Abstract
HÆMOGLOBINS from the turtle, Chelydra serpentina, the frog, Rana catesbeiana, and certain strains of mice have been shown to polymerize in vitro1. Polymerization to an octamer began after hæmolysis and was completely inhibited by either N-ethylmaleimide or iodoacetamide. Experiments to be described here indicate that oxidized and polymerized hæmoglobin appears to be a frequent constituent in high concentrations in the red cells of some species of turtles. This polymerization and oxidation of hæmoglobin can be reversed by incubation of the cells with plasma, and appears to involve the formation of double molecules linked by one or more disulphide bridges. Disulphide bonds are suggested both by the finding that very low concentrations of mercaptoethanol dissociate already formed polymer and by the inhibition of polymerization by −SH reagents.
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SULLIVAN, B., REGGS, A. Hæmoglobin : Reversal of Oxidation and Polymerization in Turtle Red Cells. Nature 204, 1098–1099 (1964). https://doi.org/10.1038/2041098a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/2041098a0
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