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Characterization of the active site of chloroperoxidase using physical techniques

Thesis/Dissertation ·
OSTI ID:5349047

Chloroperoxidase (CPO) and Cytochrome P-450, two very different hemeproteins, have been shown to have similar active sites by several techniques. Recent work has demonstrated thiolate ligation from a cysteine residue to the iron in P-450. A major portion of this research has been devoted to obtaining direct evidence that CPO also has a thiolate 5th ligand from a cysteine residue. This information will provide the framework for a detailed analysis of the structure-function relationships between peroxidases, catalase and cytochrome P-450 hemeproteins. To determine whether the 5th ligand is a cysteine, methionine or a unique amino acid, specific isotope enrichment experiments were used. Preliminary /sup 1/H-NMR studies show that the carbon monoxide-CPO complex has a peak in the upfield region corresponding to alpha-protons of a thiolate amino acid. C. fumago was grown on 95% D/sub 2/O media with a small amount of /sup 1/H-cysteine added. Under these conditions C. fumago slows down the biosynthesis of cysteine by at least 50% and utilizes the exogenous cysteine in the media. GC-MS was able to show that the methylene protons next to the sulfur atom in cysteine are 80-90% protonated while these positions in methionine are approximately 73% deuterated. Comparison of the /sup 1/H-NMR spectra of CO-CPO and CO-CPO indicate the presence of a cysteine ligand in chloroperoxidase.

Research Organization:
Illinois Univ., Urbana (USA)
OSTI ID:
5349047
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English