scholarly journals Purification and properties of a new testosterone 17β-dehydrogenase (NADP+) from guinea-pig liver

1977 ◽  
Vol 163 (3) ◽  
pp. 401-407 ◽  
Author(s):  
E Kaguera ◽  
S Toki

As a result of studies of guinea-pig live testosterone 17beta-dehydrogenase (NADP+) (EC 1.1.1.64), a new testosterone 17beta-dehydrogenase was discovered. The new enzyme was purified to a single homogeneous protein from the 105 000 g-supernatant fraction of guinea-pig liver by (NH4)2SO4 fractional precipitation and two gel-filtration stages, DEAE-cellulose column chromatography and hydroxyapatite column chromatography. It was characterized by many properties. The enzyme has almost the same properties as the classical testosterone 17beta-dehydrogenase (NADP+) (EC 1.1.1.64), with respect to cofactor requirement, pH optima for dehydrogenation, effect of phosphate ion on the NAD+-dependent reaction and molecular weight, but characteristic differences were observed in substrate-specificity between the two dehydrogenases. With various androstane derivatives, the configuration of the A/B-ring junction was closely connected with enzyme activity. 5alpha-Androstanes, such as 5alpha-androstane-3alpha,17beta-diol, 5alpha-androstane-3beta,17beta-diol and 17beta-hydroxy-5alpha-androstan-3-one, and 5beta-congeners, such as 5beta-androstane-3alpha,17beta-diol, 5beta-androstane-3beta,17beta-diol and 17beta-hydroxy-5beta-androstan-3-one, served as substrates for both the EC 1.1.1.64 enzyme and the new enzyme. The EC 1.1.1.64 enzyme oxidized testosterone more rapidly than did the new enzyme. These comparisons were based on the relative activities, apparent Km values and apparent Vmax values.

1972 ◽  
Vol 43 (6) ◽  
pp. 799-813 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Corrocher ◽  
B. K. Bhuyan ◽  
A. V. Hoffbrand

1. The composition of guinea-pig liver folates and the biochemical route of formation of liver folates from injected tritium-labelled pteroylglutamic acid (folic acid) have been studied. 2. Endogenous folate was measured by microbiological assay with Lactobacillus casei and Streptococcus faecalis, with and without deconjugation of whole liver pteroylpolyglutamates (conjugated folates). Individual folate compounds were identified by microbiological assay after fractionation of liver folates by DEAE cellulose ion-exchange column chromatography. 3. Liver folate in the guinea-pig consists of about 84–87% reduced pteroylpolyglutamates with more than three glutamate moieties/molecule, about 12–15% reduced pteroyltriglutamates, about 1% reduced pteroyldiglutamates and only traces of reduced pteroylmonoglutamates. 4. About 53% of the liver folate consists of methylated derivatives. 5. Injected pteroylglutamic acid was first rapidly reduced and formylated or methylated. Glutamate moieties were then added, probably singly, to form di-, tri- and poly-glutamates. This was a relatively slow process with a hold-up at the triglutamate stage. 6. The proportion of the labelled pteroylglutamic acid in the polyglutamate form approximated to the proportion of endogenous folates in this form after 3–4 days. 7. The amount of radioactive folate in the liver increased progressively from 1 to 84 h after injection of a standard amount of radioactive pteroylglutamic acid.


1976 ◽  
Vol 159 (3) ◽  
pp. 651-659 ◽  
Author(s):  
K W Cheng

A reproducible procedure was developed for the purification of follitropin from frozen bovine pituitary glands. The method involved precipitation with (NH4)2SO4 and acetone, followed by ion-exchange column chromatography on CM-cellulose and DEAE-cellulose and gel filtration on Sephadex G-100. A specific radioligand-receptor assay for follitropin was used to locate the activity in eluates after column chromatography and gel filtration. The potency of the highly purified bovine follitropin as measured by Steelman-Pohley bioassay was 164 times that of NIH-FSH-S1 standard preparation. They yield of bovine follitropin was 2.9 mg/kg of frozen pituitary glands. Electrophoretically, bovine follitropin was more acidic in nature and migrated further towards the anode than lutropin and thyrotropin. The elution volume of bovine follitropin by gel filtration on Sephadex G-100 was very similar to that of bovine lutropin. The amino acid composition of bovine follitropin was similar to that of sheep and human follitropin, being rich in lysine, aspartic acid, threonine, serine, glutamic acid and half-cystine.


1986 ◽  
Vol 235 (1) ◽  
pp. 103-110 ◽  
Author(s):  
S M Farrow ◽  
C T Jones

During analysis of pyruvate kinase distribution in developing guinea-pig liver it was observed that a substantial proportion of the activity remained associated with the microsomal membrane fraction (‘microsomes’). Although some of this could be removed by washing with sucrose, the majority required detergent treatment for liberation, and even then at least one-half remained attached to the microsomes. Estimates of the contribution of this fraction to total cell pyruvate kinase activity indicated that it was more than 50% of the total, and this is likely to be an underestimate because of the continued latency of the enzyme even in the presence of detergent. The susceptibility of the microsomal enzyme, whether released by detergent or sucrose washing, to inactivation by Triton X-100 suggested it to be different from the cytosolic enzyme, which was stable under such conditions. (The microsomal enzyme required the presence of additional protein, such as bovine serum albumin, to maintain stability.) This view was confirmed by DEAE-cellulose chromatography and particularly isoelectric focusing, where the microsomal enzyme was shown to consist of at least four forms, which were distinctly different from those in the cytosol. Those data and the kinetic properties of the four forms in the membrane fraction indicate that the microsomal pyruvate kinase could consist of four counterparts to the cytosolic isoenzyme forms. These results are discussed in relation to the two possible explanations for the phenomenon (not mutually exclusive): that the more hydrophobic membrane forms are precursors of the cytosolic enzyme and that they may be part of functional glycolytic pathway in the microsomes of developing liver.


1978 ◽  
Vol 174 (2) ◽  
pp. 621-626 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donald A. Vessey

All animals, except for the placental mammals, conjugate their bile acids exclusively with taurine. However, in certain of the placental mammals, glycine conjugates are also found. The basis for the appearance of glycine conjugation among the placental mammals was investigated. The reaction of choloyl-CoA with glycine and taurine, as catalysed by the soluble fraction from guinea-pig liver, had a high affinity for taurine and a poor affinity for glycine. The predominant synthesis of glycine conjugates in the guinea pig can be related to the fact that guinea-pig liver contains an unusually low concentration of taurine and a high concentration of glycine. Rabbits make exclusively glycine conjugates and their livers also contain low concentrations of taurine. However, the biochemical basis for their glycine conjugation is more straightforward than in the guinea pig in that the soluble fraction from rabbit liver has a high affinity for glycine and a poor affinity for taurine. Alternative-substrate-inhibition studies with glycine and taurine in soluble fractions from guinea-pig and rabbit liver revealed that glycine and taurine were mutually inhibitory. This suggests that there is only one enzyme for glycine and taurine conjugation in these tissues. The soluble fractions from bovine liver and human liver also made both glycine and taurine conjugates and evidence is presented that suggests that there is only one enzyme in these tissues too. Even the rat, which excretes mostly taurine conjugates, could make both glycine and taurine conjugates in vitro. However, in contrast with all of the placental mammals studied, the supernatant fraction from liver of the chicken, and other non-mammals, could not make glycine conjugates even in the presence of very high concentrations of glycine.


1970 ◽  
Vol 119 (3) ◽  
pp. 517-524 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yew Phew See ◽  
P. S. Fitt

1. Polynucleotide phosphorylase has been isolated and partially purified from crude preparations of guinea-pig liver nuclei. 2. The enzyme is particulate and associated with RNA and lipids characteristic of membranes. 3. It has phosphorolysis and exchange activities, but the latter may be due to a contaminating enzyme. 4. The phosphorolysis activity is dependent on bivalent cations, preferably Mg2+, has a pH optimum between 8.6 and 9.2 and is inhibited by potassium chloride and sodium chloride. 5. The enzyme catalyses phosphorolysis of poly A, poly C, poly U, rRNA and tRNA. Poly G is only phosphorolysed to a very small extent and DNA is not a substrate. 6. The enzyme appears to lack nucleoside diphosphate polymerization activity.


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