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Date of Award
4-23-1999
Document Type
Restricted Thesis: Campus only access
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts
Department
Biology
First Advisor
Dr. Richard Topham
Abstract
Callinectes sapidus (blue crab) hemocyanin seems to retain oxygen binding capacity more effectively under disulfide-reducing conditions that Limulus and Cancer hemocyanins, for example. Disulfide bond reduction of Callinectes hemocyanins by dithiothreitol (DIT) was performed under a variety of conditions in order to assess this behavior. It was found that calcium helped maintain oxygen binding capacity, as did pH's of 7.0, 8.0, and 8.5, rather than the usual 9.0. Furthermore, the denaturing polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE) confirmed suspicions that a conformational change that appears to be responsible for the loss of oxygen binding does not occur in the presence of calcium, lowered pH, or chloride ion. These experiments open the door for further characterization of the Callinectes hemocyanin.
Recommended Citation
Matthews, Peter E., "Effects of varying conditions on oxygen binding capacity upon disulfide-bond reduction in Callinectes sapidus hemocyanin" (1999). Honors Theses. 561.
https://scholarship.richmond.edu/honors-theses/561