The secondary structure of bacteriorhodopsin in organic solution

Abstract
Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy is used to estimate the secondary structure of bacteriorhodopsin dissolved in Chloroform‐methanol (1:1 v/v), 0.1 M LiClO4. Curve‐fitting of the deconvolved spectra in the amide I region shows that the total content of α‐helices, reverse turns and β‐sheets are similar to the native state. However, the αII‐helices, which are the major helical class in native bacteriorhodopsin, are greatly decreased in the solubilized sample. Similarly, the reverse turns and the β‐sheets are strongly altered.