase activation. Using site-specific Op18 mutants and tryptic phosphopeptide mapping, we show that phosphorylation of Ser-16 of Op18 together with Ser-25, or Ser-25 and Ser-38, generates two Op18 phosphoisomers showing a dramatic electrophoretic retardation. In conclusion, site-mapping studies of Op18 reveal that CD3 stimulation results in an apparently PKC-independent activation of both the MAP kinase and a Ca(2+)-regulated kinase pathway, which results in phosphorylation of distinct sites of Op18. The data also pinpoints the specific phosphorylation events that result in electrophoretic retardation of Op18.