Steric and hydrophobic determinants of the solubilities of recombinant sickle cell hemoglobins.

Models for the structure of the fibers of deoxy sickle cell hemoglobin (Hb Hb S, beta 6 Glu-->Val) have been obtained from X-ray and electron microscopic studies. Recent molecular dynamics calculations of polymer formation give new insights on the various specific interactions between monomers. Site-directed mutagenesis with expression of the Hb S beta subunits in Escherichia coli provides the experimental tools to test these models. For Hb S, the beta 6 Val residue is intimately involved in a specific lateral contact, at the donor site, that interacts with the acceptor site of an adjacent molecule composed predominantly of the hydrophobic residues Phe 85 and Leu 88. Comparing natural and artificial mutants indicates that the solubility of deoxyHb decreases in relation to the surface hydrophobicity of the residue at the beta 6 position with Ile > Val > Ala. We also tested the role of the stereospecific adjustment between the donor and acceptor sites by substituting Trp for Glu at the beta 6 location. Among these hydrophobic substitutions and under our experimental conditions, only Val and Ile were observed to induce polymer formation. The interactions for the Ala mutant are too weak whereas a Trp residue inhibits aggregation through steric hindrance at the acceptor site of the lateral contact. Increasing the hydrophobicity at the axial contact between tetramers of the same strand also contributes to the stability of the double strand. This is demonstrated by associating the beta 23 Val-->Ile mutation at the axial contact with either the beta 6 Glu-->Val or beta 6 Glu-->Ile substitution in the same beta subunit.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Comparative immunology of Galapagos iguana hemoglobins.

The antigenic properties of the major hemoglobin component of the Galapgaos iguanas were studied using second-approximation qualitative and quantitative immunochemical techniques. Phylogenetic distances, relative to the Galapagos marine iguana. Amblyrhynchus cristatus, were established on the basis of immunological cross-reactions.     

Comparative immunochemical studies of primate hemoglobins

The antigenic properties of a number of chromatographically purified primate hemoglobins were compared to those of normal human hemoglobin using a sensitive radioimmunochemical procedure. The degree of inhibition of the antigen-antibody reaction with heterologous hemoglobins appeared to be related to the structural similarity of these proteins to the normal human hemoglobin immunogen. With the exception of the baboon hemoglobin, the antigenicity of the hemoglobins paralleled the phylogeny of the primates. The gorilla and chimpanzee hemoglobins were antigenically identical to normal human hemoglobin, whereas the gibbon and orangutan hemoglobins were substantially more variable. Of the Old World monkey hemoglobins examined, the baboon produced lower inhibition values, suggesting a greater degree of structural dissimilarity than other Cercopithecoidea hemoglobins, which is compatible with a greater rate of evolutionary change occurring in this protein. Using the known amino acid sequences of human and other primate hemoglobins, we have attempted to identify antigenic determinant areas of the proteins.     

Evolution of ruminant hemoglobins. Thermodynamic divergence of ox and buffalo hemoglobins.

The ligand-binding properties of hemoglobins from two homozygote phenotypes (AA and BB) of water buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) have been characterized by equilibrium and kinetic techniques. In the case of the BB phenotype, the two constituent hemoglobins have been purified and separately analysed. Buffalo hemoglobins display the reduced sensitivity to organic phosphates characteristic of ruminant hemoglobins, their physiological effector probably being the chloride ion. In contrast to the other known hemoglobins from ruminants, all the hemoglobins from the water buffalo display a significant temperature sensitivity, the delta H for oxygen binding in the presence of physiological effectors approaching that of human hemoglobin (delta H = -30.5 kJ/mol O2). This discrepancy with the other ruminant hemoglobins (e.g. ox, delta H = -10.4 kJ/mol O2), whose primary structure is very similar to that of buffalo, hemoglobins might be correlated to the different habitat and phylogenetic history of the two subfamilies (Bos and Bubalus) of Bovidae.     

Comparative structural and functional studies of avian and mammalian hemoglobins

Thermal stabilities of chicken, grey lag goose (Anser anser), turkey as avian hemoglobins (Hbs); and human, bovine, sheep and horse as mammalian Hbs in hemolysate form were investigated and compared with oxygen affinities taken from literature. The thermal stability was obtained from thermal profiles using temperature scanning spectrophotometry. The buffer conditions were 50 mM Tris, pH 7.2, and 1 mM EDTA. The average of the inverse temperature transitions, average hydrophobicity, total van der Waals volume, partial molal volume and hydration potential were calculated by computational methods. The hemolysed avian Hbs have a lower oxygen affinity, higher thermal stability and higher self association than the mammalian Hbs. These observations are based on amino-acid composition, influence of ionic effectors, and the presence of Hb D in several avian Hbs. The results indicate that the avian Hbs have a more tense (T) conformation than the mammalian Hbs.     

Comparative electrophoresis of spotted fever group rickettsial proteins.

Electrophoretic analyses were performed to establish the polypeptide profiles of the following tick-borne typhus rickettsiae of the spotted fever group: $\text{Rickettsia rickettsii}$ (Sheila Smith, Bitter Root, Iowa and R strains), $\text{R. sibirica}$, $\text{R. conorii}$, $\text{R. parkeri}$, $\text{R. australis}$ and $\text{R. akari}$. Organisms were propagated in chick embryo fibroblast cells in roller bottles and purified by density centrifugation. After polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, comparative electrophoretic profiles were examined by densitometric scanning. Of the more than 20 separate polypeptides detected, six of the most prominent were found in all rickettsiae examined except $\text{R. akari}$. No carbohydrate-containing moieties were detected in electrophoretic gels.     

Characterization by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of hemoglobins in rabbit embryo, fetus, and adult

The hemoglobin species of rabbit embryo, fetus, and adult were characterized by quantitative polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE). Special statistical methods, including joint confidence envelopes for the slope (K_R) and intercept (Y₀) of the Ferguson plot and analysis of covariance were utilized to identify the hemoglobin species. Five embryonic rabbit hemoglobins could be distinguished. Their relative proportions varied with developmental stage. No specific fetal hemoglobin was detected. The two previously known adult hemoglobins were characterized, prepared by isoclectric focusing on polyacrylamide gel (IFPA) and shown to differ by two amino acid substitutions in the β-chain.A general strategy for testing molecular identity by PAGE is outlined.     

Comparative proteomics and difference gel electrophoresis

The goal of comparative proteomics is to analyze proteome changes in response to development, disease, or environment. This is a two-step process in which proteins within cellular extracts are first fractionated to reduce sample complexity, and then the proteins are identified by mass spectrometry. Two-dimensional electrophoresis (2DE) is the long-time standard for protein separation, but it has suffered from poor reproducibility and limited sensitivity. Difference gel electrophoresis (DIGE), in which two protein samples are separately labeled with different fluorescent dyes and then co-electrophoresed on the same 2DE gel, was developed to overcome the reproducibility and sensitivity limitations. In this essay, I discuss the principles of comparative proteomics and the development of DIGE.