Project Director

Albu, Titus V.

Department Examiner

Kim, Jisook; Santiago, Manuel F.

Department

Dept. of Chemistry

Publisher

University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

Place of Publication

Chattanooga (Tenn.)

Abstract

Quinones are the metabolites of a class of chemicals known as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. These chemicals have been found to be toxic in the environment, especially when interacting with certain proteins. In this study, we investigated the modification of Lysozyme and Ribonuclease A by a series of benzoquinones as well as few naphthoquinones. Fluorescence spectroscopy was used to measure the degree of modification of Lysozyme and Ribonuclease A when incubated with quinones at differing concentrations and for various times. All reactions, unless noted, were carried out in a phosphate buffer (pH=7.0) at 37°C to mimic physiological conditions. The fluorescence intensity of modified protein was shown to be less than that of unmodified protein, and effects of quinone substituents were examined. UV-VIS spectroscopy was also utilized to monitor adduct formation and other protein modifications. This study adds to our understanding of the effects of quinones on biological systems.

Degree

B. S.; An honors thesis submitted to the faculty of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Bachelor of Science.

Date

5-2017

Subject

Quinone; Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons -- Toxicology

Keyword

Lysozyme; Ribonuclease A; Quinone; Protein modification; Fluorescence spectroscopy; UV-VIS spectroscopy

Discipline

Chemistry

Document Type

Theses

Extent

viii, 100 leaves

DCMI Type

Text

Language

English

Rights

http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/

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Chemistry Commons

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