Heat-induced disassembly and degradation of chlorophyll-containing protein complexes in vivo

Gradual heating of green leaves up to non-physiological temperatures is often used to estimate thermal stability of photosynthetic apparatus. However, a complete sequence of heat-induced disassembly and denaturation of chlorophyll-containing protein complexes (CPCs) has not been reported yet. In this work, we heated (1 °C·min^− 1) barley leaves to temperatures selected according to the changes in the chlorophyll fluorescence temperature curve (FTC) and we analyzed CPC stability by two-dimensional native Deriphat/SDS-PAGE. The first distinct change in both structure and function of photosystem II (PSII) appeared at 40-50 °C. PSII core (CCII) dimers began to dissociate monomers, which was accompanied by a decrease in PSII photochemistry and reflected in FTC as the first fluorescence increase. Further changes in CPCs appeared at 57-60 °C, when FTC increases to its second maximum. Photosystem I (PSI) cores (CCI) partially dissociated from light-harvesting complexes of PSI (LHCI) and formed aggregates. The rest of CCI-LHCI complexes, as well as the CCI aggregates, degraded to the PSI-A/B heterodimer in leaves heated to 70 °C. Heating to these temperatures led to a complete degradation of CCII components and corresponding loss of PSII photochemistry. Trimeric light-harvesting complexes of PSII (LHCII) markedly dissociated to monomers and denatured, as evidenced by a release of large amount of free chlorophylls. Between 70 and 80 °C, a complete degradation of LHCII occurred, leaving the PSI-A/B heterodimer as the only detectable CPC in the membrane. This most thermostable CPC disappeared after heating to 90 °C, which corresponded to a loss of PSI photochemistry.     

Effect of heating on properties of some soils from Southern Nigeria and growth of rice

Summary The effect of heating on the properties of Apomu (Psammentic Usthorthent), Egbeda (Oxic Paleustalf) and Gambari (Typic Plinthustalf) surface soils were studied under laboratory conditions. Heating at low temperatures (100°C) have no detrimental effects on soil properties, on the contrary it increased the soil extractable P, Mg, Fe, Mn and Zn levels. Pronounced reductions in total N, Org. C, Org. P and extractable Ca and Mg levels and marked increases in extractable P, Zn, Mn and Fe were observed by heating to 200°C. Heating to 500° had an adverse effect on soil chemical and physical properties.Plant height and dry matter yeild of rice plants were higher when grown on Egbeda soil previously heated to 100°C. With addition of N, P and K there was no observed beneficial effect of the heating treatment. Rice plants grown on Egbeda soil previously heated to 200°C showed high uptake of Mn. Plants grew badly in soil previously heated to 500°C.     

Radiolysis of poly(U) in oxygenated solution

Aqueous N2O/O2-saturated solutions of poly(U) were irradiated at 0 degrees C and the release of unaltered uracil determined. Immediately after irradiation G(uracil release) was 1.5 which increased to a value of 5.3 +/- 0.3 upon heating to 95 degrees C. Thereby all of the organic hydroperoxides (G = 6.8 +/- 0.7) and some of the hydrogen peroxide (G = 1.7 +/- 0.2) was destroyed leaving G(peroxidic material; mainly hydrogen peroxide) = 1.0 +/- 0.7. G(chromophore loss) = 8-11 was measured immediately after irradiation, but no increase was observed upon heating. Addition of iodide destroyed the hydroperoxides and caused immediate base release to rise to G = 4 and further heating brought the value to that observed in the absence of iodide. In contrast, on reducing the hydroperoxides with NaBH4, immediate uracil release rose to only G = 2.8 and no further increase was observed on heating. A major product (G = 2.7) is carbon dioxide. There are also osazone-forming compounds produced (G = 2.7), all of which are originally bound to poly(U). Heating in acid solutions, as is required for this test, releases glycoladehyde-derived osazone (G = 0.8) and further unidentified low molecular weight material (G = 0.9). It is concluded that the primary radicals which cause these lesions are the base OH adduct radicals. In the presence of oxygen these are converted into the corresponding peroxyl radicals which abstract an H atom from the sugar moiety. In the course of this reaction base-hydroperoxides are formed. However, such base hydroperoxides cannot be the only organic hydroperoxides, but some (G congruent to 2.5) sugar-hydroperoxides must be formed as indicated by the increase in base release by the addition of iodide. It is speculated that a sugar-hydroperoxide located at C(3') is reduced by iodide to a carbonyl function at C(3'), a lesion that releases the base, while reduction with NaBH4 reduces it to an alcohol function at C(3') thus preventing base release.     

Heat-Induced Increase in the Tolerance of the Wheat Photosynthetic Apparatus to Combined Action of High Temperature and Visible Light: CO2 Fixation,Photosynthetic Pigments,and Chloroplast Ultrastructure

Heating of the leaves of 15-day-old wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) plants at 42°C in the light (370 W/m² PAR) suppressed their ability to fix CO₂ twice stronger than heating in darkness. Heat hardening (3 h at 38–39°C) improved the tolerance of photosynthesis to combined action of high light and temperature but did not affect the tolerance to photoinhibition at 30°C. Hardening did not induce changes in the levels of photosynthetic pigments and their ratios. De-epoxidation of violaxanthin turned out to be more tolerant to photoinhibition at 42°C than CO₂ fixation. Protective effect of hardening was not related to the accumulation of zeaxanthin and activation of the xanthophyll cycle. Hardening protected the most sensitive population of chloroplasts against heat-induced photodamage and simultaneously increased the number and length of thylakoids. An increase in the volume of the thylakoid system was also induced by heating at 42°C and exposure to high light at 30°C. The formation of additional thylakoids and grana of shade type was not associated with improved tolerance of photosynthesis to heat and light stresses.     

Frost-weathering on Mars: Experimental evidence for peroxide formation

Summary A laboratory study of the interaction of H₂O frost with samples of the minerals olivine (Mg,Fe)₂SiO₄ and pyroxene (Mg,Fe)SiO₃ at –11°C to –22°C revealed that an acidic oxidant was produced. Exposure of the frost-treated minerals to liquid H₂O produced a sudden drop in pH and resulted in the production of copious O_2(g) (as much as ~ 10²⁰ molecules g^–1). Exposure of frost-treated samples to 5 ml of 0.1M HCOONa solution resulted in the rapid oxidation of up to 43% of the formate to CO_2(g). These reactions were qualitatively similar to the chemical activity observed during the active cycles of the Viking lander Gas Exchange and Labeled Release Biology experiments. Attempts to identify the oxidant by chemical indicators were inconclusive, but they tentatively suggested that chemisorbed hydrogen peroxide may have formed. The formation of chemisorbed peroxide could be explained as a byproduct of the chemical reduction of the mineral. The following model was proposed. H^c was incorporated into the mineral from surface frost. This would have left behind a residual of excess OH^– _(ads) (relative to surface H⁺). Electrons were then stripped from the surface OH^– _(ads) (due to the large repulsive potential between neighboring OH^– _(ads)) and incorporated into the crystal to restore charge balance and produce a chemical reduction of the mineral. The resultant surface hydroxyl radicals could then have combined to form the more stable chemisorbed hydrogen peroxide species. While the chemisorbed peroxide should be relatively stable at low temperatures, it should tend to decay to O_(ads) + H₂O_(g) at higher temperatures with an activation energy of 34 kcal mole^–1. This is consistent with the long-term storage and sterilization behavior of the Viking soil oxidants. It is possible that as little as 0.1–1% frost-weathered material in the Martian soil could have produced the unusual chemical activity that occurred during the Viking Gas Exchange and Labeled Release experiments.This paper contains the material given in invited presentations at the COSPAR Meeting, Innsbruck, Austria, 5–7 June 1978 and at the Second Conference on Simulation of Mars Surface Properties, NASA Ames Research Center, 17–18 August 1978     

Catalytic hydration of cyanopyridines using nickel(0)

The homogeneous catalytic hydration of 2-, 3- and 4-cyanopyridines using 0.5 mol% of [(dippe)Ni(μ-H)]₂ as catalyst precursor was achieved under heating. In the case of 4-cyanopyridine, production of isonicotinamide was observed at temperatures in the range of 80-120 °C. Heating to 180 °C resulted in formation of isonicotinic acid. In the case of 2- and 3-cyanopyridines the quantitative formation of their corresponding amides was achieved at 100 °C. The catalytic hydration of 2,6-dicyanopyridine was also undertaken in this work, in its case resulting in the synthesis of the mixed cyano/amide product, 2-cyanopyridine-6-carboxamide, at short reaction times.     

Interactive Effects of Elevated CO2 and Ozone on Leaf Thermotolerance in Field-grown Glycine max

Humans are increasing atmospheric CO2, ground-level ozone (O3), and mean and acute high temperatures. Laboratory studies show that elevated CO2 can increase thermotolerance of photosynthesis in C3 plants. O3-related oxidative stress may offset benefits of elevated CO2 during heat-waves. We determined effects of elevated CO2 and O3 on leaf thermotolerance of field-grown Glycine max (soybean, C3). Photosynthetic electron transport (φet) was measured in attached leaves heated in situ and detached leaves heated under ambient CO2 and O3. Heating decreased φet, which O3 exacerbated. Elevated CO2 prevented O3-related decreases during heating, but only increased φet under ambient O3 in the field. Heating decreased chlorophyll and carotenoids, especially under elevated CO2. Neither CO2 nor O3 affected heat-shock proteins. Heating increased catalase (except in high O3) and CulZn-superoxide dismutase (SOD), but not MnSOD; CO2 and O3 decreased catalase but neither SOD. Soluble carbohydrates were unaffected by heating, but increased in elevated CO2. Thus, protection of photosynthesis during heat stress by elevated CO2 occurs in field-grown soybean under ambient O3, as in the lab, and high CO2 limits heat damage under elevated O3, but this protection is likely from decreased photorespiration and stomatal conductance rather than production of heat-stress adaptations.     

Effect of Elevated Temperature on Nitrite and Nitrate Reduction in Leaves and Intact Chloroplasts

Barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) leaves and intact spinach (Spinacia oleracea L.) chloroplasts were exposed to short-term heating, and the aftereffects of heat treatment on in vitro andin vivo activities of nitrate reductase and noncyclic electron transport associated with nitrite reduction were studied. Heating of leaves at temperatures above 40°C led to a monotonic decrease in nitrate reductase in vitro activity. On the contrary, the in vivo enzyme activity, assayed in intact leaf tissues after 5-min heat treatment, increased 1.5 times upon elevating the pretreatment temperature from 37 to 40°C and gradually decreased at higher temperatures. Noncyclic electron transport related to CO₂ fixation in intact chloroplasts decreased gradually after heat exposures above 39°C, unlike the electron transport to nitrite as a terminal acceptor, which was stimulated by heating of intact chloroplast suspensions in the temperature range from 33 to 40°C. The heating at higher temperatures inhibited nitrite photoreduction. It is concluded that the heating of phototrophic cells at sublethal temperatures stimulates the mobilization of inorganic nitrogen and thereby facilitates the repair of thermally induced injuries of proteinaceous cell structures. The stimulation of nitrate reductase activity in vivo at the temperature range 37–40°C provides an evidence for the increase in the availability of reductants in the cytosolic compartment of the leaf cell.     

Hydrocarbons obtained by pyrolysis of some precambrian rocks of minnesota

Drill core samples of 42 Precambrian sedimentary, igneous, and metamorphic rocks were analyzed by heating under partial vacuum at 100°C and at 400°C to release hydrocarbons and other volatile products.The core samples yielded methane in amounts ranging from traces to 3 microliters per gram, but averaged much less. By way of comparison, samples of Middle Devonian Marcellus black shale, from Pennsylvania, yielded methane in amounts up to 7ul/g.Other straight chain hydrocarbons up to C₁₁ were found in the volatile products, especially those obtained at 400°C, and benzene was a common product, also mainly in the 400°C experiments. Carbon dioxide and nitrogen appear to form a large part of the nonhydrocarbon volatiles in at least some of the samples.Spectral data indicate that the straight chain pyrolysis products of the Precambrian rocks are mainly alkenes, whereas those of the Devonian rocks, referred to above, are a mixture of alkanes and alkenes. Alkanes were however, obtained from several algae-bearing Middle Precambrian argillites. Available evidence indicates, although not conclusively, that the alkenes were contained in the rock rather than being produced from alkanes during pyrolysis.The writers believe that surface contamination in most of the drill cores was minimal owing to the low permeability of the rocks studied, and that contamination by drilling was also minimal.There is a reasonable possibility that the volatiles, if not formed from kerogen residues by the pyrolysis experiments, are in part juvenile igneous gases or are substances that were distilled out of the deeperlying rocks during intervals of folding and metamorphism, and subsequently accumulated at higher levels.     

Impact of a short-term heat event on C and N relations in shoots vs. roots of the stress-tolerant C4 grass, Andropogon gerardii

Global warming will increase heat waves, but effects of abrupt heat stress on shoot–root interactions have rarely been studied in heat-tolerant species, and abrupt heat-stress effects on root N uptake and shoot C flux to roots and soil remains uncertain. We investigated effects of a high-temperature event on shoot vs. root growth and function, including transfer of shoot C to roots and soil and uptake and translocation of soil N by roots in the warm-season drought-tolerant C₄ prairie grass, Andropogon gerardii. We heated plants in the lab and field (lab = 5.5 days at daytime of 30 + 5 or 10 °C; field = 5 days at ambient (up to 32 °C daytime) vs. ambient +10 °C). Heating had small or no effects on photosynthesis, stomatal conductance, leaf water potential, and shoot mass, but increased root mass and decreased root respiration and exudation per g. ¹³C-labeling indicated that heating increased transfer of recently-fixed C from shoot to roots and soil (the latter likely via increased fine-root turnover). Heating decreased efficiency of N uptake by roots (uptake/g root), but did not affect total N uptake or the transfer of labeled soil ¹⁵N to shoots. Though heating increased soil temperature in the lab, it did not do so in the field (10 cm depth); yet results were similar for lab and field. Hence, acute heating affected roots more than shoots in this stress-tolerant species, increasing root mass and C loss to soil, but decreasing function per g root, and some of these effects were likely independent of direct effects from soil heating.     

A direct synthetic approach to uracil anhydrothionucleoside derivatives

Direct conversion of peracylated N¹-(β-d-glucopyranosyl)-2-thiouracil derivatives into the corresponding anhydrothionucleosides has been studied under various conditions including: gas-phase pyrolysis, heating without a solvent, and by heating in a solvent of high boiling point (DPE) in the presence of a base (DABCO) and reaction in a microwave reactor. Heating at 210-220 °C was found to give the best yield of a single isomer. The structures of the new anhydrothionucleosides were confirmed by NMR techniques.     

Heat-Induced Increase in the Stability of Nitrate Reductase from Wheat Leaves against Inactivating Factors

Heating of wheat seedlings (Triticum aestivum L.) for 3 h at 41–42°C (heat hardening) increased the thermal stability of nitrate reductase (NR). After transferring hardened plants to normal temperature, the higher level of thermal stability persisted for 6 days. The heat hardening increased the enzyme stability against the proteolytic effect of trypsin and reduced the rate of NR degradation in extracts. Inhibition of the NR synthesis by transferring plants to a nitrate-free medium resulted in a much lower rate of enzyme degradation in the cells of hardened, as compared to unhardened plants. A short-term heating of seedlings (10 min at 36, 40, and 44°C) increased the ability of NR to reactivate after heat damage. The thermal stability of NR increased only in seedlings that had been hardened at 40 and 44°C, whereas hardening at 36°C did not result in enzyme stabilization. It is concluded that heat hardening (hyperthermia) increases NR stability against a number of inactivating factors (heating, proteolysis,in vitroand in vivo enzyme degradation) and enhances its ability to repair damage induced by heating.     

Effects of reduction and ligation of heme iron on the thermal stability of heme-hemopexin complexes

Hemopexin has two homologous domains (N- and C-terminal domains), binds 1 mole of heme per mole with high affinity (K_d < 1 pM) in a low-spin bis-histidyl complex, and acts as a transporter for the heme. Transport is accomplished via endocytosis without degradation of the protein. Factors that affect stability of the heme coordination complex and potentially heme release in vivo were examined. The effects of temperature on hemopexin, its N-terminal domain, and their respective ferri-, ferro-, and CO-ferro-heme complexes were studied using absorbance and circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy. As monitored with second-derivative absorbance spectra, the higher order structure of apo-hemopexin unfolds with a T_m of 52°C in 50 mM sodium phosphate buffer and is stabilized by 150 mM NaCl (T_m 63°C). Bis-histidyl heme coordination by hemopexin, observed by Soret absorbance, is substantially weakened by reduction of ferri-heme-hemopexin (T_m 55.5°C) to the ferro-heme form (T_m 48°C), and NaCl stabilizes both complexes by 10-15°C. CO binding to ferro-heme-hemopexin restores complex stability (T_m 67°C). Upon cooling, unfolded apo- and ferri-heme-hemopexin extensively refold and recover substantial heme-binding activity, but the characteristic ellipticity of the native protein (UV region) and heme complex (Soret region) are not regained, indicating that altered refolded forms are produced. Lowering the pH from 7.4 to 6.5 has little effect on the stability of the apo-protein but increases the T_m of heme complexes by 5-12°C. The stability of the apo-N-terminal domain (T_m 53°C) is similar to that of intact hemopexin, and the ferri-, ferro-, and CO-ferro-heme complexes of the N-terminal domain have T_m values of 53°C, 33°C, and 75°C, respectively.     

Smectite clays in Mars soil: Evidence for their presence and role in Viking biology experimental results

Summary Various chemical, physical and geological observations indicate that smectite clays are probably the major components of the Martian soil. Satisfactory ground-based chemical simulation of the Viking biology experimental results was obtained with the smectite clays nontronite and montmorillonite when they contained iron and hydrogen as adsorbed ions. Radioactive gas was released from the medium solution used in the Viking Labeled Release (LR) experiment when interacted with the clays, at rates and quantities similar to those measured by Viking on Mars. Heating of the active clay (mixed with soluble salts) to 160°C in CO₂ atmosphere reduced the decomposition activity considerably, again, as was observed on Mars. The decomposition reaction in LR experiment is postulated to be iron-catalyzed formate decomposition on the clay surface. The main features of the Viking Pyrolytic Release (PR) experiment were also simulated recently (Hubbard, 1979) which the iron clays, including a relatively low 1st peak and significant 2nd peak.The accumulated observations on various Martian soil properties and the results of simulation experiments, thus indicate that smectite clays are major and active components of the Martian soil. It now appears that many of the results of the Viking biology experiments can be explained on the basis of their surface activity in catalysis and adsorption.     

Completion of the Viking labeled release experiment on Mars

Summary The final Labeled Release (LR) cycle on each Viking lander tested a surface sample that had been stored for several months at approximately 10°C prior to the onset of the active sequence. At each lander site, activity was strongly diminished. This thermal sensitivity of the active agent on the surface of Mars is consistent with a biological explanation of the LR experiment. At the end of one of these cycles, the incubation mixture was heated to 50°C to release any radioactive gas trapped in the sample matrix. The results suggest that more than one carbon substrate is involved in the LR reaction on Mars.The thermal data from the stored samples, coupled wth data from previous cycles, have formed the basis for evaluation of the thermal decomposition of the Mars active agent. The slope of the resulting Arrhenius plot has been used to test the fit of other flight data and to calculate the activation energy for thermal decomposition of the Mars agent. The results and their interpretation still leave unresolved the question of whether the Mars LR data were generated by biological or chemical activity.     

Pyrolysis characteristics and kinetics of Arundo donax using thermogravimetric analysis

The increase of the price of fossil means, as well as their programmed disappearing, contributed to increase among appliances based on biomass and energy crops. The thermal behavior of Arundo donax by thermogravimetric analysis was studied under inert atmosphere at heating rates ranging from 5 to 20 °C min⁻¹ from room temperature to 750 °C. Gaseous emissions as CO₂, CO and volatile organic compounds (VOC) were measured and global kinetic parameters were determined during pyrolysis with the study of the influence of the heating rate. The thermal process describes two main phases. The first phase named active zone, characterizes the degradation of hemicellulose and cellulose polymers. It started at low temperature (200 °C) comparatively to wood samples and was finished at 350 °C. The pyrolysis of the lignin polymer occurred during the second phase from 350 to 750 °C, named passive zone. Carbon oxides are emitted during the active zone whereas VOC are mainly formed during the passive zone. Mass losses, mass loss rates and emission factors were strongly affected by the variation of the heating rate in the active zone. It was found that the global pyrolysis of A. donax can be satisfactorily described using global independent reactions model for hemicellulose and cellulose in the active zone. The activation energy for hemicellulose was not affected by a variation of the heating rate with a value close to 110 kJ mol⁻¹ and presented a reaction order close to 0.5. An increase of the heating rate decreased the activation energy of the cellulose. However, a first reaction order was observed for cellulose decomposition. The experimental results and kinetic parameters may provide useful data for the design of pyrolytic processing system using A. donax as feedstock.     

The temperature dependence of the stimulation of photosynthesis by elevated carbon dioxide in wheat and barley

The temperature dependencies of the solubility of carbon dioxide and oxygen in water and the temperature dependency of the kinetic characteristics of the ribulose-1,5 bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco) enzyme result in the short-term stimulation of photosynthesis with a doubling of carbon dioxide from 350 to 700 mol mol^-1 usually decreasing from about 90% at 30C to about 25% at 10C at high photon flux. In field-grown wheat and barley, the expected values at 30°C were observed, but also values as high as 60% at 10°C. The much larger than expected stimulation at cool temperatures in these species also occurred in plants grown at 15°C, but not at 23°C in controlled environment chambers. Gas exchange analysis indicated that an unusually high diffusive limitation was not an explanation for the large response. Assessment of the apparent in vivo specificity of Rubisco by determining the carbon dioxide concentration at which carboxylation equalled carbon dioxide release from oxygenation, indicated that growth at low temperatures altered the apparent enzyme specificity in these species compared to these species grown at the warmer temperature. Inserting the observed specificities into a biochemical model of photosynthesis indicated that altered Rubisco specificity was consistent with the observed rates of assimilation. Whether altered apparent Rubisco specificity is caused by altered stoichiometry of photorespiration or an actual change in enzyme specificity, the results indicate that the temperature dependence of the stimulation of photosynthesis by elevated carbon dioxide may vary greatly with species and with prior exposure to low temperature.Keywords: Barley, carbon dioxide, photosynthesis, temperature, wheat.      

Regional blood flow changes in response to thermal stimulation of the brain and spinal cord in the Pekin duck

Summary In conscious Pekin ducks, carotid and sciatic blood flows, respiratory rate, core and skin temperatures were measured during selective thermal stimulations of the spinal cord and rostral brain stem in thermoneutral (20 °C) and warm (32 °C) ambient conditions.At thermoneutral ambient temperature selective heating of the spinal cord by 2–3 °C (to 43–44 °C) increased the carotid blood flow by 138% and the sciatic blood flow by 46%. Increase in blood flows was correlated with increased breathing rate and beak and web skin temperatures.Selective cooling of the spinal cord at warm ambient temperatures and panting reduced the blood flow in both arteries and decreased the breathing rate.Heating or cooling of the brain stem showed generally very weak but otherwise similar responses as thermal stimulation of the spinal cord. In one duck out of six there was a marked effect on regional blood flow during brain stimulation.The results show that thermal stimulation of the spinal cord exerts a marked influence on regional blood flow important in thermoregulation, whereas the lower brain stem shows only a weak thermosensitivity, and stimulation caused only small cardiovascular changes of no major consequence in thermoregulation.     

Reaction of 2-thio-FAD-reconstituted p-hydroxybenzoate hydroxylase with hydrogen peroxide. Formation of a covalent flavin-protein linkage

Hydrogen peroxide reacts with 2-thio-FAD-reconstituted p-hydroxybenzoate hydroxylase to yield a long wavelength intermediate (lambda max = 360, 620 nm) which can be isolated in stable form on removal of excess H2O2. The blue flavin derivative slowly decays in a second peroxide-dependent reaction to yield a new flavin product lacking long wavelength absorbance (lambda max = 408, 472 nm). This final peroxide-modified enzyme binds p-hydroxybenzoate with a 10-fold lower affinity than does the native enzyme; furthermore, substrate binding leads to the inhibition of enzyme reduction by NADPH. Trichloroacetic acid treatment of the final peroxide-modified enzyme results in the quantitative conversion of the bound flavin to free FAD. However, gel filtration of the modified enzyme in guanidine hydrochloride at neutral pH leads to the co-elution of protein and modified flavin. The nondenatured peroxide product reacts rapidly with hydroxylamine to yield 2-NHOH-substituted FAD. These observations indicate that the secondary reaction of peroxide with the blue intermediate from 2-thio-FAD p-hydroxybenzoate hydroxylase results in the formation of an acid-labile covalent flavin-protein linkage within the enzyme active site, involving the flavin C-2 position.     

Effect of heating on vascular reactivity in rat mesenteric arteries

Vasoconstrictionin the viscera is one of the primary cardiovascular adjustments toheating. Local temperature can influence vascular responsiveness tocatecholamines and sympathetic nerve activity. Therefore, wehypothesized that heating would alter vascular reactivity in ratmesenteric arteries. Concentration-response curves to norepinephrine,phenylephrine, potassium chloride (KCl), calcium, acetylcholine, andsodium nitroprusside were obtained in vascular ring segments from ratmesenteric arteries at 37 and 41°C. In some rings, basal tensionincreased slightly during heating. Heating to 41°C did not alterthe contractile responses to norepinephrine in endothelium-intact or-denuded rings but augmented the responses to KCl and calcium inendothelium-intact rings. The potentiating effect of heating on theresponses to KCl and calcium was eliminated after endothelium removal.In contrast, the relaxant responses to acetylcholine and sodiumnitroprusside were significantly attenuated at 41°C. Collectively,these results demonstrate that heating alters vascular reactivity inrat mesenteric arteries. Furthermore, these data imply that heatingreduces the ability of vascular smooth muscle to relax, possibly due toa decrease in sensitivity to nitric oxide.