Journal article

Phenylalanine Residues Are Very Rapidly Damaged by Nitrate Radicals (NO3⋅) in an Aqueous Environment

JG Nathanael, U Wille

Chembiochem | WILEY-V C H VERLAG GMBH | Published : 2023

Abstract

Kinetic studies revealed that nitrate radicals (NO3⋅), which are formed through reaction of the noxious air pollutants nitrogen dioxide (NO2⋅) and ozone (O3), very rapidly oxidize phenylalanine residues in an aqueous environment, with overall rate coefficients in the 108–109 M−1 s−1 range. With amino acids and dipeptides as model systems, the data suggest that the reaction proceeds via a π-complex between NO3⋅ and the aromatic ring in Phe, which subsequently decays into a charge transfer (CT) complex. The stability of the π-complex is sequence-dependent and is increased when Phe is at the N terminus of the dipeptide. Computations revealed that the considerably more rapid radical-induced oxid..

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University of Melbourne Researchers

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Funding Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Australian Research Council through the Linkage, Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities (LIEF) Grant Scheme and The University of Melbourne through the High-Performance Computing Facility.[30] We thank Bing Yuan for her support. Open Access publishing was facilitated by The University of Melbourne, as part of the Wiley - The University of Melbourne agreement via the Council of Australian University Librariens. Open Access publishing facilitated by The University of Melbourne, as part of the Wiley - The University of Melbourne agreement via the Council of Australian University Librarians.