The evolution of polar fish hemoglobin: a phylogenetic analysis of the ancestral amino acid residues linked to the root effect

Denaturation and intermediates study of two sturgeon hemoglobins by n-dodecyl trimethylammonium bromide

Varieties of hemoglobin (Hb) forms exist in fish, which are usually well adapted to the different ecological conditions or various habitats. In the current study, Hbs from two Sturgeon species of the Southern Caspian Sea Basin were purified and studied upon interaction with n-dodecyl trimethylammonium bromide (DTAB; as a cationic surfactant) by various methods including UV-visible absorption, dynamic light scattering (DLS), and ANS fluorescence spectrophotometry. The chemometric analysis of Hbs was investigated upon interaction with DTAB under titration, using UV-visible absorption spectra. The chemometric resolution techniques were used to determine the number of the components and mole fraction of the oxidized Hbs. These results provided the evidence for the existence of three different molecular components including native (N), intermediate (I) and denatured (D) in sturgeon Hbs. According to the distribution of intermediates, which were broadened in a range of DTAB concentration, the aggregation states, DLS experiments, and thermal stability (T(m) obtained by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC)), the Acipenser stellatus Hb was more stable compared to Acipenser persicus Hb. These results demonstrate a significant relationship between the stability of fish Hbs and the habitat depth requirements.

The adaptation of polar fishes to climatic changes: Structure, function and phylogeny of haemoglobin

In the Antarctic, fishes of dominant suborder Notothenioidei have evolved in a unique thermal scenario. Phylogenetically related taxa of the suborder live in a wide range of latitudes, in Antarctic, sub-Antarctic and temperate oceans. Consequently, they offer a remarkable opportunity to study the physiological and biochemical characters gained and, conversely, lost during their evolutionary history. The evolutionary perspective has also been pursued by comparative studies of some features of the heme protein devoted to O(2) transport in fish living in the other polar region, the Arctic. The two polar regions differ by age and isolation. Fish living in each habitat have undergone regional constraints and fit into different evolutionary histories. The aim of this contribution is to survey the current knowledge of molecular structure, functional features, phylogeny and adaptations of the haemoglobins of fish thriving in the Antarctic, sub-Antarctic and Arctic regions (with some excursions in the temperate latitudes), in search of insights into the convergent processes evolved in response to cooling. Current climate change may disturb adaptation, calling for strategies aimed at neutralising threats to biodiversity.

High resolution crystal structure of deoxy hemoglobin from Trematomus bernacchii at different pH values: The role of histidine residues in modulating the strength of the root effect

The Root effect is a widespread property in fish hemoglobins (Hbs) that produces a drastic reduction of cooperativity and oxygen-binding ability at acidic pH. Here, we report the high-resolution structure of the deoxy form of Hb isolated from the Antarctic fish Trematomus bernacchii (HbTb) crystallized at pH 6.2 and 8.4. The structure at acidic pH has been previously determined at a moderate resolution (Ito et al., J Mol Biol 1995;250:648-658). Our results provide a clear picture of the events occurring upon the pH increase from 6.2 to 8.4, observed within a practically unchanged crystal environment. In particular, at pH 8.4, the interaspartic hydrogen bond at the alpha(1)beta(2) interface is partially broken, suggesting a pK(a) close to 8.4 for Asp95alpha. In addition, a detailed survey of the histidine modifications, caused by the change in pH, also indicates that at least three hot regions of the molecule are modified (Ebeta helix, Cbeta-tail, CDalpha corner) and can be considered to be involved at various levels in the release of the Root protons. Most importantly, at the CDalpha corner, the break of the salt bridge Asp48alpha-His55alpha allows us to describe a detailed mechanism that transmits the modification from the CDalpha corner far to the alpha heme. More generally, the results shed light on the role played by the histidine residues in modulating the strength of the Root effect and also support the emerging idea that the structural determinants, at least for a part of the Root effect, are specific of each Hb endowed with this property.

The Oxygen Transport System in Three Species of the Boreal Fish Family Gadidae

The Arctic and Antarctic marine faunas differ by age and isolation. Fishes of the two polar regions have undergone different regional histories that have driven the physiological diversities. Antarctic fish are highly stenothermal, in keeping with stable water temperatures, whereas Arctic fish, being exposed to seasonal temperature variations, exhibit higher physiological plasticity. This study reports the characterization of the oxygen transport system of three Arctic species of the family Gadidae, namely the Arctic cod Arctogadus glacialis, the polar cod Boreogadus saida, and the Atlantic cod Gadus morhua. Unlike Antarctic notothenioids, the blood displays high multiplicity, i.e. it has three hemoglobins, similar to many other acanthomorph teleosts. In the most abundant hemoglobin, oxygen binding is modulated by heterotropic effectors, with marked Bohr and Root effects. Remarkably, in two species (A. glacialis and B. saida), the Hill coefficient is very close to one in the whole pH range, indicating the apparent absence of cooperativity. The amino acid sequences have been used to gain insight into the evolution history of globins of polar fish. The results indicate that Arctic and Antarctic globins have different phylogenies and lead us to suggest that the selective pressure of environment stability allows the phylogenetic signal to be maintained in the Antarctic sequences, whereas environmental variability would tend to disrupt this signal in the Gadidae sequences.

Structure and function of the Gondwanian hemoglobin of Pseudaphritis urvillii, a primitive notothenioid fish of temperate latitudes

The suborder Notothenioidei dominates the Antarctic ichthyofauna. The non-Antarctic monotypic family Pseudaphritidae is one of the most primitive families. The characterization of the oxygen-transport system of euryhaline Pseudaphritis urvillii is herewith reported. Similar to most Antarctic notothenioids, this temperate species has a single major hemoglobin (Hb 1, over 95% of the total). Hb 1 has strong Bohr and Root effects. It shows two very uncommon features in oxygen binding: At high pH values, the oxygen affinity is exceptionally high compared to other notothenioids, and subunit cooperativity is modulated by pH in an unusual way, namely the curve of the Hill coefficient is bell-shaped, with values approaching 1 at both extremes of pH. Molecular modeling, electronic absorption and resonance Raman spectra have been used to characterize the heme environment of Hb 1 in an attempt to explain these features, particularly in view of some potentially important nonconservative replacements found in the primary structure. Compared to human HbA, no major changes were found in the structure of the proximal cavity of the alpha-chain of Hb 1, although an altered distal histidyl and heme position was identified in the models of the beta-chain, possibly facilitated by a more open heme pocket due to reduced steric constraints on the vinyl substituent groups. This conformation may lead to the hemichrome form identified by spectroscopy in the Met state, which likely fulfils a potentially important physiological role.