Comparison of the kinetic properties of the pyruvate dehydrogenase complex from pig kidney cortex and medulla.
(25/27)
The activity of the pyruvate dehydrogenase complex (PDC) purified from pig kidney medulla was affected by K+, Na+, Cl-, HCO3-, HPO4(2-) and changes in ionic strength. Increased ionic strength influenced the activity of PDC from medulla by decreasing the Vmax and S0.5 for pyruvate and increasing the Hill coefficient. The magnitude of these changes was smaller than the corresponding changes for PDC purified from the cortex. In the presence of K+ (80 mM), Na+ (20 mM), Cl- (20 mM), HCO3- (20 mM), HPO4(2-) (10 mM) and at ionic strength of 0.15 M the S0.5 for pyruvate of PDC from medulla was 117 microM and the enzyme complex was saturated by 1.1 mM pyruvate. Under these conditions the S0.5 for pyruvate of PDC derived from cortex was 159 microM and the enzyme was saturated at 4.5 mM pyruvate. Based on the results presented in this report it is suggested that PDC in kidney medulla may be regulated not only by a phosphorylation/dephosphorylation system and end-product inhibition but also via changes in ionic strength. (+info)
Measurement of ascorbic acid in human plasma and serum: stability, intralaboratory repeatability, and interlaboratory reproducibility.
(26/27)
We demonstrate that total ascorbic acid (TAA, the sum of ascorbic acid and dehydroascorbic acid) in properly prepared human plasma is stable at -70 degrees C for at least 6 years when preserved with dithiothreitol. TAA in human plasma or serum preserved with metaphosphoric acid degrades slowly, at the rate of no more than 1% per year. As assessed from our stability data and from data obtained from 23 laboratories over a period of > 2 years, the intralaboratory repeatability of TAA measurement is approximately 2 mumol/L, irrespective of TAA concentration. Nonchromatographic analytical methods involving dinitrophenylhydrazine and 0-phenylenediamine yield biased results relative to chromatographic methods. Within groups of laboratories that use roughly similar analytical methods, the interlaboratory measurement reproducibility CV for TAA is 15%. (+info)
Evaluation of an acidic deproteinization for the measurement of ascorbate and dehydroascorbate in plasma samples.
(27/27)
The most popular pretreatment method of plasma samples for the measurement of ascorbate (AsA) and dehydroascorbate (DHA) has been an acidic deproteinization via metaphosphoric acid or trichloroacetic acid. In general, DHA is absent in plasma samples prepared from human blood in a conventional manner. However, when these plasma samples were subjected to acidic deproteinization, DHA was detected in the acidified sample solutions. In the present study, we demonstrate that the oxidation of AsA to DHA in the solutions was promoted by at least two mechanisms, one involving catalysis by ferric ion released from transferrin, and the other involving catalysis by plasma hemoglobin. In the acidified transferrin solution by trichloroacetic acid, an oxidation of AsA to DHA proceeded with standing time, whereas the oxidation was not observed in that by metaphosphoric acid. This oxidation appeared to be catalyzed by ferric ion released from transferrin. In contrast, plasma hemoglobin functioned as a catalyst for AsA oxidation in both metaphosphoric acid and trichloroacetic acid solutions. Therefore, DHA content in the trichloroacetic acid-treated plasma sample was markedly higher than that in the metaphosphoric acid-treated one. These results suggest that DHA detected in acidified plasma samples is an artifact resulting from AsA oxidation. (+info)