氧化还原蛋白质的电荷传递及界面行为

本文综述了近年来氧化还原蛋白质电子传递与界面行为研究领域的最新进展.主要基于作者所在实验室并参考其他实验室的研究成果,总结了蛋白质与电极间的直接电子传递、蛋白质热力学和动力学性质、蛋白质的催化活性及其调节等相关领域的工作进展.近几年的研究表明,电化学技术已成为蛋白质研究的重要工具,对于氧化还原蛋白质的电子传递与界面行为的研究更是一种有效的技术手段.     

固定在硬脂酸Langmuir-Blodgett膜中的辣根过氧化酶修饰电极的直接电化学行为

近年来,氧化还原蛋白质的直接电子转移反应引起了越来越多研究者的兴趣~([1]),研究氧化还原蛋白质的直接电子转移反应,不仅对于探索生命体内的生理作用机理等理论研究具有重要意义,而且为制备基于氧化还原蛋白质直接电化学行为的第三代生物传感器奠定了技术基础.本文研究了硬脂酸(SA)Langmuir-Blodgett(LB)膜固定的辣根过氧化物酶(HRP)在金电极(Au)上的直接电化学行为.     

氧化还原蛋白质电化学研究*

研究氧化还原蛋白质与电极之间的电子传递过程不仅为理解代谢过程提供有价值的信息,而且为制备生物传感器奠定基础。本文从蛋白质修饰电极、蛋白质在电极表面的定向固定及蛋白质人工改造三方面,评述了近年来氧化还原蛋白质电化学研究的进展,并提出了今后可能的研究方向。     

铜锌超氧化物歧化酶(Cu2Zn2SOD)在汞电极上的吸附研究

金属氧化还原蛋白质的电化学行为作为生物电化学领域中一个重要的研究内容,受到了广泛的关注犤1～3犦,生物体系一些重要的反应均与基本电荷运动有关,如生物催化、神经传导、光合作用以及呼吸作用等均涉及到一些重要氧化还原蛋白质的氧化还原过程。利用电化学的基本原理和实验方法,不但能在生命体系和有机组织的整体水平上,更主要是能在分子和细胞水平上研究氧化还原蛋白质体系中的电子转移以及氧化态转化的化学本质和规律。铜锌超氧化物歧化酶(Cu2Zn2SOD)是一个二聚体,由两个等同的亚单位组成,每一个亚单位含有咪唑桥联的铜?和锌?离子,催…     

纳米金三明治结构调制细胞色素c电子传递特性的分子机理研究

以细胞色素c(Cyt c)为模型蛋白,采用表面增强红外吸收光谱监测了三明治结构所吸附的纳米金对氧化还原诱导的Cyt c表面增强红外差谱的改变.研究表明,在单层Cyt c分子表面组装纳米金,使得血红素的红外差谱特征峰明显增强,这归因于纳米金和血红素之间的电子传递.纳米金与Cyt c氧化还原活性中心血红素的相互作用加速了蛋白质的电子传递.这为实现并优化表面吸附蛋白质的直接电化学提供了一种新技术.     

扫描探针显微技术在蛋白质分子结构与性质研究中的应用

由于与人类生活密切相关,蛋白质分子器件的研究得到了广泛的关注。扫描探针显微镜(SPM)技术的飞速发展无疑为从分子水平研究氧化还原蛋白质提供了有利的工具。氧化还原蛋白质的分子结构、力学性质、电学/电化学性质是蛋白质分子器件的重要研究内容。本文从SPM的电流电压特性曲线、力曲线、化学电势控制等方面介绍了相关的前沿性研究进展,为充分发挥SPM技术在蛋白质分子领域的研究提供参考。     

质谱电喷雾离子源中电化学与电晕放电氧化还原反应的研究进展

质谱电喷雾离子化过程中包含两类氧化还原反应:电化学氧化还原和电晕放电氧化还原。一方面,这两类反应干扰谱图解析、降低分析物的检测灵敏度;另一方面,利用氧化还原的特性可发展新型离子源,提高电喷雾离子化过程中难离子化化合物的离子化效率,研究蛋白质相互作用等。该文系统地介绍了国内外对于电化学氧化还原反应和电晕放电氧化还原反应的最近研究进展,主要包括此两类反应的弊端、应用价值,以及控制两类反应的方法。最后总结了区分两种反应的方法,并对电喷雾离子源的发展进行了展望。     

基于血红蛋白/纳米金修饰离子液体电极的电化学生物传感器

氧化还原蛋白质在工作电极上的直接电化学对于研究生命体系的电子转移机理,了解生命过程中的氧化还原机理,开发新型电化学生物传感器有着重要的意义~([1]).目前较多的工作是利用各种媒介体、促进剂和纳米材料修饰电极来实现蛋白质的直接电子转移.离子液体修饰电极(CILE)是以离子液体为修饰剂和粘合剂的一种新型化学修饰电极,在生物电分析化学已经应用.本文在CILE表面修饰纳米金用于血红蛋白的固定及其直接电化学行为的研究,取得了较好的结果.     

漆酶的生物电化学研究

漆酶属于蓝多铜氧化酶家族,在自然界尤其是真菌中广泛存在.漆酶在催化多种底物氧化的同时,伴随氧一步四电子直接还原生成水,铜离子活性中心作为辅助基团,参与电子传递过程.漆酶这一良好的电化学特性使其成为生物阴极的理想催化剂.本文综述了漆酶作为具有生物活性的氧化还原蛋白质在电化学领域的研究情况,从漆酶的结构及来源、生物电催化反...     

固定Fe3＋的磁性微球分离富集鼠肝中铁结合蛋白的初步研究

采用键合Fe3 的纳米材料分离富集了大鼠肝脏中的铁结合蛋白质组,并进行了质谱分析.在相同的起始富集蛋白质量以及相同的吸附和洗脱条件下,键合了Fe3 的磁性纳米材料比未键合金属离子的空白材料富集了更多的蛋白质,经质谱鉴定得到42个蛋白质,主要包括代谢酶类、呼吸链主要成员、氧化还原蛋白、转运蛋白、血红蛋白等.     

Surface-enhanced resonance Raman spectroscopic study of yeast iso-1-cytochrome c and its mutant

The structural stability and redox properties of yeast iso-1-cytochrome c and its mutant, F82H, were studied by surface-enhanced resonance Raman scattering (SERRS) spectroscopy. Phenylalanine, which exists at the position-82 in yeast iso-1-cytochrome c, is replaced by histidine in the mutant. The SERRS spectra of the proteins on the bare silver electrodes indicate that the mutant possesses a more stable global structure with regard to the adsorption-induced conformational alteration. The redox potential of the mutant negatively shifts by about 400 mV, relative to that of yeast iso-1-cytochrome c. This is ascribed to axial ligand switching and higher solvent accessibility of the heme iron in the mutant during the redox reactions.     

Protonation of a histidine copper ligand in fern plastocyanin

Plastocyanin is a small blue copper protein that shuttles electrons as part of the photosynthetic redox chain. Its redox behavior is changed at low pH as a result of protonation of the solvent-exposed copper-coordinating histidine. Protonation and subsequent redox inactivation could have a role in the down regulation of photosynthesis. As opposed to plastocyanin from other sources, in fern plastocyanin His90 protonation at low pH has been reported not to occur. Two possible reasons for that have been proposed: pi-pi stacking between Phe12 and His90 and lack of a hydrogen bond with the backbone oxygen of Gly36. We have produced this fern plastocyanin recombinantly and examined the properties of wild-type protein and mutants Phe12Leu, Gly36Pro, and the double mutant with NMR spectroscopy, X-ray crystallography, and cyclic voltammetry. The results demonstrate that, contrary to earlier reports, protonation of His90 in the wild-type protein does occur in solution with a pKa of 4.4 (+/-0.1). Neither the single mutants nor the double mutant exhibit a change in protonation behavior, indicating that the suggested interactions have no influence. The crystal structure at low pH of the Gly36Pro variant does not show His90 protonation, similar to what was found for the wild-type protein. The structure suggests that movement of the imidazole ring is hindered by crystal contacts. This study illustrates a significant difference between results obtained in solution by NMR and by crystallography.     

Grabbing yeast iso-1-cytochrome c by Cys102: an effective approach for the assembly of functionally active metalloprotein carpets

We report an approach for immobilizing iso-1-cytochrome c from Saccharomyces cerevisiae on oxygen exposing surfaces derivatized with SH-terminated silanes. The SH moieties from silanes have been brought to react with the partially buried Cys102, forming an intermolecular disulfide bond which anchored covalently cytochrome c to the surface. The presence of a single cysteine residue on the protein surface imparted a well-defined orientation to the molecular edifice. Molecular constructs obtained with native cytochrome c and with a cysteine-depleted mutant (C102T) have been investigated by means of scanning force microscopy under liquid, which was performed to assay the quality of the molecular carpet, showing that the native protein formed a robust monolayer at the surface, whereas only a negligible amount of physisorbed molecules were detected in the case of a mutant. UV-vis absorption spectroscopy was performed to confirm that immobilization takes place via the Cys102 residue. Linear sweep voltammetric measurements showed retention of the redox activity of the covalently immobilized cytochrome c, confirming the viability of the proposed immobilization method for obtaining monolayers of redox active molecules.     

Multiple oligomeric forms of Escherichia coli DnaB helicase revealed by electrospray ionisation mass spectrometry

The Escherichia coli DnaB protein (DnaB(6)) is the hexameric helicase that unwinds genomic DNA so it can be copied by the DNA replication machinery. Loading of the helicase onto DNA requires interactions of DnaB(6) with six molecules of its loading partner protein, DnaC. Nano-electrospray ionisation mass spectrometry (nanoESI-MS) of mutant proteins was used to examine the roles of the residues Phe102 (F102) and Asp82 (D82) in the N-terminal domain of DnaB in the assembly of the hexamer. When the proteins were prepared in 1 M ammonium acetate containing magnesium and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) at pH 7.6, both hexameric and heptameric forms of wild-type and F102W, F102E and D82N mutant DnaBs were observed in mass spectra. The spectra of the D82N mutant also showed substantial amounts of a decameric species and small amounts of a dodecamer. In contrast, the F102H DnaB mutant was incapable of forming oligomers of order higher than the hexamer. Thus, although Phe102 is not the only determinant of hexamer assembly, this residue has a role in oligomerisation. NanoESI mass spectra were obtained of mixtures of DnaB(6) with DnaC. The DnaB(6)(DnaC)(6) complex (calculated M(r) 481 164) was observed only when the two proteins were present in equimolar amounts. The data are consistent with cooperative assembly of the complex. ESI mass spectra of mixtures containing DnaC and ATP showed that DnaC slowly hydrolysed ATP to ADP as indicated by ions corresponding to DnaC/ATP and DnaC/ADP complexes. These experiments show that E. coli DnaB can form a heptameric complex and that nanoESI-MS can be used to probe assembly of large (>0.5 MDa) macromolecular complexes.     

Molecular dynamic and free energy studies of primary resistance mutations in HIV-1 protease-ritonavir complexes

To understand the basis of drug resistance of the HIV-1 protease, molecular dynamic (MD) and free energy calculations of the wild-type and three primary resistance mutants, V82F, I84V, and V82F/I84V, of HIV-1 protease complexed with ritonavir were carried out. Analysis of the MD trajectories revealed overall structures of the protein and the hydrogen bonding of the catalytic residues to ritonavir were similar in all four complexes. Substantial differences were also found near the catalytic binding domain, of which the double mutant complex has the greatest impact on conformational changes of the protein and the inhibitor. The tip of the HIV-1 protease flap of the double mutant has the greater degree of opening with respect to that of the others. Additionally, the phenyl ring of Phe82 moves away from the binding pocket S1', and the conformational change of ritonavir subsite P1' consequently affects the cavity size of the protein and the conformational energy of the inhibitor. Calculations of binding free energy using the solvent continuum model were able to reproduce the same trend of the experimental inhibition constant. The results show that the resistance mutants require hydrophobic residues to maintain the interactions in the binding pocket. Changes of the cavity volume correlate well with free energy penalties due to the mutation and are responsible for the loss of drug susceptibility.     

Impact of proximal and distal pocket site-directed mutations on the ferric/ferrous heme redox potential of yeast cytochrome c peroxidase

Cytochrome c peroxidase (CCP) contains a five-coordinate heme active site. The reduction potential for the ferric to ferrous couple in CCP is anomalously low and pH dependent (Eo?=?~?180?mV vs. S.H.E. at pH 7). The contribution of the protein environment to the tuning of the redox potential of this couple is evaluated using site-directed mutants of several amino acid residues in the environment of the heme. These include proximal pocket mutation of residues Asp-235, Trp-191, Phe-202, and His-175, distal pocket mutation of residues Trp-51, His-52, and Arg-48; and a heme edge mutation of Ala-147. Where unknown, the structural changes resulting from the amino acid substitution have been studied by X-ray crystallography. In most cases, ostensibly polar or charged residues are replaced by large hydrophobic groups or alternatively by Ala or Gly. These latter have been shown to generate large, solvent-filled cavities. Reduction potentials are measured as a function of pH by spectroelectrochemistry. Starting with the X-ray-derived structures of CCP and the mutants, or with predicted structures generated by molecular dynamics (MD), predictions of redox potential changes are modeled using the protein dipoles Langevin dipoles (PDLD) method. These calculations serve to model an electrostatic assessment of the redox potential change with simplified assumptions about heme iron chemistry, with the balance of the experimentally observed shifts in redox potential being thence attributed to changes in the ligand set and heme coordination chemistry, and/or other changes in the structure not directly evident in the X-ray structures (e.g., ionization states, specific roles played by solvent species, or conformationally flexible portions of the protein). Agreement between theory and experiment is good for all mutant proteins with the exception of the mutation Arg 48 to Ala, and His 52 to Ala. In the former case, the influence of phosphate buffer is adduced to account for the discrepancy, with evidence for phosphate binding in the distal pocket, and measurements made in a bis?Ctris propane/2-(N-morpholino)ethanesulfonic acid buffer system agree well with theory. For the latter case, an unknown structural element relevant to His-52 and/or solvent influence in the mutant akin to anion binding in the distal pocket (though lacking proof that it is, and in this case lacking a phosphate effect) manifests in this mutant. The use of exogenous (sixth) ligands in dissecting the contributions to control of redox potential is also explored as a pathway for model building.     

Roles of the proximal heme thiolate ligand in cytochrome p450(cam).

To examine the roles of the proximal thiolate iron ligand, the C357H mutant of P450(cam) (CYP101) was characterized by resonance Raman, UV, circular dichroism, and activity measurements. The C357H mutant must be reconstituted with hemin for activity to be observed. The reconstituted enzyme is a mixture of high and low spin species. Low temperature (10 degrees C), low enzyme concentration (1 microM), high camphor concentration (1 mM), and 5--50 mM buffer concentrations increase the high to low spin ratio, but under no conditions examined was the protein more than 60% high spin. The C357H mutant has a poorer K(m) for camphor (23 vs 2 microM) and a poorer K(d) for putidaredoxin (50 vs 20 microM) than wild-type P450(cam). The mutant also exhibits a greatly decreased camphor oxidation rate, elevated uncoupling rate, and much greater peroxidase activity. Electron transfer from putidaredoxin to the mutant is much slower than to the wild-type even though redox potential measurements show that the electron transfer remains thermodynamically favored. These experiments confirm that the thiolate ligand facilitates the O--O bond cleavage by P450 enzymes and also demonstrate that this ligand satisfies important roles in protein folding, substrate binding, and electron transfer.     

Genetic construction of truncated and chimeric metalloproteins derived from the alpha subunit of acetyl-CoA synthase from Clostridium thermoaceticum

In this study, a genetics-based method is used to truncate acetyl-coenzyme A synthase from Clostridium thermoaceticum (ACS), an alpha(2)beta(2) tetrameric 310 kDa bifunctional enzyme. ACS catalyzes the reversible reduction of CO(2) to CO and the synthesis of acetyl-CoA from CO (or CO(2) in the presence of low-potential reductants), CoA, and a methyl group bound to a corrinoid-iron sulfur protein (CoFeSP). ACS contains seven metal-sulfur clusters of four different types called A, B, C, and D. The B, C, and D clusters are located in the 72 kDa beta subunit, while the A-cluster, a Ni-X-Fe(4)S(4) cluster that serves as the active site for acetyl-CoA synthase activity, is located in the 82 kDa alpha subunit. The extent to which the essential properties of the cluster, including catalytic, redox, spectroscopic, and substrate-binding properties, were retained as ACS was progressively truncated was determined. Acetyl-CoA synthase catalytic activity remained when the entire beta subunit was removed, as long as CO, rather than CO(2) and a low-potential reductant, was used as a substrate. Truncating an approximately 30 kDa region from the N-terminus of the alpha subunit yielded a 49 kDa protein that lacked catalytic activity but exhibited A-cluster-like spectroscopic, redox, and CO-binding properties. Further truncation afforded a 23 kDa protein that lacked recognizable A-cluster properties except for UV-vis spectra typical of [Fe(4)S(4)](2+) clusters. Two chimeric proteins were constructed by fusing the gene encoding a ferredoxin from Chromatium vinosum to genes encoding the 49 and 82 kDa fragments of the alpha subunit. The chimeric proteins exhibited EPR signals that were not the simple sum of the signals from the separate proteins, suggesting magnetic interactions between clusters. This study highlights the potential for using genetics to simplify the study of complex multicentered metalloenzymes and to generate new complex metalloenzymes with interesting properties.     

Sensitively probing the cofactor redox species and photo-induced electron transfer of wild-type and pheophytin-replaced photosynthetic proteins reconstituted in self-assembled monolayers

An ultrathin, ordered, and packed protein film, consisting of the 2-mercaptoacetic acid (MAA), polydimethyldiallylammonium chloride (PDDA), and wild-type (WT) photosynthetic reaction center (RC; termed as WT-RC) or its pheophytin (Phe)-replaced counterpart (termed as Phe-RC), was fabricated by self-assembling technique onto gold electrode for facilitating the electron transfer (ET) between RC and the electrode surface. Near-infrared (NIR)-visible (Vis) absorption and fluorescence (FL) emission spectra revealed the influence of pigment substitution on the cofactors arrangement and excitation relaxation of the proteins, respectively. Square wave voltammetry (SWV) and photoelectric tests were employed to systematically address the differences between the WT-RC films and mutant ones on the direct and photo-induced ET. The electrochemical results demonstrated that ET initiated by the oxidation of the primary donor (P) was obviously slowed down, and the formed P⁺ had more population as well as more positive redox potential in the Phe-RC films compared with those in the WT ones. The photoelectrochemical results displayed the dramatically enhanced photoelectric performances of the mutant ones, further suggesting the slow-down formation of final charge-separated state in Phe-RC. The functionalized protein films introduced in this paper provided an efficient approach to sensitively probe the redox cofactors and ET differences resulting from only minor changes in pigment arrangement in the pigment–protein complex. The favored ET process observed for the membrane proteins RC was potentially valuable for a deep understanding of the multi-step biological ET process and development of versatile bioelectronic devices.     

THE ROLE OF ARGININES 82 AND 227 IN THE BACTERIORHODOPSIN PROTON PUMP

Abstract
Arginine residues 82 and 227 in bacteriorhodopsin were replaced by glutamine residues, using the site-directed mutagenesis techniques. Mutant bacteriorhodopsins were found to be competent in formation and decomposition of the photocycle M412 intermediate as well as in generation of photoelectric potential provided that pH of the medium is sufficiently high. Lowering of pH results in transition of bacteriorhodopsin into a blue acidic form which cannot produce M412 and photo-potential. The p K values of these transitions for Arg-227 → Gln and Arg-82 → Gln mutants are shifted correspondently for 1 and 4 pH units to a higher pH region in comparison with native bacteriorhodopsin. The rate of the M412 formation in both mutants was similar to that in the native protein. As to M412 decay, it is much slower in Arg-227 → Gln mutant than in native and Arg-82 → Gln bacteriorhodopsins. In all cases, the decay depends only slightly upon pH. It is concluded that Arg-82 is involved in maintenance of a bacteriorhodopsin structure that is resistant to the pH decrease down to 4 whereas Arg-227 is required first of all for the process of Schiff base reprotonation.