title: Conformational states of the Rapana thomasiana hemocyanin and its substructures studied by dynamic light scattering and time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy.
abstract: Hemocyanins are dioxygen-transporting proteins freely dissolved in the hemolymph of mollusks and arthropods. Dynamic light scattering and time-resolved fluorescence measurements show that the oxygenated and apo-forms of the Rapana thomasiana hemocyanin, its structural subunits RtH1 and RtH2, and those of the functional unit RtH2e, exist in different conformations. The oxygenated respiratory proteins are less compact and more asymmetric than the respective apo-forms. Different conformational states were also observed for the R. thomasiana hemocyanin in the absence and presence of an allosteric regulator. The results are in agreement with a molecular mechanism for cooperative dioxygen binding in molluscan hemocyanins including transfer of conformational changes from one functional unit to another.
authors.affiliation: Universitätsklinikum Hamburg-Eppendorf, Zentrum für Experimentelle Medizin, Institut für Biochemie und Molekularbiologie I, Hamburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Dessislava
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Georgieva
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Schwark
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Nikolov
authors.forename: Krassimira
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Idakieva
authors.forename: Katja
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Parvanova
authors.forename: Karsten
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Dierks
authors.forename: Nicolay
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Genov
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Betzel
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003198:Computer Simulation; D006433:Hemocyanins / Q000032:analysis / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; D008956:Models, Chemical; D008958:Models, Molecular; D008974:Mollusca / Q000378:metabolism*; D011487:Protein Conformation; D017434:Protein Structure, Tertiary; D012031:Refractometry / Q000379:methods*; D013050:Spectrometry, Fluorescence / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D006433:Hemocyanins