Reversible inhibitions of cytochrome system components by macromolecular polyions

Protein surface recognition by porphyrin-based receptors

Protein surface recognition is largely unexplored owing to the large solvent exposed surface and lack of proper molecular scaffolds to match the binding residues. This review describes the design, synthesis, and fluorescence binding studies of functionalized porphyrins aimed at targeting surface residues of proteins through complementary recognition. The pattern of lysine residues surrounding the heme-edge of horse heart cytochrome c has been targeted by tetraphenylporphyrin and tetrabiphenylporphyrin receptors that bind with nano- and sub-nanomolar affinity. Other designed porphyrin-based receptors also recognize potassium channel as a target. The strategies for protein surface recognition offer a new use for porphyrins as molecular scaffolds.

Changes in the cytochrome c content during the aerobic adaptation of Paracoccus denitrificans

Concentration of cytochrome c decreases when shaking anaerobically grown cells in a non-growth medium down to 50% of the original amount in the cell, depending on the degree of aeration. Only 10-20% of this amount can be found in the adaptation medium. The main portion of cytochrome c is degraded during the adaptation. Inhibitors of proteinases do not influence the degradation. Addition of mammalian cytochrome c fully prevents the degradation of bacterial cytochrome c but not its release from cells. Potassium hexacyanoferrate(III) exhibits a similar effect as oxygen. The degradation system is probably localized in the periplasmic space of the cells.

Histone inhibition of mitochondrial proton transport

Histone blocks proton uptake by mitochondria incubated in the presence of valinomycin or DNP. In the presence of DNP valinomycin-induced H+ uptake is not affected by histone. H+ uptake induced by nigericin is not affected by histone as well. Postulated mechanism of histone action involves the immobilization of proton translocation in mitochondrial membrane and induction of local change in H+ concentration, the prevention of the interaction between H+ and natural K+-carrier and Mg2+ transport system or valinomycin.

Inactivation and reactivation of mitochondrial respiration by charged detergents

Respiration of submitochondrial preparations can be inhibited by the cationic detergent cetyl trimethyl ammonium bromide and the anionic detergent sodium dodecyl sulfate in the range of 0.3-2 mumol of detergent per mg of mitochondrial membrane protein depending on the substrate and detergent used. This inhibition can be rapidly reversed by neutralizing a given detergent by the detergent of the opposite charge. At higher levels of the inhibiting detergent, no such reactivation was observed. Spin labeling assays of membrane structure were used to correlate structural effects with the loss and recovery of respiratory functions. Because the detergents progressively disrupt membrane structure, mitochondrial were cross-linked with bifunctional imidoesters to an extent that osmotic properties and detergent lysis were gone, but respiration remained. Such fixed respiring mitochondria also show inhibition reactivation phenomena.

The mitochondrial oxidation of quinol monophosphates

1. Mitochondria from ox heart and rat liver catalysed a slow cyanide-sensitive oxidation of 2,3-dimethylnaphthaquinol monophosphate, duroquinol monophosphate, menadiol 1-phosphate and menadiol 4-phosphate. 2. The release of P(i) was concomitant with oxygen uptake. 3. The oxidation was somewhat stimulated by Ca(2+) and P(i), and weakly inhibited by 2,4-dinitrophenol. 4. The quinol monophosphates effected a rapid reduction of free cytochrome c, and consequently addition of cytochrome c greatly increased the rate of the mitochondrial oxidation of 2,3-dimethylnaphthaquinol monophosphate. 5. This quinol phosphate interacts with the electron-transport chain at the level of cytochrome c. 6. Polylysine promoted an interaction between 2,3-dimethylnaphthaquinol monophosphate and cytochrome oxidase. Thus, although polylysine blocks mitochondrial oxidations via reduced cytochrome c, the oxidation of the quinol phosphate was strongly stimulated. 7. This stimulation was most effective in the most intact mitochondrial preparations and was inhibited by ADP and by P(i). 8. The implications of these results for factors limiting the rate of quinol phosphate oxidation, the mode of action of stimulators and the mechanism of P(i) formation are discussed.