The amperometric titration of sulphydryl groups at a rotating platinum electrode.
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The active site of the glucan-binding lectin (or agglutinin) (GBL) of Streptococcus sobrinus was probed by specific amino acid modifying reagents. Reagents specific for carboxylates, imidazolium, phenolic, and lysyl residues inactivated the cell bound GBL, whereas agents specific for sulfhydryl, disulfide, and guanidinium groups had no effect on the lectin. A low molecular weight alpha-(1-->6)-glucan provided partial protection against the reagents which inactivated the protein, whereas an alpha-(1-->4)-glucan, incapable of complexing with the lectin, afforded no protection. A reagent specific for tryptophan, 2-hydroxy-5-nitrobenzyl bromide (HNB) did not cause a loss of GBL activity, although N-bromosuccinimide, a reagent capable of oxidizing tryptophan and less selective than HNB, was a very effective inhibitor of the glucan-dependent cellular aggregation. In the latter case, alpha-(1-->6)-glucan did not protect. Hydroxylamine partially restored the loss of lectin activity due to treatment of the cells with N-acetylimidazole (highly specific for tyrosine), glycine methyl ester plus water-soluble carbodiimide (specific for carboxylates), and diethylpyrocarbonate (specific for histidine). Because the soluble form of GBL rapidly loses activity when purified, it was necessary to perform the chemical modification of the amino acid side chains employing the cell-bound form of the lectin. Because specific ligand [alpha-(1-->6)-glucan] protected against the inactivation of the agglutinin by selected reagents and because lectin activity could be restored in some cases, it was possible to identify likely essential amino acid residues needed for glucan binding. The results, taken together, suggest that aspartic (and/or glutamic) acid, histidine, lysine, and tyrosine are critical amino acids responsible for agglutinin activity. Present efforts are directed to the design and synthesis of glucan analogues which may serve as affinity inactivating agents of the lectin. Such glucan derivatives may be of value in studies on the role of the lectin in cariogenesis.
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In the presence of sulfhydryl compounds an anticancer drug nitracrine (NA), 1-nitro-9-aminoalkylacridine derivative forms strong, probably covalent complexes with DNA. It has been found that it binds with similar efficiency to RNA and DNA exhibiting a certain preference for single-stranded structure. At NA/polynucleotide ratio of 0.15 and nucleic acids concentration 100 microgram/ml the numbers of drug molecules bound per 10(3) nucleotides were about 10--13 for native calf thymus DNA, 19--28 for denatured DNA and 23--36 for RNA. Some base specificity to guanine is observed both in polydeoxyribo- and polyribonucleotides. The complexes of NA with DNA and double-stranded synthetic polynucleotides exhibit decreased transcriptional template activity in bacterial RNA synthesis in vitro system except poly(A) synthesis on poly(dA) x poly(dT) which is insensitive to the drug. The drug binding in vitro leads to cross-link formation in DNA as shown by means of ultraviolet spectrophotometry and hydroxylapatite chromatography of heat-denatured NA-DNA complexes. The amount of the double bonds introduced by the drug is however relatively low as compared with cross-linking of irradiated 8-methoxy-psoralen-DNA (MOP-DNA) complexes.
Captan (N-trichloromethylthio-4-cyclohexene-1,2-dicarboximide) was examined for its effects on bovine liver nuclear RNA synthesis. Transcription was measured by [3H] UTP incorporation into either acid insoluble product or isolated RNA. Captan (1 mM) was found to inhibit RNA synthesis 50% in intact nuclei and 70% in a hypotonic lysate of nuclei. Individual RNA polymerase activities were distinguished in both intact nuclei and hypotonic lysate by alpha-amanitin sensitivity. Captan inhibited RNA polymerase I and II activities to an equal extent in both intact and lysate systems. The sulfhydryl compound dithiothreitol (DTT) protected the RNA polymerase activities from inhibition by captan. Initiation of transcription in intact nuclei was measured by [gamma-32P] ATP incorporation into purified RNA and was found to be inhibited 75% by 1 mM captan. This report describes the inhibition of nuclear RNA polymerase activities by captan and suggests a possible mechanism for its toxic effect on eukaryotic polymerases.
A radiochemical microassay for the measurement of thiol methyltransferase (TMT) activity in human red blood cell (RBC) membranes has been developed. Both 2-mercaptoethanol and dithiothreitol were used as substrates for the enzyme. The pH optimum of the reaction was approximately 9.0 when glycine NaOH was used as a buffer. The apparent Michaelis-Menten (KM) value for the methyl donor for the reaction, S-adenosyl-L-methionine, was 43 mumol/l. Human RBC TMT activity was neither activated nor inhibited by Ca2+, Mg2+, or tropolone, but the enzyme was inhibited by SKF 525A and by reagents that react with sulfhydryl groups. The mean TMT activity in blood from 289 randomly selected adult white subjects was 10.93 +/- 3.22 units per mg protein (mean +/- S.D.). The activity was the same in samples from men and women. The results of experiments in which TMT activity was measured in mextures of RBC membranes with relatively "low" and relatively "high" activities provided no evidence that individual variations in the enzyme activity were due to variations in endogenous TMT activators or inhibitors.
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We studied the effect of the angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor, captopril, on two models of gastric ulcers; oxyphenbutazone and ethanol-induced lesions. There was a significant protective effect against oxyphenbutazone-induced ulcers, which was prevented by prior administration of indomethacin. Captopril, however, failed to protect against ethanol-induced lesions. These findings are discussed in the light of captopril being a sulfhydryl compound with prostaglandin-releasing activity.
Exposure of serotonin (5-HT) to oxygen-derived free-radical-generating system, xanthine oxidase-hypoxanthine or to a Fenton reaction results in the formation of the neurotoxin, tryptamine-4,5-dione. In cultured embryonic chick brain neurons, incubation of tryptamine-4,5-dione or its ethyl carbonate derivative resulted in a dose-dependent neurotoxicity (1-100 microM). The addition of sulfhydryl compound, glutathione at 2 or 10 microM significantly enhanced the toxicity induced by 10 microM tryptamine-4,5-dione. On the contrary, glutathione at 10 microM decreased the neurotoxic effect caused by 10 microM 5,6- and 5,7-dihydroxytryptamine in the cultured neurons. The toxicity resulted from 5,6- and 5,7-dihydroxytryptamine could be fully prevented by a 5-HT uptake inhibitor, fluoxetine. However, the toxicity caused by tryptamine-4,5-dione and glutathione conjugate could not be blocked by fluoxetine (10 or 100 microM) or by a glutathione transferase inhibitor, boric acid/serine. The results indicate a different molecular mechanism among 5-HT derived neurotoxins and suggest that tryptamine-4,5-dione and/or its glutathione conjugate would cause neuronal damage, if they are formed in vivo.
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