Thomas G. Spiro

Bio: Thomas G. Spiro is an academic researcher from University of Washington. The author has contributed to research in topics: Raman spectroscopy & Resonance Raman spectroscopy. The author has an hindex of 66, co-authored 464 publications receiving 20149 citations. Previous affiliations of Thomas G. Spiro include University of Tromsø & Princeton University.

Assignment of Protoheme Resonance Raman Spectrum by Heme Labeling in Myoglobin

Abstract: Resonance Raman (RR) spectra are reported for myoglobin reconstituted with seven heme isotopomers which are labeled with 15N and meso-D4 in the porphyrin skeleton or at the vinyl and propionate substituents. The RR bands are assigned to the porphyrin in-plane and out-of-plane modes as well as to the internal vibrations of substituents on the basis of the observed isotope shifts. The issue of vinyl substituent effects is revisited, and bands are assigned to the 2- or 4-vinyl group from selective deuteration shifts. Contributions of the aliphatic propionate groups are also revealed in the RR spectrum. The protein influence on the heme structure is reflected in the activation of several out-of-plane modes in the low-frequency region.

Complete assignment of cytochrome c resonance Raman spectra via enzymic reconstitution with isotopically labeled hemes

Abstract: Resonance Raman (RR) spectra are reported for ferrous yeast iso-1 cytochrome c and its meso-d 4 , pyrrole- 15 N, 2,4-di(a-d 1 ), and 2,4-di(b-d 2 ) isotopomers, obtained by the enzymatic coupling of apoprotein with labeled hemes. Three excitation wavelengths, in resonance with the B (413.1 nm) and Q (520.8 and 530.9 nm) states, were used to selectively examine vibrational modes of different symmetry. On the basis of the observed isotope shifts and the measured depolarization ratios and by analogy to those of nickel octaethylporphyrin, RR bands are assigned to nearly all of the porphyrin in-plane and many of the out-of-plane skeletal modes

Resonance Raman Spectra of Hemoglobin and Cytochrome c: Inverse Polarization and Vibronic Scattering

Abstract: Resonance Raman spectra of hemoglobin and cytochrome c in dilute solution contain prominent bands that exhibit inverse polarization, i.e., the polarization vector of the incident radiation is rotated through 90° for 90° scattering, giving infinite depolarization ratios. This phenomenon is shown to require an antisymmetric molecular-scattering tensor. The antisymmetry, which is characteristic of resonance scattering, is associated with the form of a particular class of vibrations, A20, of the tetragonal heme chromophores. The dependence of the resonance Raman spectra on the wavelength of the exciting radiation, as well as their polarization properties, demonstrates that the prominent bands correspond to vibronically active modes of the first electronic transition of the heme proteins, and provide confirmation of Albrecht's vibronic theory of Raman intensities.

疟原虫var基因转换速率变化导致抗原变异[英]／Paul H, Robert P, Christodoulou Z, et al//Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A

Abstract: 抗原变异可使得多种致病微生物易于逃避宿主免疫应答。表达在感染红细胞表面的恶性疟原虫红细胞表面蛋白1（PfPMP1）与感染红细胞、内皮细胞、树突状细胞以及胎盘的单个或多个受体作用，在黏附及免疫逃避中起关键的作用。每个单倍体基因组var基因家族编码约60种成员，通过启动转录不同的var基因变异体为抗原变异提供了分子基础。

Multicopper Oxidases and Oxygenases

Abstract: Copper is an essential trace element in living systems, present in the parts per million concentration range. It is a key cofactor in a diverse array of biological oxidation-reduction reactions. These involve either outer-sphere electron transfer, as in the blue copper proteins and the Cu{sub A} site of cytochrome oxidase and nitrous oxide redutase, or inner-sphere electron transfer in the binding, activation, and reduction of dioxygen, superoxide, nitrite, and nitrous oxide. Copper sites have historically been divided into three classes based on their spectroscopic features, which reflect the geometric and electronic structure of the active site: type 1 (T1) or blue copper, type 2 (T2) or normal copper, and type 3 (T3) or coupled binuclear copper centers. 428 refs.

Methods in Enzymology.

Abstract: I read this book the same weekend that the Packers took on the Rams, and the experience of the latter event, obviously, colored my judgment. Although I abhor anything that smacks of being a handbook (like, \"How to Earn a Merit Badge in Neurosurgery\") because too many volumes in biomedical science already evince a boyscout-like approach, I must confess that parts of this volume are fast, scholarly, and significant, with certain reservations. I like parts of this well-illustrated book because Dr. Sj6strand, without so stating, develops certain subjects on technique in relation to the acquisition of judgment and sophistication. And this is important! So, given that the author (like all of us) is somewhat deficient in some areas, and biased in others, the book is still valuable if the uninitiated reader swallows it in a general fashion, realizing full well that what will be required from the reader is a modulation to fit his vision, propreception, adaptation and response, and the kind of problem he is undertaking. A major deficiency of this book is revealed by comparison of its use of physics and of chemistry to provide understanding and background for the application of high resolution electron microscopy to problems in biology. Since the volume is keyed to high resolution electron microscopy, which is a sophisticated form of structural analysis, but really morphology in a modern guise, the physical and mechanical background of The instrument and its ancillary tools are simply and well presented. The potential use of chemical or cytochemical information as it relates to biological fine structure , however, is quite deficient. I wonder when even sophisticated morphol-ogists will consider fixation a reaction and not a technique; only then will the fundamentals become self-evident and predictable and this sine qua flon will become less mystical. Staining reactions (the most inadequate chapter) ought to be something more than a technique to selectively enhance contrast of morphological elements; it ought to give the structural addresses of some of the chemical residents of cell components. Is it pertinent that auto-radiography gets singled out for more complete coverage than other significant aspects of cytochemistry by a high resolution microscopist, when it has a built-in minimal error of 1,000 A in standard practice? I don't mean to blind-side (in strict football terminology) Dr. Sj6strand's efforts for what is \"routinely used in our laboratory\"; what is done is usually well done. It's just that …

Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy

Abstract: The ability to control the size, shape, and material of a surface has reinvigorated the field of surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS). Because excitation of the localized surface plasmon resonance of a nanostructured surface or nanoparticle lies at the heart of SERS, the ability to reliably control the surface characteristics has taken SERS from an interesting surface phenomenon to a rapidly developing analytical tool. This article first explains many fundamental features of SERS and then describes the use of nanosphere lithography for the fabrication of highly reproducible and robust SERS substrates. In particular, we review metal film over nanosphere surfaces as excellent candidates for several experiments that were once impossible with more primitive SERS substrates (e.g., metal island films). The article also describes progress in applying SERS to the detection of chemical warfare agents and several biological molecules.