Ab initio study of molecular properties of l-tyrosine

Molecular Properties of Monoaminergic Catecholamines in Water

Three neurotransmitters belonging to catecholamines (dopamine, noradrenaline, adrenaline) and related α-amino acids (DOPA and tyrosine) were studied by quantum-chemical ab initio and DFT calculations using B3LYP and DLPNO-CCSD(T) methods in water. In addition to the three canonical forms, zwitterionic forms were also investigated, each in three oxidation states (molecular cation L+, electroneutral molecule L0, and molecular anion L-). Each species was subjected to geometry optimization followed by vibrational analysis. Electronic properties (adiabatic ionization energy, electron affinity, chemical hardness, molecular electronegativity, electrophilicity index, dipole moment, electric polarizability, and quadrupole moment) and standard thermodynamic quantities (inner energy, entropy, enthalpy, and Gibbs energy) were evaluated, which allows the absolute oxidation and reduction potentials to be calculated. The absolute reduction potential (ARP) was found to correlate with the electrophilicity index ω along a straight line. Moreover, in addition to the standard expression for the absolute redox potential using reaction Gibbs energy, an approximation based on ionization energy and/or electron affinity was also tested. The main finding is that dopamine is a much weaker oxidizing agent with the ARP = 0.99 V relative to tyrosine with ARP = 1.38 V for canonical structures in water. This is also true for the zwitterionic structures in water: for dopamine ARP = 0.63 V is much lower relative to tyrosine with ARP = 1.31 V. The protonated form (DOPAH+) has the highest ARP = 2.02 V. Prediction of the redox potentials is an important factor influencing antioxidant (EC50) and/or antireductant activity. Based on 16 molecular properties for 20 molecules (320 entries), advanced statistical methods (cluster analysis, principal component analysis, pair-correlation) reveal that several groups of similarity exist: {dopamine-noradrenaline}, different from {adrenaline-DOPA-(tyrosine)} and zwitterionic forms of {dopamine-noradrenaline-adrenaline}.

Metabolomics profiling reveals low blood tyrosine levels as a metabolic feature of newborns from systemic lupus erythematosus pregnancies

Introduction

Pregnancy outcomes of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) have improved over the past four decades, leading to an increased desire for pregnancy among this cohort. However, the offspring of patients with SLE still face the risks of preterm birth, low birth weight, learning disabilities, and neurological disorders, while the causes underlying these risks remain unclear.

Methods

In this study, we analyzed the blood metabolic features of neonates born to 30 SLE patients and 52 healthy control mothers by employing tandem mass spectrometry with the dual aims of identifying the etiology of metabolic features specific to infants born from mothers with SLE and providing new insights into the clinical management of such infants.

Results

We found significant differences in serum metabolite levels between infants born from mothers with SLE and those born from mothers without SLE, including 15 metabolites with reduced serum levels. Further analysis revealed a disrupted tyrosine metabolism pathway in the offspring of mothers with SLE.

Discussion

By constructing a composite model incorporating various factors, such as serum tyrosine levels, gestational age, and birth weight, we were able to accurately differentiate between newborns of SLE and non-SLE pregnancies. Our data reveal significant differences in serum concentrations of amino acids and acylcarnitines in newborns born to mothers with SLE. We conclude that the reduction of blood L-tyrosine levels is a feature that is characteristic of adverse neurological outcomes in infants born from mothers with SLE.