3at6

Publication Abstract from PubMed

Red blood cells of yellow-spotted river turtles (Podocnemis unifilis, Pleurodira, Chelonia, REPTILIA) have two hemoglobin (Hb) components, Hb A and Hb D. We purified the hemoglobin component homologous to amniote (reptiles, birds, and mammals) adult Hb A which comprises two identical alpha(A) -globin polypeptides and two identical beta-globin polypeptides. To establish the crystal structure of Podocnemis Hb A, we first determined the globin primary structures using cDNA nucleotide sequencing with the assistance of protein sequencing. The purified Podocnemis Hb A produced a different form of crystal for each of the two different buffer systems used: form A, tetragonal crystals (space group, P4(1) 2(1) 2), produced under neutral pH (pH 7-8) conditions; and form B, hexagonal crystals (space group, P6(1) 22), produced under high alkaline pH (pH 11-13) conditions. Single crystals of the two forms were examined by Raman microscopy with an excitation of 532 nm, indicating their structural differences. The crystal structures of the two forms were constructed by X-ray crystallographic diffraction at a resolution of 2.20 A for form A and 2.35 A for form B. The differences of the tertiary and quaternary structures of the two forms were marginal; however, one clear difference was found in helix structure. When comparing Podocnemis Hb A with Hb A from specimens in other taxa, such as Anser indicus (birds) and Homo sapiens (mammals) by SHELXPRO, the root mean square deviation (RMSD) between the corresponding Calpha atoms of the two globins does not exceed 2.0 A. These low values indicate the crystal structures resemble each other. Our data on X-ray crystal structures and Raman spectra not only reveal the first findings on the two crystal forms of Podocnemis unifilis Hb A but also provide the first refined models for reptilian adult Hb A. (c) 2011 IUBMB IUBMB Life, 63(3): 188-196, 2011.

Side-necked turtle (Pleurodira, Chelonia, reptilia) hemoglobin: cDNA-derived primary structures and X-ray crystal structures of Hb A.,Hasegawa T, Shishikura F, Kuwada T IUBMB Life. 2011 Mar;63(3):188-96. doi: 10.1002/iub.429. PMID:21445850^[1]

From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.