title: Gene synthesis, expression, and mutagenesis of zucchini mavicyanin: the fourth ligand of blue copper center is Gln.
abstract: The gene coding for the 109-amino-acid, non-glycosylated form of mavicyanin was synthesized and expressed in Escherichia coli. The recombinant protein refolded from E. coli inclusion bodies was purified and characterized. Its spectroscopic properties are fully identical to those of mavicyanin isolated from zucchini, even in the absence of its carbohydrate moiety. The blue cooper center of mavicyanin strongly binds three ligands (2His and Cys) as well as many blue copper proteins. To disclose the fourth ligand of mavicyanin, Met was substituted for Gln95 by site-directed mutagenesis. The replacement changes from a rhombic EPR signal to an axial one and exhibits the quite similar absorption and CD spectra to those of plastocyanin. The midpoint potential of Gln95-->Met mavicyanin shows the positive shift of 187 mV compared with the recombinant protein, being close to the values of plastocyanins. The differences of the spectroscopic and electrochemical properties between mavicyanin and its mutant demonstrate that the fourth ligand of mavicyanin is Gln95.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, Graduate School of Science, Osaka University, Japan. kataoka@ch.wani.osaka-u.ac.jp
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kataoka
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nakai
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Yamaguchi
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Suzuki
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D001483:Base Sequence; D001665:Binding Sites; D004926:Escherichia coli; D005998:Glycine; D008667:Metalloproteins / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016297:Mutagenesis, Site-Directed; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D010944:Plants; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D008667:Metalloproteins; D010940:Plant Proteins; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; C017079:mauC protein, Methylobacterium extorquens; C022828:mavicyanin protein, Cucurbita pepo; D005998:Glycine