Clinical thermal therapies are widespread and gaining in appeal due to improved technology of heating devices and promising results. Outcomes of thermal treatment are often unpredictable and suboptimal, however, due in part to a lack of appreciation of the underlying biothermomechanics. There is a pressing need, therefore, to understand better the role of clinically-controllable parameters on the thermal damage processes of tissue. Heretofore, researchers have primarily sought to understand this process through various uniaxial experiments on tissues containing collagen as their primary constituent. Most biological tissues experience multiaxial loading, however, with complex boundary constraints inclusive of both isotonic and isometric conditions. The primary focus of this work is on the isothermal denaturation of fibrillar collagen subjected to a biaxial isometric constraint. Results from our tests reveal a complicated process, the kinetics of which are not easily measured. Evolving isometric contraction forces during heating do not correlate with resultant mechanical behaviors, as thermal shrinkage does in biaxial isotonic tests. Furthermore, resultant mechanical behaviors at variousdurations of heating reveal a two phase process with a rate dependent on the amount of isometric stretch. For tissues heated at 75oC for 15 minutes, at which point the first phase of mechanical alteration dominates for all constraints herein, resultant mechanical behaviors correlate well with the amount of isometric stretch. The correlation is similar to that between isotonic loads and resultant mechanical behaviors from previous studies. In light of the need for a better measure of thermal damage in isometric tests, we performed a histological analysis of tissues heated under varying constraints. Results show a good correlation between the level of isometric constraint and thermally-induced histological aberrations. Finally, we demonstrate that our seemingly limited and qualitative knowledge can be applied well to a specific clinical application: namely, the use of glycerol as a clearing agent for laser therapies. Our results suggest that glycerol is safe to use for such therapies because it increases the thermal stability of fibrillar collagen, and its hyperosmotic effects on mechanical behavior are fully reversed upon rehydration.

As terapias térmicas vêm sendo utilizadas com muita freqüência em áreas da saúde, como ortopedia, dermatologia e oftalmologia entre outras. Em média a literatura revela que na prática de tratamentos com calor os tecidos são submetidos a temperaturas que não ultrapassam os 45 ºC (igual aproximadamente 8,5 acima da média da temperatura corpórea normal). Este trabalho procurou verificar de fato a possível influência das variações térmicas sobre o colágeno, quanto à possibilidade de desnaturação do mesmo. Utilizou-se 48 ratos (Rattus Novergicus Albinus) da raça Wistar machos, divididos em oito grupos: grupo I Controle (sem alteração térmica), grupo II (35 ºC), III (40 ºC), IV (42 ºC), V (45 ºC), VI (48 ºC), VII (50 ºC), VIII (55 ºC) (cujos membros inferiores foram submersos por 10 minutos em água aquecida com temperatura variável). Em seguida os animais do grupo controle e experimental foram sacrificados, retirando por dissecação e tenotomia os tendões calcâneos que conferidos às lâminas histológicas passaram por análise microscópica de medidas de birrefringência, análise histológica por microscopia de luz e análises por calorimetria exploratória diferencial (DSC). Os resultados mostram que existe uma diferença significativa, dos grupos I a IV, em relação aos grupos V a VII, obtidos pela média de valores de retardos ópticos (RO), após as análises de medidas de birrefringência, confirmados pela análise visual histológica e pela calorimetria exploratória diferencial, sugerindo que em temperaturas elevadas ocorre uma desnaturação da proteína colágeno. / Thermal therapies are being used in orthopedic, dermatology and ophthalmology, among other medical specialties. Literature reveals in the clinical practice of thermal therapies, 45 ºC is the temperature of choice (= 8.5 below human body temperature). The purpose of this study was to quantify changes in the tendon of calcaneous after a range of thermal exposure, and correlate these results with tissue denaturation. It was used 48 Wistar rats (Rattus Novergicus Albinus), male. They grouped as: I (Control) II (35 ºC), III (40 ºC), IV (42 ºC), V (45 ºC), VI(48 ºC), VII (50 ºC), VIII (55 ºC), and had their pad submerged during 10 minutes in hot water (varying from 35 to 55 ºC. Animals were sacrificed and tendon of calcaneous were analyzed by birefringence microscopy, histology (H & E and Trichromic of Masson) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Results showed that there is a significant difference between groups I-IV and V-VIII. Groups I-IV not shows signals of denaturation by heat treatment. Heatings above 45 ºC resulted in thermal denaturation, decreasing o birefringence and changes in histological aspect.

As terapias térmicas vêm sendo utilizadas com muita freqüência em áreas da saúde, como ortopedia, dermatologia e oftalmologia entre outras. Em média a literatura revela que na prática de tratamentos com calor os tecidos são submetidos a temperaturas que não ultrapassam os 45 ºC (igual aproximadamente 8,5 acima da média da temperatura corpórea normal). Este trabalho procurou verificar de fato a possível influência das variações térmicas sobre o colágeno, quanto à possibilidade de desnaturação do mesmo. Utilizou-se 48 ratos (Rattus Novergicus Albinus) da raça Wistar machos, divididos em oito grupos: grupo I Controle (sem alteração térmica), grupo II (35 ºC), III (40 ºC), IV (42 ºC), V (45 ºC), VI (48 ºC), VII (50 ºC), VIII (55 ºC) (cujos membros inferiores foram submersos por 10 minutos em água aquecida com temperatura variável). Em seguida os animais do grupo controle e experimental foram sacrificados, retirando por dissecação e tenotomia os tendões calcâneos que conferidos às lâminas histológicas passaram por análise microscópica de medidas de birrefringência, análise histológica por microscopia de luz e análises por calorimetria exploratória diferencial (DSC). Os resultados mostram que existe uma diferença significativa, dos grupos I a IV, em relação aos grupos V a VII, obtidos pela média de valores de retardos ópticos (RO), após as análises de medidas de birrefringência, confirmados pela análise visual histológica e pela calorimetria exploratória diferencial, sugerindo que em temperaturas elevadas ocorre uma desnaturação da proteína colágeno. / Thermal therapies are being used in orthopedic, dermatology and ophthalmology, among other medical specialties. Literature reveals in the clinical practice of thermal therapies, 45 ºC is the temperature of choice (= 8.5 below human body temperature). The purpose of this study was to quantify changes in the tendon of calcaneous after a range of thermal exposure, and correlate these results with tissue denaturation. It was used 48 Wistar rats (Rattus Novergicus Albinus), male. They grouped as: I (Control) II (35 ºC), III (40 ºC), IV (42 ºC), V (45 ºC), VI(48 ºC), VII (50 ºC), VIII (55 ºC), and had their pad submerged during 10 minutes in hot water (varying from 35 to 55 ºC. Animals were sacrificed and tendon of calcaneous were analyzed by birefringence microscopy, histology (H & E and Trichromic of Masson) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Results showed that there is a significant difference between groups I-IV and V-VIII. Groups I-IV not shows signals of denaturation by heat treatment. Heatings above 45 ºC resulted in thermal denaturation, decreasing o birefringence and changes in histological aspect.

Heparin binding (HB) proteins mediates a wide range of important cellular processes, which makes this class of proteins biopharmaceutically important. Engineering HB proteins could bring many advantages, but it necessitates cost effective and efficient purification methodologies compared to the currently available methods. One of the most important classes of heparin binding protein is the fibroblast growth factors (FGFs) and its receptors (FGFRs). In this study, we report an efficient off-column purification of FGF-1 from soluble fractions and purification of the D2 domain of FGFR from insoluble inclusion bodies, using a weak amberlite cation (IRC) exchanger. This approach is an alternative to conventional affinity column chromatography, which exhibit several disadvantages, including time-consuming experimental procedures and regeneration and results in high cost for production of recombinant proteins. Authenticity of the purified proteins was verified by SDS-PAGE and MALDI mass spectrum analysis. Results of the heparin binding chromatography and steady state fluorescence experiments showed that the FGF-1 and the D2 are in a native biologically active conformation. The findings of this study will not only aid an in-depth investigation of this class of proteins but will also provide avenues for inexpensive and efficient purification of other important biological macromolecules.

This dissertation focuses on the spectroscopic and thermodynamic characterization of the unusual metal-RNA cluster found in the P5abc subdomain of the Tetrahymena group I intron. The P5abc subdomain is a part of the P4-P6 domain found in the Tetrahymena thermophila group I intron selfsplicing RNA. From both X-ray crystal structures of the P4-P6 domain, a remarkable cluster of Mg2+ or Mn2+ ions was found in the P5abc subdomain (Cate et al. 1996; Juneau et al. 2001). It is believed that the metal ion core in the P5abc subdomain stabilizes the active conformation of the RNA (Cate et al. 1996). An understanding of the role of these metal ions in facilitating the correct structure of the P5abc subdomain provides insight into how metal ions help overcome the folding barriers of complex RNA structures. Under solution conditions, the properties of this uncommon metal ion core and its influence on the truncated P5abc subdomain structure have been investigated. Both EPR spectroscopy and thermal denaturation experiments have been employed to search for a spectroscopic signature of metal ion core formation and also determine the thermodynamic contribution of the metal ion core on the stability of the folded P5abc structure. A spectroscopic signature of metal ion core formation was assigned for the P5abc subdomain by EPR microwave power saturation studies. Power saturation studies of the P5abc subdomain, P4-P6 domain and corresponding mutants reveal that the addition of 5 equivalents of Mn2+ are required for the wild type P5abc subdomain to form the metal ion core under solution conditions in 0.1 M NaCl. Results from both domain and subdomain microwave power saturation studies suggest that this technique can be applied for detecting clustering of Mn2+ ions in other RNA structures. The thermodynamic consequence of this metal ion core was probed by thermal denaturation techniques including UV-Vis spectroscopy and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). DSC experiments were utilized to directly determine the thermodynamic contribution of the metal ion core. This value was determined to be an average of ∆∆G of -5.3 kcal/mol and is consistent with ∆∆G values obtained for other RNA tertiary structures.

Orientador: Flavia Maria Netto / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia de Alimentos / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-08T22:07:21Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Diniz_AdrianaCeciliaPinto_D.pdf: 3167091 bytes, checksum: 9297804acc866f90492faf9a5227fad2 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2007 / Resumo: Em algumas aplicações em alimentos, a indução da geleificação a temperaturas altas pode ser indesejável. Alguns produtos de soja quando submetidos ao tratamento térmico, mesmo que moderado, desenvolvem sabores e aromas não desejáveis, limitando sua aplicação. A produção de géis a frio envolve essencialmente duas etapas: a formação de uma dispersão estável de agregados de proteína obtida após o aquecimento da solução protéica e a indução da geleificação por redução do pH ou adição de sal. Ao contrário da geleificação induzida pelo calor, no processo de geleificação a frio a etapa de ativação da proteína, a desnaturação térmica, não ocorre simultaneamente às etapas de agregação e geleificação, permitindo determinar as propriedades dos agregados após o aquecimento e as propriedades finais do gel. Embora géis termicamente formados de proteínas de soja tenham sido extensivamente estudados, pouco se conhece sobre a capacidade das proteínas de soja de formarem gel a frio. O presente estudo investigou o efeito do tratamento térmico na fase de produção do isolado protéico de soja (IPS) e o efeito da adição de CaCl2 na formação a frio de estrutura tipo gel de IPS. IPS foi obtido a partir de farinha desengordurada de soja comercial, e, após a etapa de neutralização, tratado a 60 ou 80oC por 15 ou 30 min., variando-se a concentração protéica (3 e 5%), para obtenção de isolados com agregados de diferentes propriedades físico-químicas. Géis foram obtidos a frio a partir de dispersões com 12 e 14% de proteína (p/p), com e sem a adição de CaCl2 (5 e 15 mM). A desnaturação protéica e agregação foram avaliadas por análises de calorimetria diferencial de varredura (CDV), turbidez, solubilidade em água, sulfidrila livre, hidrofobicidade superficial e cromatografia líquida de alta eficiência de exclusão molecular. Os resultados indicaram desnaturação parcial, maior grau de agregação e aumento da massa molar dos agregados com o incremento da concentração da proteína no tratamento prévio dos IPSs. Os isolados não tratado termicamente e o tratado a 60ºC não formaram gel em nenhuma das condições experimentais utilizadas, enquanto para os IPSs tratados a 80ºC, os valores de G¿, G¿¿ e tan d foram característicos de um sólido viscoelástico, sugerindo a formação de uma matriz tridimensional estável, independente da adição de CaCl2. Os géis protéicos de soja induzidos a frio sem a presença de sal foram mais translúcidos, de estrutura menos porosa e maior capacidade de retenção de água (91,9 ¿ 82,5%) do que os obtidos com 15 mM de CaCl2. Os géis formados pela adição de 5 e 15 mM de CaCl2 foram mais opacos e consistentes do que os géis sem adição de sal. Porém, os géis formados pela adição de 15 mM CaCl2 foram mais esbranquiçados, indicando a formação de grandes agregados e com menor capacidade de retenção de água (51,2 ¿ 76,1%). Os resultados mostraram que os géis formados a frio dos IPSs tratados termicamente apresentaram características macroscópicas diferentes, atribuídas ao tipo de agregado formado na etapa de aquecimento e à quantidade de CaCl2 adicionada posteriormente. Por sua vez, o tipo de agregado formado na etapa de aquecimento teve influência principalmente da concentração de proteína e da temperatura de aquecimento. A adição de CaCl2 não foi determinante para a formação do gel, mas teve um importante papel em sua estruturação. Concluiu-se que a manipulação das condições térmicas pode conduzir à formação de agregados e géis de proteínas de soja com propriedades físico-químicas desejáveis / Abstract: The induction of gelation by high temperatures can be undesirable in some food applications. When submitted to the thermal treatment, that even moderate, some products of soy may develop not desirable flavors and aromas, limiting its application. The preparation of protein gels using cold-gelation consists of two steps: a stable dispersion of protein aggregation is obtained after heating of a solution of native proteins and gelation induced by lowering the pH or by adding salt. In contrast with the heatinduced gelation, the stage of activation of the protein in the cold-gelation process is previous to the stages of aggregation and gelation, what it allows to determine the properties of aggregates after heating and thereby control final gels properties. Although heat-induced gelation of soy protein has been extensively studied, little is known about the capacity of soy protein to form cold-set gel. The present study has investigated the effects that heat-treatment during soy protein isolates preparations (SPI) in the cold-set gelation by the addition of CaCl2. SPI was obtained from soy defatted flour and heated at 60 or 80°C after the neutralization step, followed of freeze-dried. Protein concentrations of 3 and 5% and heating times of 15 and 30 min were used in order to obtain aggregates with different physical properties. Cold-set gels were obtained from 12 and 14 % (w/w) of protein dispersions, with or without CaCl2 addition (5 and 15 mM). Denaturation followed by aggregation was verified by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), turbidity, water solubility, free sulfhydryl groups (SH), superficial hydrophobicity and size exclusion-high performance liquid chromatography (SE-HPLC). The results indicated higher aggregation degree and increased molar mass of aggregates when the protein concentration was enhanced to 5% in the pre-heating of the SPIs. The isolates without heat-treatment and the isolates heated at 60°C did not form gels in any of the experimental conditions utilized, while for the IPSs heated at 80ºC, the values of G¿, G¿¿ and tan d were characteristic of a viscous-elastic solid, suggesting the formation of a stable three-dimensional matrix, independent of CaCl2 addition. The cold-induced soy protein gels without the presence of salt were more translucent and with lower porous structure and higher water retention capacity (91.9 - 82.5%), than those obtained with 15 mM of CaCl2. The gels obtained by 5 and 15 mM of CaCl2 addition were opaque and more consistent that gels without the presence of salt. However, gels obtained by 15 mM of CaCl2 were whitened, indicating the formation of large aggregates with lower water retention capacity (51.2 - 76.1%). The results showed that the cold-set gels formed from heat treated SPIs exhibited different macroscopic characteristics, attributable to the type of aggregate formed in the heating step and to the quantity of posterior addition of CaCl2. At the same time, the type of aggregate formed in the heating step was mainly influenced by protein concentration and denaturation degree. The CaCl2 addition was not determining for gel formation but has an important role on his structure. It was concluded that manipulation of thermal conditions can lead to aggregates and soy protein isolate cold-set gels formation with desirable physicalchemical properties / Doutorado / Nutrição Experimental e Aplicada à Tecnologia de Alimentos / Doutor em Alimentos e Nutrição

L'exposition à la chaleur, notamment lors d'incendies est particulièrement dévastatrice et dans le cas d'objets du patrimoine elle entraine la destruction de tout ou partie de ces témoins du passé. Notre étude porte sur les effets de la chaleur sur le cuir, matériau largement présent dans les collections patrimoniales.A ce jour, aucune méthode de restauration permettant d'inverser les effets de la chaleur n'a été développée. Le premier objectif de notre étude est d'évaluer les effets d'une exposition à une chaleur sèche par une caractérisation systématique d'échantillons avant et après exposition à la chaleur. Des échantillons modèles, issus d'une même peau de veau de tannage végétal connu, ont été utilisés et caractérisés à différentes échelles structurales par un large ensemble de techniques physico-chimiques et biochimiques avant et après chauffage.Au-delà du brunissement et de la rétraction visible du cuir, la chaleur induit de nombreuses altérations au niveau de la structure du matériau, notamment, une perte de masse, une fonte des structures cristallines, une augmentation de l'hydrophobie ainsi qu'une rigidification. Une partie de ces changements sont attribués à l'agrégation protéique mise en évidence par cette recherche.Le second objectif était de développer une méthode de restauration innovante basée sur l'utilisation de molécules biologiques afin de respecter la nature de l'objet. Des enzymes de type protéase, capables de rompre les agrégats protéiques ont été utilisées. Un des défis est d'apporter suffisamment d'eau, nécessaire pour l'activité de l'enzyme, sans mouiller le cuir pour éviter tout dommage supplémentaire. Plusieurs supports d'application de la protéase ont été testés. Avec une émulsion enzymatique les résultats obtenus ne mettent en évidence ni coloration, ni rétraction et dans certains cas un gain de souplesse est observé. Des résultats encourageants ont également été obtenus dans le cas d'un cuir de veau historique (XIXe siècle). Des mesures complémentaires ont fait attribuer ces propriétés principalement à l'émulsion elle-même, cependant des mesures à plus long terme semblent mettre en évidence un effet positif de l'enzyme sur le gain de souplesse. Sous réserve de nouvelles caractérisations à des temps plus longs, le traitement élaboré pourrait constituer un nouveau support de restauration par voie biologique.Mots clefs : cuir - dénaturation thermique – agrégation protéique – bio-restauration – protéases / Heat, induced by fire, is particularly devastating for cultural heritage objects as it causes the destruction of all or part of these witnesses of the past. In this study, we focused on leather, a material largely present in heritage collections. Until now, no restoration method has been developed to treat the damaging effects of heat.The first aim of our study was to evaluate the effects of dry heat on leather samples through a systematic characterization. Model samples from a calf skin vegetable tanned in known conditions were used and the consequences of heat exposure was characterized at different structural scales using a range of physical, chemical and biochemical methods.Besides the visible browning and shrinkage of leather, heat induces many changes including a loss of mass, the melt of the crystalline regions, an increase in both hydrophobicity and rigidity. Some of these changes result from the protein aggregation induced by exposure to heat and evidenced by our research.Our second goal was to develop an innovative restoration method based on the use of biological molecules in order to respect the nature of the object. Enzymes such as proteases, able to hydrolyze protein aggregates, were used. One of the challenges was to provide the water necessary for the enzyme activity without wetting the leather surface in order to avoid further damage of the leather. Several enzyme supports were tested. The use of an enzymatic emulsion reveals neither darkening nor retraction and in some cases a flexibility gain is observed. Encouraging results were also obtained in the case of an ancient book cover made from calfskin and dated from the nineteenth century. Additional measurements lead to attribute its effect mainly to the emulsion itself, however longer-term measurements appear to show a positive effect of the enzyme on the flexibility gain. Although further characterizations on the long term are required, the treatment may constitute a new support for leather bio-restoration.Keywords: leather – thermal denaturation – protein aggregation – bio-restoration - proteases

A estabilidade térmica em função do pH para três formas da hemoglobina extracelular gigante do anelídeo Glossoscolex paulistus (HbGp), monitorada atraves de DSC, CD e absorção óptica, e estudada no presente trabalho. Estes estudos possibilitaram a determinação de parâmetros importantes do processo de desnaturação e dissociação da proteína oligomerica em pH ácido, neutro e alcalino. A HbGp se mostrou mais estável no pH ácido do que em pH neutro e alcalino. No meio alcalino a HbGp sofre dissociação oligomérica gerando subunidades tais como o dodecâmero, o trímero e o monômero. Além disso, as técnicas de DSC, dicroísmo circular (CD) e absorção óptica permitiram o monitoramento da desnaturação da estrutura protéica global, da estrutura secundária e do centro ativo da HbGp, em função da temperatura. Por DSC foi determinado que o mecanismo do processo de desnaturação térmica da HbGp é irreversível. As variações de entalpia calorimétrica, ΔHcal, e de van Hoff, ΔHvH, nas formas oxi-, meta- e cianometa-HbGp são bem distintas, em todos os pHs estudados, indicando que o processo de desnaturação é bastante complexo, sugerindo que o pico de transição deve ser composto por varias transições. A ordem de estabilidade apresentada pela HbGp em termos dos valores de temperatura de transição (Tm) foi a seguinte: cianometa- > oxi- > meta- no intervalo de pH 5,0 a 8,0. Os valores de ΔHcal no pH 7,0 para a oxi-HbGp, meta-HbGp e cianometa-HbGp foram de 25 ± 4, 20 ± 2 e 56 ± 4 MJ/mol, respectivamente. Os valores de energia de ativação (Ea) obtidos no pH 7,0 para a oxi- e cianometa-HbGp foram de 673 ± 99 e 780 ± 105 KJ/mol, e no pH 8,0 de 897 ± 106 e 850 ± 201 KJ/mol, respectivamente. Esses valores de energia de ativação são condizentes com os reportados na literatura para outras hemoglobinas. Nos estudos realizados por CD a oxi-HbGp forma hemicromo no pH 6,0 e 7,0, em temperaturas superiores a 40 °C, e se dissocia em meio alcalino. A oxi-HbGp apresenta temperatura crítica (Tc) nas regiões das hélices-α e do grupo heme praticamente idêntica nos vários pHs estudados. A cianometa-HbGp possui maior quantidade de estrutura secundária do que a oxi-HbGp, e maiores valores de temperatura crítica (Tc), sendo bem mais estável que a oxi-HbGp, assim como o observado por DSC. Por absorção óptica o comportamento térmico da HbGp é similar ao do CD, sendo observado ainda, além da formação de hemicromo, a presença de espécies pentacoordenadas no pH neutro e alcalino. / The thermal stability as a function of the pH, for three forms of the extracellular giant hemoglobin of the annelid Glossoscolex paulistus (HbGp) was monitored by DSC, CD and optical absorption in the present work. These studies allowed the determination of important parameters characterizing the denaturation and dissociation at acid, neutral and alkaline pH values. HbGp was shown to be more stable in acid pH as compared to neutral and alkaline pH values. In alkaline medium, HbGp presents oligomeric dissociation generating smaller subunits such as the dodecamer, the trimer and the monomer. Besides that, the techniques of the DSC, circular dichroism (CD) and optical absorption spectroscopy allowed to monitor, respectively, the denaturation of the global protein structure, of the secondary structure and of the active center of the hemoglobin, as a function of the temperature. By DSC it was determined that the mechanism of the thermal denaturation of the HbGp is irreversible. The variations of calorimetric and van Hoff enthalpies, in the oxy- and cyanomet-HbGp forms, are quite different, for all studied pH values, indicating that the process of denaturation is complex, characterized by a transition peak composed by several contributions. The order of stability presented by the HbGp in terms of the transition temperature values (Tm) was the following: cyanomet-> oxy- for pH from 5.0 to 8.0. The values of ΔHcal at pH 7.0 for the oxy-HbGp, met-HbGp and cianomet-HbGp were 25 ± 4, 20 ± 2 and 56 ± 4 MJ/mol, respectively. The activation energy values (Ea) obtained at pH 7.0 for the oxy- and cyanomet-HbGp were 673 ± 99 and 780 ± 105 KJ/mol, and at pH 8.0 they were 897 ± 106 and 850 ± 201 KJ/mol, respectively. Those energy values are consistent with data reported in the literature for other hemoglobins. In the studies carried out by CD for oxy-HbGp formation of hemichrome was observed at pH 6.0 and 7.0, at temperatures above 40 °C. In alkaline medium the oligomeric dissociation is observed. Oxy-HbGp presents critical temperatures (Tc), which are practically identical in the spectral regions of the polypeptide and of the heme groups for all studied pH values. The cyanomet-HbGp own larger quantity of secondary structure than oxy-HbGp, and higher values of critical temperatures (Tc), being more stable than oxy-HbGp, in agreemente with DSC data. Optical absorption spectroscopy shows thermal behavior of HbGp similar to that observed by CD. Besides the formation of the hemichrome species upon heating, the presence of penta-coordinate species at neutral and alkaline pH values was observed.

The thermal denaturation of proteins has been extensively studied using several methods including differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). A custom-built optical system was used to study thermal effects on protein as an alternative method to DSC measurements. It was used to investigate the thermal stability of bovine serum albumin (BSA) with a focus on comparisons with published DSC data. In the first study, the effect of protein concentration on the thermal denaturation (Td) of BSA was determined and validated using published DSC data for bovine serum albumin (BSA). The optical rotation (OR) and transmitted light (TL) signals indicating protein conformational changes and gel formation, respectively, were collected during the heating of BSA solutions at ~6��C/min from room temperature to ~85��C. The experiments were performed on 1, 2.5 and 5% (w/v) BSA in 0.01 M phosphate buffer at pH 7 and ionic strength (IS) 0.08. BSA���s Td values obtained from this investigation were consistent with published values and had low experimental variability (CV<2.5%). In agreement with some but not all published data, increasing BSA concentration did not affect its thermal stability. Protein gel formation, however, increased with protein concentration. In the second study, changes in the OR and TL signal of BSA in 0.01 M phosphate buffer at pH 6.1, 7 and 7.9 with IS maintained at 0.04, 0.08 and 0.16 were recorded during the heating of BSA solutions at ~6��C/min from room temperature to ~85��C. BSA showed a maximum and minimum thermostability at pH 7 and 7.9, respectively, consistent with published values determined by DSC. BSA formed opaque gel at pH 6.1 approaching the BSA���s pI values. Increasing IS level did not have a significant effect on BSA���s Td value but promoted gel formation. In the third study, the optical method was applied to investigate the heat stability of BSA as affected by low concentrations of sucrose, trehalose or sorbitol. BSA solutions (2.5% w/v) in the presence of 0 5% sucrose, trehalose and sorbitol were heated at ~6��C/min from ambient temperature to ~85��C. In contrast with published work on the thermal stability of BSA in the presence of higher sugar concentrations, this study showed that increasing sugar concentration did not enhance the thermal stability of this protein. Also, the ability to promote protein stability among sucrose, trehalose and sorbitol were not significantly different. The significance of these studies is that they demonstrate that the custom-built optical methods here developed can be used to study heat-induced protein denaturation and the effect of environmental conditions. Future studies will examine other proteins such as ��-lactoglobulin or ��-lacactalbumin. A further advantage of optical systems is their ability to conduct real-time measurements which could be used for food processing control. / Graduation date: 2007

The human retinoid X receptor alpha (hRXRalpha) is a member of the nuclear receptor super-family of ligand-activated transcription factors. The Doyle laboratory has previously engineered a variety of functional hRXRalpha variants that activate gene expression in response to synthetic ligands (LG335 and γ-oxo-1-pyrenebutyric acid), compounds that are poor activators of wild-type hRXRalpha. The variants generally no longer respond to the wild-type ligand 9-cis retinoic acid. To enable targeting of these engineered receptors to arbitrary DNA sequences, we developed a program, ESPSearch, for identifying short or specific sequences in DNA or protein. ESPSearch enables identification of combinations of known zinc finger motifs to target arbitrary genes, as well having several other applications. The ability to target any DNA sequence means that the engineered receptors can be directed to control any gene. The ligand binding, self-association, coactivator interactions, and unfolding properties of the ligand binding domain of wild-type hRXRalpha were characterized. Our expression and purification protocol improves upon existing methods, providing high purity protein in a single step with more than twice prior yields. A general fluorescence-based method for measuring ligand affinity with hRXRalpha was developed, and used to determine binding constants for the small molecules. The presence of a peptide containing the binding motif from coactivator proteins (LxxLL) differentially increased the affinity of the receptor for the ligands. Assays to determine the self-association give a Kd for the dimer-tetramer equilibrium of 35 µM. hRXRalpha was found to denature irreversibly when heated, but shifts in apparent Tm due to ligands correlates strongly with the ligand binding affinities. Our results clarify disparities in existing reports and provide a benchmark for comparison. Reliable analysis of our data led to the development of a computer program for rigorous, automated data fitting. Nine functional variants of hRXRalpha were characterized to probe correlations between biophysical properties and the observed functional activity of the receptors, which differ significantly from wild-type. Although the correlation between ligand binding affinity and melting temperature was strong for all variants, there was essentially no correlation between ligand binding and activation of the variants. The mutations, which are all contained within the binding pocket, have significant long-range effects on the protein, causing changes in ligand-LxxLL interactions and oligomerization of the variants. Experimental and computational analysis of selected mutations suggests that they are highly coupled, complicating protein design. However, the large variation in properties amongst the variants also suggests that hRXRalpha can be mutated extensively while still retaining function. The long-range impact of binding pocket mutations will need to be taken into account in future engineering projects, as hRXRalpha is a flexible, dynamic protein.