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R Mendelson

Publications and source records attributed to R Mendelson.

8 recordsLinked to original sources

Structure of myosin subfragment 1 from low-angle X-ray scattering.

The X-ray scattering pattern produced by a solution of myosin subfragment 1 has been measured to a resolution (Bragg spacing) of 2 nm. We find that for subfragment 1 (S1) prepared by limited papain digestion in the presence of ethylenediaminetetraacetate the radius of gyration is 3.28 +/- 0.06 nm, the volume is 151 +/- 6 nm3, the surface area is 330 +/- 15 nm2, and the length of the maximum chord is 12.0 +/- 1.0 nm. The theoretical scattering patterns from several objects of uniform electron density have been calculated and compared with the observed scattering produced by S1. The recent three-dimensional electron micrograph reconstruction of S1-decorated actin by J. Seymour and E. O'Brien (private communication) generated the calculated pattern that best fit the observed scattering. This fit strongly suggests that this reconstruction resembles subfragment 1. The good correspondence between an S1 structure derived when S1 is attached to actin and a study of free S1 in solution strongly suggests that binding to actin does not grossly distort the shape of S1. This is consistent with the notion that S1 changes its orientation on actin, rather than its shape, in order to generate the contractile force in muscle.

Animals

Treatment of HBsAg-positive chronic active hepatitis with human fibroblast interferon.

Two patients with HBsAg positive chronic active hepatitis have been treated with human fibroblast interferon 10(7) units daily for two weeks. Before treatment, both patients had high levels of hepatitis B surface antigen, core antibody, and DNA-binding antibody in the blood and one patient had a fourfold rise in serum AST. During treatment there was a striking fall in the core antibody titre and also in the DNA-binding antibody, which has been maintained for several months subsequently; in one patient the initially high AST level fell to normal. No significant adverse effects occurred, and these observations should encourage further trials of fibroblasts interferon in hepatitis B.

Adult

Time-dependent fluorescence depolarization and lifetime studies of myosin subfragment-one in the presence of nucleotide and actin.

Time-dependent fluorescence depolarization and lifetime studies have been made on myosin subfragment 1 to obtain information about mobility changes and dye environment changes when different nucleotides are added. Data are reported for static and actively hydrolyzing systems containing G- and F-actin. Preliminary data indicate that myosin labeled with the fluorophore 1, 5 IAEDANS and treated with DTT preserves its actin-activated Vmax. S1 prepared in this manner gives lifetime changes which are nearly identical for all systems studied. S1 labeling without DTT addition gives a pattern of lifetimes similar, though not identical to ESR work. Either type of labeling produces no observable change in the polarization decay, and we set an upper limit of 15% length change for the elongate S1. An unusually long fluorescence decay lifetime for the S1-Mg++ ATP-G-actin system is found which may indicate a new acto-S1 state stabilized by G-actin. The method for obtaining the bound fraction of S1's in the presence of actin is presented and applied to the S1-F-actin-Mg++ ATP system. Qualitative agreement is obtained with other methods.

Actins