Comparative EPR Study on the Scavenging Effect of Methotrexate with the Isomers of Its Photoswitchable Derivative.

The scavenging effect of the antimetabolite dihydrofolate reductase inhibitor methotrexate (MTX) and the isomers of its photoswitchable derivate, - and -phototrexate (PHX), have been compared by ESR spectroscopy, with the application of a cyclic hydroxylamine spin probe. The results showed the most pronounced scavenging effect in the presence of -phototrexate (-PHX). At a low concentration (100 µM) -PHX also showed a greater scavenging effect than the parent molecule MTX.

Effect of nucleotides and their analogues on essential light chains in myosin head.

The domain movement in myosin head plays a decisive role in the energy transduction process of the muscle contraction. During hydrolysis of ATP, the specific formation of strong binding of myosin head for actin causes conformational changes. As a consequence, the light chain-binding motif generates the powerstroke.

Effect of adenosine 5'-[beta,gamma-imido]triphosphate on myosin head domain movements.

Conventional and saturation transfer electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy (EPR and ST EPR) was used to study the orientation of probe molecules in muscle fibers in different intermediate states of the ATP hydrolysis cycle. A separate procedure was used to obtain ST EPR spectra with precise phase settings even in the case of samples with low spectral intensity. Fibers prepared from rabbit psoas muscle were labeled with isothiocyanate spin labels at the reactive thiol sites of the catalytic domain of myosin.