Kinetic inequivalence between α and β subunits of ligand dissociation from ferrous nitrosylated human haptoglobin:hemoglobin complexes. A comparison with O2 and CO dissociation

Haptoglobin (Hp) counterbalances the adverse effects of extra-erythrocytic hemoglobin (Hb) by trapping the alpha beta dimers of Hb in the bloodstream. In turn, the Hp:Hb complexes display Hb-like reactivity. Here, the kinetics of NO dissociation from ferrous nitrosylated Hp:Hb complexes (i.e., Hp1-1:Hb(II)-NO and Hp2-2:Hb(II)-NO, respectively) are reported at pH 7.0 and 20.0 degrees C. NO dissociation from Hp:Hb(II)-NO complexes has been followed by replacing NO with CO. Denitrosylation kinetics of Hp1-1:Hb(II)-NO and Hp2-2:Hb(II)-NO are biphasic, the relative amplitude of the fast and slow phase being 0.495 +/- 0.015 and 0.485 +/- 0.025, respectively. Values of k(off(NO)1) and k(off(NO)2) (i.e., (6.4 +/- 0.8) x 10(-5) s(-1) and (3.6 +/- 0.6) x 10(-5) s(-1) for Hp1-1:Hb(II)-NO and (5.8 +/- 0.8) x 10(-5) s(-1) and (3.1 +/- 0.6) x 10(-5) s(-1) for Hp2-2:Hb(II)-NO) are unaffected by allosteric effectors and correspond to those reported for the alpha and beta subunits of tetrameric Hb(II)-NO and isolated alpha(II)-NO and beta(II)-NO chains, respectively. This highlights the view that the conformation of the Hb alpha(1)beta(1) and alpha(2)beta(2) dimers matches that of the Hb high affinity conformation. Moreover, the observed functional heterogeneity reflects the variation of energy barriers for the ligand detachment and exit pathway(s) associated to the different structural arrangement of the two subunits in the nitrosylated R-state. Noteworthy, the extent of the inequivalence of alpha and beta chains is closely similar for the O-2, NO and CO dissociation in the R-state, suggesting that it is solely determined by the structural difference between the two subunits.

Automated summary

Haptoglobin counteracts the negative effects of extracellular hemoglobin by forming complexes with Hb, displaying Hb-like reactivity. The dissociation of NO from Hp:Hb complexes is biphasic and unaffected by allosteric effectors, indicating a structural similarity in the subunits. The observed functional heterogeneity in the dissociation process is attributed to the different structural arrangements of the subunits in the nitrosylated R-state.