A significant role of zinc-binding motifs on metal mobility in Escherichia coli was explored using a chimeric metal-binding green fluorescent protein (GFP) as an intracellular zinc indicator. Investigation was initiated by co-transformation and co-expression of two chimeric genes encoding the chimeric GFP carrying hexahistidine (His6GFP) and the zinc-binding motif fused to outer membrane protei...

Metal ions are inextricably associated with RNAs of any size and control their folding and activity to a large part. In order to understand RNA mechanisms, also the positioning, affinities and kinetics of metal ion binding must be known. Due to the spectroscopic silence and relatively fast exchange rates of the metal ions usually associated with RNAs, this task is extremely challenging and thus...

The cysteine-rich protein (CRP) contains two copies of the LIM sequence motif, CX2CX17HX2CX2CX2CX17-CX2C, that was first identified in the homeodomain proteins Lin-11, Is1-1, and Mec-3. The abundance and spacing of the cysteine residues in the LIM motif are reminiscent of a metal-binding domain. We examined the metal-binding properties of CRP isolated from chicken smooth muscle (cCRP) and from ...

Synthetic phytochelatins (ECs) are a new class of metal-binding peptides with a repetitive metal-binding motif, (Glu-Cys)(n)Gly, which were shown to bind heavy metals more effectively than metallothioneins. However, the limited uptake across the cell membrane is often the rate-limiting factor for the intracellular bioaccumulation of heavy metals by genetically engineered organisms expressing th...

The structural basis of the low reorganization energy of cupredoxins has long been debated. These proteins reconcile a conformationally heterogeneous and exposed metal-chelating site with the highly rigid copper center required for efficient electron transfer. Here we combine single-molecule mechanical unfolding experiments with statistical analysis and computer simulations to show that the met...

Few novel cobalt(II) and copper(II) complexes [M(fmp)3]Cl2, [M(fmp)(bpy)2]Cl2,[M(fmp)(phen)2]Cl2 and [M(fmp)(phen)(bpy)]Cl2 (fmp = 3-furan-2-ylmethylene-pentane-2,4-dione, phen = 1,10-phenanthroline, bpy = 2,2'-bipyridine) have been synthesized andcharacterized by elemental analyses, molar conductance, magnetic susceptibility measurements,IR, electronic, EPR, mass spectra and cyclic voltammetri...

In this work calculation of energetics of transition metal surfaces is presented. The tight-binding model is employed in order to calculate the energetics. The tight-binding basis set is limited to d orbitals which are valid for elements at the end of transition metals series. In our analysis we concentrated on electronic effects at temperature T=0 K, this means that no entropic term will be pr...

The relationship between formation of active in-line attack conformations and monovalent (Na(+)) and divalent (Mg(2+)) metal ion binding in hammerhead ribozyme (HHR) has been explored with molecular dynamics simulations. To stabilize repulsions between negatively charged groups, different requirements of the threshold occupancy of metal ions were observed in the reactant and activated precursor...

Transferrins are a class of iron-binding proteins widely distributed in biological fluids. All transferrins possess two metal binding sites, each of which can bind a ferric iron. Transferrins play a major role in plasma iron transport and have anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory, and immunological functions. Lactoferrin is an iron-binding bilobal protein of the transferrin family found in neutrop...

Intrinsic stoichiometric equilibrium constants were determined for zinc(II) and copper(II) binding to bovine and human serum albumin. Data were obtained from equilibrium dialysis experiments. Metals were presented to apoprotein as metal chelates in order to avoid metal hydrolysis and to minimize nonspecific metal-protein interactions. Scatchard analysis of the binding data indicated that the hi...