title: Methylene blue photosensitized oxidation of hypotaurine in the presence of azide generates reactive nitrogen species: formation of nitrotyrosine.
abstract: In our previous study on the hypotaurine (HTAU) oxidation by methylene blue (MB) photochemically generated singlet oxygen (1O2) we found that azide, usually used as 1O2 quencher, produced, instead, an evident enhancing effect on the oxidation rate [L. Pecci, M. Costa, G. Montefoschi, A. Antonucci, D. Cavallini, Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 254 (1999) 661-665]. We show here that this effect is strongly dependent on pH, with a maximum at approximately pH 5.7. When the MB photochemical system containing HTAU and azide was performed in the presence of tyrosine, 3-nitrotyrosine was produced with maximum yield at pH 5.7, suggesting that azide, by the combined action of HTAU and singlet oxygen, generates nitrogen species which contribute to tyrosine nitration. In addition to HTAU, cysteine sulfinic acid, and sulfite were found to induce the formation of 3-nitrotyrosine. No detectable tyrosine nitration was observed using taurine, the oxidation product of HTAU, or thiol compounds such as cysteine and glutathione. It is shown that during the MB photooxidation of HTAU in the presence of azide, nitrite, and nitrate are produced. Evidences are presented, indicating that nitrite represents the nitrogen species involved in the production of 3-nitrotyrosine. A possible mechanism accounting for the enhancing effect of azide on the photochemical oxidation of HTAU and the production of nitrogen species is proposed.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Scienze Biochimiche A. Rossi Fanelli and Centro di Studio sulla Biologia Molecolare del CNR, Università di Roma La Sapienza Piazzale A. Moro 5, 00185 Rome, Italy. laura.pecci@uniroma1.it
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Pecci
authors.forename: Gabriella
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Montefoschi
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Antonucci
authors.forename: Mara
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Costa
authors.forename: Doriano
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Cavallini
mesh_terms: D000975:Antioxidants / Q000737:chemistry*; D001386:Azides / Q000737:chemistry*; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D008751:Methylene Blue / Q000737:chemistry*; D009566:Nitrates / Q000737:chemistry; D009573:Nitrites / Q000737:chemistry; D010084:Oxidation-Reduction; D010100:Oxygen / Q000378:metabolism; D010777:Photochemistry; D026361:Reactive Nitrogen Species / Q000737:chemistry*; D013455:Sulfur / Q000737:chemistry; D013654:Taurine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000737:chemistry*; D014443:Tyrosine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D000975:Antioxidants; D001386:Azides; D009566:Nitrates; D009573:Nitrites; D026361:Reactive Nitrogen Species; D013654:Taurine; C002744:3-nitrotyrosine; D014443:Tyrosine; C003949:hypotaurine; D013455:Sulfur; D010100:Oxygen; D008751:Methylene Blue