H-1 AND P-31 NUCLEAR-MAGNETIC-RESONANCE INVESTIGATION OF THE INTERACTION BETWEEN 2,3-DIPHOSPHOGLYCERATE AND HUMAN NORMAL ADULT HEMOGLOBIN

High-resolution 1H and 31P nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy has been used to investigate the binding of 2,3-diphosphoglycerate to human normal adult hemoglobin and the molecular interactions involved in the allosteric effect of the 2,3-diphosphoglycerate molecule on hemoglobin. Individual hydrogen ion NMR titration curves have been obtained for 22–26 histidyl residues of hemoglobin and for each phosphate group of 2,3-diphosphoglycerate with hemoglobin in both the deoxy and carbonmonoxy forms. The results indicate that 2,3-diphosphoglycerate binds to deoxyhemoglobin at the central cavity between the two ß chains and the binding involves the ß2-histidyl residues. Moreover, the results suggest that the binding site of 2,3-diphosphoglycerate to carbonmonoxyhemoglobin contains the same (or at least some of the same) amino acid residues responsible for binding in the deoxy form. As a result of the specific interactions with 2,3-diphosphoglycerate, the ß2-histidyl residues make a significant contribution to the alkaline Bohr effect under these experimental conditions (up to 0.5 proton/Hb tetramer). 2,3-Diphosphoglycerate also affects the individual hydrogen ion equilibria of several histidyl residues located away from the binding site on the surface of the hemoglobin molecule, and, possibly, in the heme pockets. These results give the first experimental demonstration that long-range electrostatic and/or conformational effects of the binding could play an important role in the allosteric effect of 2,3-diphosphoglycerate on hemoglobin. The 31P nuclear magnetic resonance titration data for each phosphate group of 2,3-diphosphoglycerate have been used to calculate the pK values of the phosphate groups in 2,3-diphosphoglycerate bound to deoxy- and carbonmonoxyhemoglobin and the proton uptake by 2,3-diphosphoglycerate upon ligand binding to hemoglobin. © 1990, American Chemical Society. All rights reserved.