Interaction between cytochrome c and cytochrome b5.

The reduction of cytochrome c by cytochrome b5 was studied over a wide range of ionic strengths in four different buffer systems. The reaction rate decreased linearly as the I1/2 was increased, suggesting that electrostatic interactions are important in the interaction. The ionic strength dependence of the reaction rate was in quantitative agreement with the theory of Wherland & Gray [Wherland, S., & Gray, H.B. (1976) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci U.S.A. 73, 2950] only if the effective radius of the interaction was 2 A. This indicates that the interaction between the two proteins is best described as the sum of n complementary charge interactions, each involving a specific lysine on cytochrome c and a specific carboxyl group on cytochrome b5. The number of complementary charge interactions, n, was calculated to be five to seven, in agreement with the results of our specific modification studies. Ultracentrifugation and gel permeation techniques were used to demonstrate that cytochrome b5 and cytochrome c formed a stable complex at low ionic strength.     

Age-dependent decay of cytochrome b5 and cytochrome b5 reductase in human erythrocytes.

Age-dependent decrease in cytochrome b5 was observed in erythrocytes from both a normal person and a patient with hereditary methaemoglobinaemia without neurological symptoms. With aging, concentrations of cytochrome b5 in erythrocytes from the patient were almost the same as those in the control. Age-dependent decrease in cytochrome b5 reductase activity in the control erythrocytes was also shown; however, the reductase activity was very low in erythrocytes from the patient over the whole age range. Our studies show that methaemoglobin content of erythrocytes seems to be dependent on the content of cytochrome b5 in the cells, both in the control subject and in the patient.     

Surface differences and similarities in two homologous proteins. Cytochrome b5 and cytochrome b2 core.

From previous work (Guiard, B., Groudinsky, O. and Lederer, F. (1974) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S. 71, 2539-2543) it is now clear that the overall secondary and tertiary structure of cytochrome b2 core is very similar to that of cytochrome b5. We present here a direct comparison of circular dichroism spectra and low-temperature absorption spectra which bring further evidence about this structural similarity. Cytochrome b2 core reacts only sluggishly with cytochrome b5 reductase, showing a lack of correspondence with the reductase binding area in cytochrome b5. On the other hand, literature data indicate similar electron transfer rates between cytochrome c on one hand, cytochrome b5 and cytochrome b2 core on the other hand. A structural inspection of cytochrome b2 core suggests that the mouth of the heme crevice in the latter is the most likely region for interaction with cytochrome c, with perhaps ionic bonds slightly different from those proposed by Salemme (Salemme, F.R. (1976) J. Mol. Biol. 102, 563--568) for the cytochrome c-cytochrome b5 interaction. In view of this partial surface similarity, the lack of immunological cross-reactivity between the two hemoprotein cores is attributed to their close similarity with the cytochrome b5 of the antibody-producing rabbit.     

Purification and properties of plant cytochrome b5.

Microsomal cytochrome b5 was 352-fold purified from potato tubers with a yield of 10.4%. To our knowledge, this is the first report relating the purification of higher-plant cytochrome b5. Its Mr (16 700) and absorption spectrum are similar to those of animal and yeast cytochrome b5.