title: Evidence for a role of a vicinal dithiol in the transport of gamma-butyrobetaine in Agrobacterium sp.
abstract: An Agrobacterium sp. isolated from soil is able to use gamma-butyrobetaine as its sole source of carbon and nitrogen. The involvement of thiol groups for active transport of gamma-butyrobetaine was investigated by use of the thiol alkylating reagent N-ethylmaleimide (NEM) and the dithiol specific reagent phenylarsine oxide (PAO). Both reagents strongly inhibited gamma-butyrobetaine uptake, but also induced the release of the accumulated substrate, suggesting that the transport system either contains a dithiol-dependent protein or that a small thiol-containing molecule is implicated in the uptake phenomenon.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, University of Geneva, Switzerland.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nobile
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Deshusses
mesh_terms: D001152:Arsenicals / Q000494:pharmacology; D001622:Betaine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000378:metabolism; D001693:Biological Transport, Active / Q000187:drug effects; D002331:Carnitine; D005033:Ethylmaleimide / Q000494:pharmacology; D012231:Rhizobium / Q000378:metabolism*; D013439:Sulfhydryl Reagents / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D001152:Arsenicals; D013439:Sulfhydryl Reagents; C029341:oxophenylarsine; D001622:Betaine; C002889:gamma-butyrobetaine; D005033:Ethylmaleimide; D002331:Carnitine