Implication of Protein Aromatic Amino Acids in Concanavalin A-carbohydrate Interactions

Abstract
Pulse radiolysis and 60Co γ-radiolysis have been used to study the effects of ionizing radiation on the glycogen-precipitating activity of the protein concanavalin A. Both eaq and OH· react extremely rapidly with the protein and contribute to the observed loss of concanavalin A activity. Evidence is also presented that (Br)2 and (SCN)2 react with tyrosine and tryptophan residues in concanavalin A, which is also accompanied by loss of glycogen precipitation activity.