title: A study on retinal photoisomerization catalyzed by a protein from the honeybee visual system.
abstract: The photoisomerization of all-trans retinal catalyzed by an isomerase purified from the honeybee retina is stereospecifically directed toward the formation of 11-cis retinal, the isomer required for rhodopsin regeneration. A model of the enzymatic reactions was developed, which fits the experimental data. In a particular experiment where irradiation was performed with a LASER light, the rate constants of the photoisomerization of all-trans retinal were dependent on the light intensity and were therefore greatly enhanced.
authors.affiliation: Istituto di Cibernetica e Biofisica del CNR.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cugnoli
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Fioravanti
authors.forename: I M
authors.initials: IM
authors.lastname: Pepe
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001516:Bees; D002384:Catalysis; D007535:Isomerases / Q000378:metabolism*; D007536:Isomerism; D007700:Kinetics; D007834:Lasers; D008027:Light; D010777:Photochemistry; D012160:Retina / Q000201:enzymology / Q000378:metabolism*; D012172:Retinaldehyde / Q000378:metabolism; D014212:Tretinoin / Q000378:metabolism*; D019745:cis-trans-Isomerases
chemical_list: C077124:retinal isomerase; D014212:Tretinoin; D007535:Isomerases; D019745:cis-trans-Isomerases; D012172:Retinaldehyde