Enzyme intercalation

Unlike TLL, both the active and inactive forms of PLAf showed periods of immobilization at the layer edge with a much longer residence time for iPLAl. Enzymatic activity is thus not a prerequisite for strong enzyme intercalation at the layer edge, but is clearly a prerequisite for efficient desorption of the enzyme. The products of the hydrolysis reaction cause considerable reorganization and solubilization of the phospholipid bilayer, and either effect could trigger the desorption of enzyme. 

There are other ways in which the lateral organization (and asymmetry) of lipids in biological membranes can be altered. Eor example, cholesterol can intercalate between the phospholipid fatty acid chains, its polar hydroxyl group associated with the polar head groups. In this manner, patches of cholesterol and phospholipids can form in an otherwise homogeneous sea of pure phospholipid. This lateral asymmetry can in turn affect the function of membrane proteins and enzymes. The lateral distribution of lipids in a membrane can also be affected by proteins in the membrane. Certain integral membrane proteins prefer associations with specific lipids. Proteins may select unsaturated lipid chains over saturated chains or may prefer a specific head group over others. 

Barton and coworkers have shown that proteins can in fact modulate the DNA electron transfer [168]. Methyltransferases are enzymes that recognize distinct DNA sequences, e.g., 5 -G CGC-3, and effect methylation by extrading the target base cytosine ( C) completely out of the DNA duplex while the remainder of the double helix is left intact. The methyltransferase Hha 1-DNA complex is a well-characterized example, revealing that the structure of the DNA is significantly but locally distorted [169,170]. In a recent study, Raj ski et al. used DNA duplex 20 containing the M.Hha I binding site between two oxidizable 5 -GG-3 sites [168] (Fig. 20). The duplex contains a complementary strand, selectively 5 -modified with a Rh intercalator that can function as a photooxidant. Upon... 

As described in section 4.1, the DNA double helix must unwind to allow access ofthe polymerase enzymes to produce two new strands ofDNA. This is facilitated by DNA gyrase, the target of the quinolones. Some agents interfere with the unwinding of the chromosome by physical obstruction. These include the acridine dyes, of which the topical antiseptic proflavine is the most familiar, and the antimalarial acridine, mepacrine. They prevent strand separation by insertion (intercalation) between base pairs from each strand, but exhibit very poor selective toxicity. 

When supported complexes are the catalysts, two types of ionic solid were used zeolites and clays. The structures of these solids (microporous and lamellar respectively) help to improve the stability of the complex catalyst under the reaction conditions by preventing the catalytic species from undergoing dimerization or aggregation, both phenomena which are known to be deactivating. In some cases, the pore walls can tune the selectivity of the reaction by steric effects. The strong similarities of zeolites with the protein portion of natural enzymes was emphasized by Herron.20 The protein protects the active site from side reactions, sieves the substrate molecules, and provides a stereochemically demanding void. Metal complexes have been encapsulated in zeolites, successfully mimicking metalloenzymes for oxidation reactions. Two methods of synthesis of such encapsulated/intercalated complexes have been tested, as follows. 

Fig. 1.19 Intercalation of enzymes at the galleries of layered a-zirconium phosphate following a delamination-restacking mechanism.

Transition-metal phosphorus trichalcogenides such as MnPS3 are able to intercalate amino acids and peptides by ion exchange. In this way, increases in the basal spacing of 0.7 and 3-4 nm are observed for the intercalation of poly-L-lysine and lysozyme, respectively [224]. Interestingly, the enzymatic activity of the immobilized protein has been detected, suggesting that the enzyme is protected against denaturation. 

The enzymatic activities of intercalated GOx-AM P layered nanocomposites at various pH values and temperatures were compared with the native enzyme in aqueous solution. In both cases, characteristic linear plots consistent with Michalis-Menton kinetics were obtained. The Lineweaver-Burk plots indicated that the reaction rates (Vmax) for free and intercalated GOx (3.3 and 4.0 pM min 1 respectively), were comparable, suggesting that the turnover rate at substrate saturation was only marginally influenced by entrapment between the re-assembled organoclay sheets. However, the dissociation constant (Km) associated with the activity of the enzyme was higher for intercalated GOx (6.63 mM) compared to native GOx (2.94 mM), suggesting... 

Clay minerals or phyllosilicates are lamellar natural and synthetic materials with high surface area, cation exchange and swelling properties, exfoliation ability, variable surface charge density and hydrophobic/hydrophilic character [85], They are good host structures for intercalation or adsorption of organic molecules and macromolecules, particularly proteins. On the basis of the natural adsorption of proteins by clay minerals and various clay complexes that occurs in soils, many authors have investigated the use of clay and clay-derived materials as matrices for the immobilization of enzymes, either for environmental chemistry purpose or in the chemical and material industries. 

The intercalated phenanthrene is not bioavailable, at least over the 11-day period of incubation (Fig. 9) because it is intimately and strongly associated with TDTMA in the montmorillonite interlayers as well as being physically inaccessible to PAH-degrading bacteria (e.g. Burkholderia) and their enzymes. By contrast, these bacteria can use free (non-intercalated) Ph as a carbon and energy source (Theng et al. 2001). 

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