Abstract
A solution of γ-crystallin became turbid upon heating at 65°C for 30 minutes; however, addition of α-crystallin suppressed this thermal aggregation. It was found the effective chaperone function could be achieved with the molar ratio of α/γ greater than 1/20. In terms of crystallin subunit, five molecular α-crystallin subunits could afford chaperone for one molecular γ-crystallin. The gel filtration profile of the sample solution, containing α- and γ-crystallins and preincubation at 65°C for 30 minutes, showed complex formation between α- and γ-crystallins, indicating α-crystallin was bound to thermally denatured γ-crystallin. A 1-anilinonaphthalene-8-sulfonic acid (ANS) fluorescence study showed that α-crystallin has more hydrophobic regions exposed after thermal incubation. In the presence of urea, both the α-crysiallin chaperone activity and the ANS fluorescence intensity decreased. Accordingly, hydrophobic regions of α-crystallin play an indispensible role in its chaperone activity.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 285-292 |
Number of pages | 8 |
Journal | Journal of the Chinese Chemical Society |
Volume | 45 |
Issue number | 2 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 1998 |
All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- General Chemistry