Premium
The effect of pH on the conformation and stability of the structure of plant toxin — ricin
Author(s) -
Bushueva T.L.,
Tonevitsky A.G.
Publication year - 1987
Publication title -
febs letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.593
H-Index - 257
eISSN - 1873-3468
pISSN - 0014-5793
DOI - 10.1016/0014-5793(87)80132-1
Subject(s) - ricin , guanidine , chemistry , toxin , protein subunit , hydrochloride , fluorescence , biochemistry , physics , quantum mechanics , gene
The effect of pH on the conformation of ricin and its A‐ and B‐chains has been studied by measuring their intrinsic fluorescence. At pH 5.0 and 7.5, the structural stability of toxin and subunits was estimated according to the denaturing action of guanidine hydrochloride. It was demonstrated that the fluorescence of native toxin and catalytic A‐subunit does not depend significantly on pH in the range pH 3–8, whereas ricin B‐chain undergoes a structural transition at pH < 5.0. The structural stability of ricin and isolated chains differs significantly at pH 7.5 and 5.0; the structural stability of ricin and the A‐chain increases, whereas that of the B‐chain decreases.