Anions binding, transferrins

The coupling between iron and anion binding is a critical component of transferrin function. In the absence of anion, transferrins bind Fe " weakly and nonspecifically. The putative anion site identified crystal-lographically is in an electrostatically positive region, adjacent to the side chain of an arginine and the amino terminus of an a helix. The anion site does not bridge the two domains, and so does not function directly as a latch that closes the cleft around the iron. It is possible that the anion may partially compensate for the presence of several basic residues in the cleft that enhance iron binding. 

In considering the structural basis for the striking interdependence of the iron- and anion-binding functions of transferrin, Schlabach and Bates treated three possible models (16) ... 

Early experimental evidence in support of the hypothesis that an attack on the anion is at the heart of the iron-exchange mechanism (53) was soon corroborated by work from several laboratories (54, 55, 88). Replacing carbonate with oxalate at the specific anion-binding site of transferrin results in a relatively stable ternary Fe(III)-transferrin-oxalate complex. Over the time course of many hours or even days the oxalate complex slowly reverts to the physiologic Fe(III)-transferrin-carbonate form, but since in vitro studies seldom require more than an hour or two, the biologic properties of the oxalate complex can be tested. 

Figure 19. A model for the anion- and iron-binding sites of transferrin depicted assuming an interlocking-site hypothesis. The protein furnishes five ligands to the metal in the iron binding site three tyrosines and two histidines. The carbonate ion binds to an arginine in the anion-binding site and functions as a sixth ligand to the metal center. The carbonate forms a bridge between the metal- and the anion-binding sites in the active center (36).

Rogers, T. B. "The Chemistry of Iron and Anion Binding by Transferrins" Ph.D. Thesis, University of California,... 

Fig. 7. Schematic diagram of the characteristic transferrin metal and anion binding site. Numbering is as for the N-lobe of human lactoferrin, but the same arrangement of ligands is found in the C-lobe and in the N- and C-lobes of almost all transferrins (Table III). For reference, the residue numbers for human lactoferrin and human transferrin are shown in the inset.

The bilobal structure of transferrins means that half-molecules, representing either the N-terminal or C-terminal lobe, can be relatively easily prepared, either by limited proteolysis or by recombinant DNA methods (Section III.A). Relatively high-resolution crystal structures have been determined for three such half-molecules, the proteolytic N-lobes of rabbit transferrin (74) and chicken ovotransferrin (77) at 2.3 A and the recombinant N-lobe of human lactoferrin at 2.0-A resolution (75). These show that both the protein structure and the metal and anion binding sites are the same as in the intact parent structures. In fact comparison of the metal and anion sites of the lactoferrin and transferrin half-molecules with each other and with the N-lobe of lactoferrin shows very close correspondence 92 atoms from the nine residues, plus metal and anion, making up the immediate binding site can be superimposed with an rms deviation of only 0.4 A (75). 

Fig. 26. Binding modes for anions other than carbonate. In (a) the mode of binding of oxalate to human lactoferrin, as determined crystallographically (192,193), is shown. In b is a generalized model for synergistic anion binding to transferrins, based on EPR studies (191) and the crystallographic results for oxalate. From Shongwe et al. (192), with permission.

The four metal-binding amino acid residues (2 Tyr, 1 Asp, 1 His) are present in both N- and C-sites of all transferrins so far sequenced, apart from melanotransferrin and the insect proteins (Table III). The same is true of the anion-binding Arg and Thr residues, and the residues at the N-terminus of the anion-binding helix are also strongly conserved. Superposition of the 81 common atoms of these residues, plus metal and anion, shows that their rms deviation in the N- and C-sites of diferric human lactoferrin is only 0.3 A. This close structural similarity is reflected in their spectroscopic properties. Where these have been compared, with the physiological Fe3+ and C032- ions bound, they are so similar as to be virtually identical (107, 56, 199). Nevertheless, there are a number of factors that can potentially lead to inequivalence in properties ... 

Distinct differences are also seen when anions other than C032 are used. The crystal structure of oxalate-substituted diferric lactoferrin shows differences in the anion binding in the two sites in the C-site the oxalate is symmetric bidentate, whereas in the N-site it is asymmetric (193). When Cu2+ is the metal ion the oxalate binding differences become even more pronounced. Copper-transferrin binds oxalate only in its N-terminal site (91). Copper-lactoferrin and copper-ovotransfer-rin each bind two oxalate ions but binding occurs preferentially in the C-lobe (157,192). These different affinities mean that hybrid complexes can be prepared with oxalate in one site and carbonate in the other (92, 157, 192). The use of oxalate as synergistic anion gives rise to spectroscopically distinct sites for other metal ions also (171). 

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