A green cone-like pigment in the 'blind' mole-rat Spalax ehrenbergi: functional expression and photochemical characterization.
Publication year
2003Source
Photochemical and Photobiological Sciences, 2, 12, (2003), pp. 1287-91ISSN
Publication type
Article / Letter to editor

Display more detailsDisplay less details
Organization
Biochemistry (UMC)
Journal title
Photochemical and Photobiological Sciences
Volume
vol. 2
Issue
iss. 12
Page start
p. 1287
Page end
p. 91
Subject
UMCN 5.3: Cellular energy metabolismAbstract
The degenerate subcutaneous eye of the blind mole rat belonging to the Spalax ehrenbergi superspecies has been shown to contain a long wavelength sensitive (LWS) cone pigment. Baculovirus expression of this LWS pigment and subsequent IMAC purification yields a photosensitive protein, that according to absorbance maximum (530 +/- 2 nm), kinetics of late phototransitions, and transducin activation, has all characteristics of a functional green cone pigment. The absorbance spectrum of the Spalax pigment is strongly red-shifted relative to the very homologous mouse, rabbit and rat green cone pigments (508-510 nm). Also in contrast to the rodent pigments, the Spalax pigment exhibits anion-dependent spectral properties, displaying a 12 nm blue-shift upon substitution of chloride ions by nitrate ions. Finally, the slow part of the photocascade deviates in some aspects from that of sighted mammals. The possible relevance of these findings for the evolutionary adaptation of Spalax to a subterranean ecotope is discussed.
This item appears in the following Collection(s)
- Academic publications [227693]
- Faculty of Medical Sciences [86198]
Upload full text
Use your RU credentials (u/z-number and password) to log in with SURFconext to upload a file for processing by the repository team.