Effect of UVC Irradiation on the Oxidation of Histidine in Monoclonal Antibodies.

We oxidized histidine residues in monoclonal antibody drugs of immunoglobulin gamma 1 (IgG1) using ultraviolet C irradiation (UVC: 200-280 nm), which is known to be potent for sterilization or disinfection. Among the reaction products, we identified asparagine and aspartic acid by mass spectrometry. In the photo-induced oxidation of histidine in angiotensin II, 18O atoms from H218O in the solvent were incorporated only into aspartic acid but not into asparagine. This suggests that UVC irradiation generates singlet oxygen and induces [2 + 2] cycloaddition to form a dioxetane involving the imidazole Cγ - Cδ2 bond of histidine, followed by ring-opening in the manner of further photo-induced retro [2 + 2] cycloaddition. This yields an equilibrium mixture of two keto-imines, which can be the precursors to aspartic acid and asparagine. The photo-oxidation appears to occur preferentially for histidine residues with lower pKa values in IgG1. We thus conclude that the damage due to UVC photo-oxidation of histidine residues can be avoided in acidic conditions where the imidazole ring is protonated.

Light-Induced Covalent Buffer Adducts to Histidine in a Model Protein.

PURPOSE: Light is known to induce histidine (His) oxidation and His-His crosslinking in proteins. The crosslinking is resulted from the nucleophilic attack of a His to a photooxidized His from another protein. The goal of this work is to understand if covalent buffer adducts on His residues can be generated by light through similar mechanisms in nucleophilic buffers such as Tris and His. METHODS: A model protein (DNase) was buffer exchanged into nucleophilic buffers before light exposure. Photogenerated products were characterized by tryptic peptide mapping with mass spectrometry (MS) analysis. Several buffer adductions on His residues were identified after light exposure. To understand the influencing factors of such reactions, the levels of adducts were measured for six nucleophilic buffers on all His residues in DNase. RESULTS: The levels of adducts were found to correlate with the solvent accessibility of the His residue. The levels of adducts also correlate with the structure of the nucleophile, especially the steric restrictions of the nucleophile. The levels of adducts can be higher than that of other His photoreaction products, including photooxidation and crosslinking. CONCLUSIONS: In nucleophilic buffers, light can induce covalently-linked adducts to His residues.

An Electron Paramagnetic Resonance (EPR) spectroscopy study on the γ-irradiation sterilization of the pharmaceutical excipient l-histidine: Regeneration of the radicals in solution.

The effects of γ-radiation sterilization on the parenteral excipient l-histidine were analysed by means of EPR spectroscopy. The irradiation process was found to induce the formation of a deamination radical which was persistent in the solid state. The nature and reactivity of the radicals following dissolution in water was evaluated using spin-trapping EPR experiments. The deamination radical was found to regenerate in solution in the presence of trace metals, potentially leading to radical induced degradation reactions occurring up to an hour after the dissolution process. Understanding this process is significant for the improved design of parental pharmaceutical formulations in which unwanted radical reactions after γ-radiation sterilization could lead to degradation of active ingredients.

Structure-Based Correlation of Light-Induced Histidine Reactivity in A Model Protein.

Light is known to induce covalently linked aggregates in proteins. These aggregates can be immunogenic and are of concern for drug product development in the biotechnology industry. Histidine (His) is proposed to be a key residue in cross-link generation ( Pattison , D. I. Photochem. Photobiol. Sci. 2012 , 11 , 38 - 53 ). However, the factors that influence the reactivity of His in proteins, especially the intrinsic factors are little known. Here, we used rhDNase, which only forms His-His covalent dimers after light treatment to determine the factors that influence the light-induced reactivity of His. This system allowed us to fully characterize the light-induced covalent dimer and rank the reactivities of the His residues in this protein. The reactivities of these His residues were correlated with solvent accessibility-related parameters both by crystal structure-based calculations of solvent-accessible surface area and by hydrogen-deuterium exchange (HDX) experiments. Through this correlation, we demonstrate that the photoreactivity of His is determined by both solvent accessibility and structural flexibility. This new insight can explain the highly complex chemistry of light-induced aggregation and help predict the aggregation propensity of protein under light treatment.

Highly Efficient Photocatalytic Hydrogen Production of Flower-like Cadmium Sulfide Decorated by Histidine.

Morphology-controlled synthesis of CdS can significantly enhance the efficiency of its photocatalytic hydrogen production. In this study, a novel three-dimensional (3D) flower-like CdS is synthesized via a facile template-free hydrothermal process using Cd(NO3)2•4H2O and thiourea as precursors and L-Histidine as a chelating agent. The morphology, crystal phase, and photoelectrochemical performance of the flower-like CdS and pure CdS nanocrystals are carefully investigated via various characterizations. Superior photocatalytic activity relative to that of pure CdS is observed on the flower-like CdS photocatalyst under visible light irradiation, which is nearly 13 times of pure CdS. On the basis of the results from SEM studies and our analysis, a growth mechanism of flower-like CdS is proposed by capturing the shape evolution. The imidazole ring of L-Histidine captures the Cd ions from the solution, and prevents the growth of the CdS nanoparticles. Furthermore, the photocatalytic contrast experiments illustrate that the as-synthesized flower-like CdS with L-Histidine is more stable than CdS without L-Histidine in the hydrogen generation.

Enhanced Indirect Photochemical Transformation of Histidine and Histamine through Association with Chromophoric Dissolved Organic Matter.

Photochemical transformations greatly affect the stability and fate of amino acids (AAs) in sunlit aquatic ecosystems. Whereas the direct phototransformation of dissolved AAs is well investigated, their indirect photolysis in the presence of chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM) is poorly understood. In aquatic systems, CDOM may act both as sorbent for AAs and as photosensitizer, creating microenvironments with high concentrations of photochemically produced reactive intermediates, such as singlet oxygen (1O2). This study provides a systematic investigation of the indirect photochemical transformation of histidine (His) and histamine by 1O2 in solutions containing CDOM as a function of solution pH. Both His and histamine showed pH-dependent enhanced phototransformation in the CDOM systems as compared to systems in which model, low-molecular-weight 1O2 sensitizers were used. Enhanced reactivity resulted from sorption of His and histamine to CDOM and thus exposure to elevated 1O2 concentrations in the CDOM microenvironment. The extent of reactivity enhancement depended on solution pH via its effects on the protonation state of His, histamine, and CDOM. Sorption-enhanced reactivity was independently supported by depressed rate enhancements in the presence of a cosorbate that competitively displaced His and histamine from CDOM. Incorporating sorption and photochemical transformation processes into a reaction rate prediction model improved the description of the abiotic photochemical transformation rates of His in the presence of CDOM.

The crystal structure analysis of the relative binding of cisplatin and carboplatin in a mixture with histidine in a protein studied at 100 and 300 K with repeated X-ray irradiation.

The anticancer agents cisplatin and carboplatin bind to histidine in a protein. This crystal structure study at data-collection temperatures of 100 and 300 K examines their relative binding affinities to a histidine side chain and the effect of a high X-ray radiation dose of up to ∼1.8 MGy on the stability of the subsequent protein-Pt adducts. Cisplatin binding is visible at the histidine residue, but carboplatin binding is not. Five refined X-ray crystal structures are presented: one at 100 K as a reference and four at 300 K. The diffraction resolutions are 1.8, 2.0, 2.8, 2.9 and 3.5 Å.

Site-specific detection of radicals on α-lactalbumin after a riboflavin-sensitized reaction, detected by immuno-spin trapping, ESR, and MS.

Free radicals and other oxidation products were characterized on α-lactalbumin with electron spin resonance (ESR), immuno-spin trapping, and mass spectrometry (MS) after riboflavin-mediated oxidation. Radicals were detected using the spin trap 5,5-dimethyl-1-pyrroline N-oxide (DMPO) in immuno-spin trapping with both enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and Western blotting and further characterized with mass spectrometry. A DMPO-trapped radical was identified at His68 and another at one of the tyrosine residues, Tyr50 or Tyr36, respectively, generated by a type II or I mechanism. Not all tyrosyl radicals were trapped, as the secondary oxidation product, 3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (DOPA), was detected by mass spectrometry at Tyr18 and Tyr50. A further oxidation of DOPA resulted in the DOPA o-semiquinone radical, which was characterized by ESR. Both surface exposure and the neighboring residues in the local environment of the tertiary structure of α-lactalbumin seem to play a role in the generation of DMPO trapped radicals and secondary oxidation products.

Growth mechanism and optical property of CdS nanoparticles synthesized using amino-acid histidine as chelating agent under sonochemical process.

Using amino-acid histidine as chelating agent, CdS nanoparticles have been synthesized by sonochemical method. It is found that by varying the ultrasonic irradiation time, we can tune the band gap and particle size of CdS nanoparticles. The imidazole ring of histidine captures the Cd ions from the solution, and prevents the growth of the CdS nanoparticles. The deviation in the linear relation in between cube of radius of nanoparticles and ultrasonic irradiation time confirms the growth of CdS nanoparticles occur via two process; one is the diffusion process of the reactants as well as reaction at the surface of the crystallite. CdS nanoparticles synthesized using histidine as organic chelating agent have band edge emission at approximately 481 nm and have greater photoluminescence intensity with blue-shift to higher energy due to typical quantum confinement effect.

Light-induced oxidation of tryptophan and histidine. Reactivity of aromatic N-heterocycles toward triplet-excited flavins.

Mechanisms of flavin-mediated photooxidation of electron-rich amino acids tryptophan and histidine were investigated for aqueous solutions. Indole, representing the tryptophan side chain in proteins, reacted at nearly diffusion controlled rates (k approximately 2.7 x 10(9) L mol(-1) s(-1) at 293 K) with the triplet-excited flavin state, but reactions of imidazole (and histidine) were significantly slower (k < 2.0 x 10(8) L mol(-1) s(-1)) as determined by laser flash photolysis. Oxidation rates of derivates were invariably susceptible to electronic factors affecting incipient radical cation stability, while no primary kinetic hydrogen/deuterium isotope effect was observed for imidazole. Thus reaction by electron transfer was proposed in contrast to a direct hydrogen abstraction. Unlike indole compounds, imidazole derivatives suffered from the presence of a basic imino nitrogen (=N-), which caused the rate constant of histidine free base (k approximately 1.8 x 10(8) L mol(-1) s(-1)) to drop considerably upon protonation. Complexation of the imino nitrogen with transition metals provoked changes in reactivity, as rate constants decreased after addition of Zn(2+) (k of 4-methylimidazole, as histidine model, decreased from 9.0 x 10(8) L mol(-1) s(-1) in the absence to 4.1 x 10(8) L mol(-1) s(-1) in the presence of ZnCl(2)). The pyrrole nitrogen (-NH-) was not directly involved in complexation reactions, but its electron density increased upon interaction with hydrogen bond-accepting anions and resulted in higher rate constants (k of 4-methylimidazole increased from 9.0 x 10(8) L mol(-1) s(-1) to 2.0 x 10(9) L mol(-1) s(-1) after addition of NaOAc). The high rate constants were in agreement with a large thermodynamical driving force, as calculated from oxidation peak potentials determined electrochemically. After oxidation, resulting radical cations were readily deprotonated and trapped by 2-methyl-2-nitrosopropane, as detected by electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy. Indole-derived spin adducts were attributed to selective trapping of C(3)-centered radicals, whereas spin adducts with imidazole-derivatives arose from both carbon and nitrogen-centered imidazolyl radicals.

Photoactivity of kynurenine-derived UV filters.

Quantum yields of photodecomposition and triplet state formation under aerobic and anaerobic conditions are determined for kynurenine (KN), 3-hydroxykynurenine (3OHKN), xanthurenic acid (XAN), and kynurenine adducts of glutathione (GSH-KN), cysteine (Cys-KN), histidine (His-KN), and lysine (Lys-KN) in aqueous solutions. The highest yields of anaerobic photodecomposition were obtained for GSH-KN and His-KN adducts, which correlates with the highest triplet yields for these compounds. In aerobic conditions, the photodecomposition yields for all compounds under study increase; the highest decomposition rates were observed for His-KN and 3OHKN. The fast decomposition of the latter is attributed to the dark autoxidation of the starting compound.

Immobilization of histidine-tagged proteins by magnetic nanoparticles encapsulated with nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA)-phospholipids micelle.

We described the development of functionalized magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) with PEG-modification, a phospholipids micelle coating, and their use in manipulating histidine-tagged proteins. Highly monodisperse MNPs were synthesized in an organic solvent and could be phase-transferred into an aqueous solution by encapsulating the nanoparticles with a phospholipids micelle. The phospholipids micelle coating rendered the nanoparticles highly water-soluble, and the functional groups of the phospholipids coating allowed for the bioconjugation of various moieties, such as fluorescent molecules and engineered proteins. Functionalized phospholipids, such as nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA)-phospholipids, caused the MNPs to bind and allowed for manipulation of histidine-tagged proteins. Due to their high surface/volume ratio, the MNPs showed better performance (about 100 times higher) in immobilizing engineered proteins than conventional micrometer-sized beads. This demonstrates that MNPs coated with phospholipids micelle can be a versatile platform for the effective manipulation of various kinds of engineered proteins, which is very important in the field of proteomics. It is expected that a combination of MNPs with optical fluorescent molecules can find applications in bimodal (magnetic and optical) molecular imaging nanoprobes.

Photosensitizing properties of 6-methoxy-2-naphthylacetic acid, the major metabolite of the phototoxic non-steroidal anti-inflammatory and analgesic drug nabumetone.

The photobiological properties of 6-methoxy-2-naphthylacetic acid (6-MNAA) were studied using a variety of in vitro phototoxicity assays: photohemolysis, photoperoxidation of linoleic acid, photosensitized degradation of histidine and thymine and the Candida phototoxicity test. 6-MNAA was phototoxic in vitro. 6-MNAA reduced nitro blue tetrazolium (NBT) when irradiated with lambda > or = 300 nm in deoxygenated aqueous buffer solution (pH 7.4). NBT can be reduced by reaction with the excited state of 6-MNAA subject to interference with molecular oxygen. The photohemolysis rate was inhibited by the presence of 1,4-diazabicyclo[2.2.2]octane (DABCO), sodium azide (NaN3) and reduced glutathione (GSH). Photoperoxidation of linoleic acid and photosensitized degradation of histidine and thymine were significantly inhibited by sodium azide and reduced glutathione. 6-MNAA was phototoxic to C. albicans, C. lipolytica and C. tropicalis. A mechanism involving singlet oxygen, radicals, and electron transfer reactions is suggested for the observed phototoxicity.

Surface chemistry of ultrathin films of histidine on gold as probed by high-resolution synchrotron photoemission.

Procedures for the vacuum deposition of thin histidine films on polycrystalline Au(111) and their characterization with high-resolution synchrotron-radiation-based photoelectron spectroscopy are reported. The chemical form of histidine (anionic vs zwitterionic) and the nature of its interactions with the substrate (strong ionic-covalent vs weak van der Waals bonding) in mono- and multilayer films are analyzed. It is shown that water adsorption on a pre-prepared histidine film at 100 K results in protonation of histidine molecules and partial formation of hydroxyl anions. These chemical effects are carefully differentiated from spectral changes associated with radiation damage of the histidine films.

Radiolytic modification of basic amino acid residues in peptides: probes for examining protein-protein interactions.

Protein footprinting utilizing hydroxyl radicals coupled with mass spectrometry has become a powerful technique for mapping the solvent accessible surface of proteins and examining protein-protein interactions in solution. Hydroxyl radicals generated by radiolysis or chemical methods efficiently react with many amino acid residue side chains, including the aromatic and sulfur-containing residues along with proline and leucine, generating stable oxidation products that are valuable probes for examining protein structure. In this study, we examine the radiolytic oxidation chemistry of histidine, lysine, and arginine for comparison with their metal-catalyzed oxidation products. Model peptides containing arginine, histidine, and lysine were irradiated using white light from a synchrotron X-ray source or a cesium-137 gamma-ray source. The rates of oxidation and the radiolysis products were primarily characterized by electrospray mass spectrometry including tandem mass spectrometry. Arginine is very sensitive to radiolytic oxidation, giving rise to a characteristic product with a 43 Da mass reduction as a result of the loss of guanidino group and conversion to gamma-glutamyl semialdehyde, consistent with previous metal-catalyzed oxidation studies. Histidine was oxidized to generate a mixture of products with characteristic mass changes primarily involving rupture of and addition to the imidazole ring. Lysine was converted to hydroxylysine or carbonylysine by radiolysis. The development of methods to probe these residues due to their high frequency of occurrence, their typical presence on the protein surface, and their frequent participation in protein-protein interactions considerably extends the utility of protein footprinting.

Plasma membrane properties involved in the photodynamic efficacy of merocyanine 540 and tetrasulfonated aluminum phthalocyanine.

Merocyanine 540 (MC540)-mediated photodynamic damage to erythrocytes was strongly reduced when illumination was performed at pH 8.5 as compared to pH 7.4. This could be explained by high pH-mediated hyperpolarization of the erythrocyte membrane, resulting in decreased MC540 binding at pH 8.5. In accordance, the MC540-mediated photooxidation of open ghosts was not inhibited at pH 8.5. Photoinactivation of vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) was not inhibited at pH 8.5. This suggests that illumination at increased pH could be an approach to protect red blood cells selectively against MC540-mediated virucidal phototreatment. With tetrasulfonated aluminum phthalocyanine (AIPcS4) as photosensitizer, damage to erythrocytes, open ghosts and VSV was decreased when illuminated at pH 8.5. A decreased singlet oxygen yield at high pH could be excluded. The AIPcS4-mediated photooxidation of fixed erythrocytes was strongly dependent on the cation concentration in the buffer, indicating that the surface potential may affect the efficacy of this photosensitizer. This study showed that altering the environment of the target could increase both the efficacy and the specificity of a photodynamic treatment.

[New approach to the study of interaction of amino acid side groups with aryl azides]. / Novyi podkhod k izucheniiu vzaimodeistviia aminokislot po ikh bokovym radikalam s arilazidami.

A new approach to the study of the interaction of amino acid side chains with photoreactive aryl azides was proposed. This approach was based on the drawing together of the reacting groups by the attachment of the reacting compounds to complementary oligonucleotides. Cystamine, histamine, and 1,6-hexamethylenediamine mimicking the cystine, histidine, and lysine residues, respectively, were attached to the 3'-terminal phosphate of the oligonucleotide GGTATCp through a phosphamide bond and used as the targets for photomodification. Derivatives of the oligonucleotide pGATACCAA with the fragment N3C6H4NH- attached directly to its 5'-end by a phosphamide bond or through the spacer -(CH2)nNH- (where n is 2, 4, and 6) were used as photoreagents. Their derivatives containing the same spacer and the N3C6F4CO-NH(CH2)3NH- or 2-N3,5-NO2-C6H3CO-NH(CH2)3NH- residues were also used. The duplexes were photomodified by irradiation with 300-350 nm wavelength light. The maximal yields of the photo-cross-linking were from 22 to 68%. The reagents containing p-azidoaniline residue were found to be the most effective toward the targets. The maximum yields of the photomodification products modeling the side chains of cysteine and lysine were found to vary from 40 to 67% and to depend on the length and the structure of the spacers used. The duplex with the target bearing the imidazole residue (the histidine model) manifested a yield decreased to 25%. This fact was in a good agreement with the data of computer modeling that indicated an unfavorable mutual displacement of the imidazole residue and the photoreactive group.

Generation of reactive oxygen species from the photolysis of histidine by near-ultraviolet light: effects on T7 as a model biological system.

Near-ultraviolet (NUV) light (280-400 nm) has a variety of effects on biological systems; these effects are increased, often synergistically, in the presence of sensitizers. A variety of both man-made and naturally occurring sensitizers have been identified, but their precise roles and relative contributions to cellular damage are not yet fully established. DNA seems to be a major target and a variety of types of damage have been observed. In this report we present evidence that histidine can also act as a sensitizer of NUV. Upon NUV photolysis a variety of reactive oxygen species, including superoxide anions, hydroxyl radicals and hydrogen peroxide, are produced as determined by the effects of various scavengers. pH influences the reaction, alkaline media being most effective, as has previously been reported for the photolysis of H2O2, tyrosine, phenylalanine and tryptophan. Exposure of phage T7 to a combination of histidine and NUV leads to synergistic inactivation and scavengers of O2.-, .OH and H2O2 reduce this effect. These results point to a possible involvement of sunlight-induced histidine photolysis in cellular damage. The fact that photolysis is maximal at high pH indicates that biological effects are likely to be highly localized, e.g., at enzyme active sites.

When an ATPase is not an ATPase: at low temperatures the C-terminal domain of the ABC transporter CvaB is a GTPase.

The ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters belong to a large superfamily of proteins which share a common function and a common nucleotide-binding domain. The CvaB protein from Escherichia coli is a member of the bacterial ABC exporter subfamily and is essential for the export of the peptide antibiotic colicin V. Here we report that, surprisingly, the CvaB carboxyl-terminal nucleotide-binding domain (BCTD) can be preferentially cross-linked to GTP but not to ATP at low temperatures. The cross-linking is Mg2+ and Mn2+ dependent. However, BCTD possesses similar GTPase and ATPase activities at 37 degrees C, with the same kinetic parameters and with similar responses to inhibitors. Moreover, a point mutation (D654H) in CvaB that completely abolishes colicin V secretion severely impairs both GTPase and ATPase activities in the corresponding BCTD, indicating that the two activities are from the same enzyme. Interestingly, hydrolysis activity of ATP is much more cold sensitive than that of GTP: BCTD possesses mainly GTP hydrolysis activity at 10 degrees C, consistent with the cross-linking results. These findings suggest a novel mechanism for an ABC protein-mediated transport with specificity for GTP hydrolysis.

[Antioxidant properties of UV-irradiated blood plasma as determined by the photochemiluminescence method]. / Antiokislitel'nye svoistva UF-obluchennoi plazmy krovi i ee komponentov, otsenivaemye metodom fotokhemiliuminestsentsii.

UV-irradiation of human serum albumin, tryptophan, and histidine resulted in products formation showing antiradical activity, as detected by increased latent period in development of luminol photochemiluminescence. UV-irradiation of ascorbic acid decreased its antiradical activity. Under UV-illumination, antiradical activity of blood plasma decreased rapidly followed by a gradual increase of antiradical activity. Apparently, the former effect (decrease of antiradical activity) is a result of photolysis of natural blood antioxidants, while subsequent increase of antiradical activity is a consequence of the accumulation of plasma protein photolysis products.