U.S.-Italy Cooperative Research: Biophysical Characterization of Type 3 Copper Sites

该奖项将支持耶希瓦大学的杰克·佩萨克教授和意大利帕多瓦大学的贝尼代托·塞尔瓦托博士之间的合作研究。研究人员的目标是利用各种光谱技术研究铜蛋白质的结构，以确定和控制生物功能。铜是一种分布最广、用途最广的过渡金属，在生命系统中具有重要的功能。许多与氧传递、电子传递、羟化和氧化催化等多种生物学功能相关的金属蛋白都以某种方式与铜有关。铜蛋白有一个共同的结构特征，这使得它们能够改变活性中心的极性，控制底物的水化，并在催化过程中发挥重要作用。然而，铜蛋白在分子结构的复杂性和酶催化机制上存在很大的差异。然而，根据铜位的光谱特征，可以将其分为三大类。研究人员计划研究这些类别中的一个(类型3铜位置)，以及这些位置在与多铜酶中的其他铜中心相互作用期间的行为。该研究计划将涉及血蓝蛋白、漆酶和铜蓝蛋白的研究，这些物质在不同的分子环境中含有3型铜单元，具有不同的酶活性。Padova的血蓝蛋白研究小组是这种蛋白质比较研究的领先中心之一，拥有物理、生物和生物物理化学方面的专业知识，而在Yeshiva大学，有独特的仪器和专业知识来根据光谱方法获得的信息来阐明结构。

This award will support collaborative research between Prof. Jack Peisach of Yeshiva University and Dr. Benedetto Salvato of the University of Padova, Italy. The objective of the researchers is to study, using various spectroscopic techniques, the structure of copper proteins in the determination and control of biological functions. Copper is one of the most widespread and versatile transition metals with a functional role in living systems. Many metallo-proteins related to a variety of biological functions such as oxygen transport, electron transfer, hydroxylation and oxidative catalysis, involve copper in some manner. Copper proteins share a general structural feature that allows them to modify the polarity of active sites, control the hydration of substrates, and play an important role during the course of catalysis. Yet, copper proteins vary widely in complexity of molecular architecture as well as in their mechanism of enzyme catalysis. However, copper sites may be classified into three broad categories depending on their spectroscopic characteristics. The investigators plan to study one of these categories (Type 3 copper sites) and the behavior of these sites during the interactions with other copper centers in multi-copper enzymes. The research program will involve the study of hemocyanin, laccase and ceruloplasmin, which contain Type 3 copper units in different molecular environments and have different enzymatic activities. The hemocyanin research group in Padova is one of the leading centers for the comparative study of this protein, having combined expertise in its physical, biological and biophysical chemistry, whereas at Yeshiva University there is unique instrumentation and expertise relevant to elucidation of structure from information obtainable by spectroscopic methods.