Effects of formaldehyde fixation on protein secondary structure: a calorimetric and infrared spectroscopic investigationJT Mason and TJ O'Leary Department of Cellular Pathology, Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, Washington, DC 20306-6000. We investigated the effects of formaldehyde fixation on the secondary structure of isolated proteins (bovine serum albumin, ribonuclease A, and hemoglobin) using high-sensitivity differential scanning calorimetry and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Whereas thermograms obtained by scanning calorimetry on unfixed purified proteins demonstrated denaturation transitions in the 70-90 degrees C temperature range, the thermograms showed no denaturation transitions in this temperature range when the proteins had been placed in formaldehyde solutions. Thus, fixation destroyed the denaturation transition of bovine serum albumin, ribonuclease A, and hemoglobin. Infrared spectra obtained on the unfixed and fixed proteins were essentially identical. This demonstrates that the "fixed" proteins retain the secondary structure present before fixation. We therefore conclude that the cross-linking of proteins that occurs in the process of formaldehyde fixation "locks in" the secondary structure of these protein molecules.
Volume 39,
Issue 2,
pp. 225-229,
02/01/1991
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
![]() |
G Bussolati and E Leonardo Technical pitfalls potentially affecting diagnoses in immunohistochemistry J. Clin. Pathol., November 1, 2008; 61(11): 1184 - 1192. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
L. Lyck, I. Dalmau, J. Chemnitz, B. Finsen, and H. D. Schroder Immunohistochemical Markers for Quantitative Studies of Neurons and Glia in Human Neocortex J. Histochem. Cytochem., March 1, 2008; 56(3): 201 - 221. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
W.-S. Chu, Q. Liang, Y. Tang, R. King, K. Wong, M. Gong, M. Wei, J. Liu, S.-H. Feng, S.-C. Lo, et al. Ultrasound-accelerated Tissue Fixation/Processing Achieves Superior Morphology and Macromolecule Integrity with Storage Stability J. Histochem. Cytochem., May 1, 2006; 54(5): 503 - 513. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
S. Yamashita and Y. Okada Application of Heat-induced Antigen Retrieval to Aldehyde-fixed Fresh Frozen Sections J. Histochem. Cytochem., November 1, 2005; 53(11): 1421 - 1432. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
J. A. Ramos-Vara Technical Aspects of Immunohistochemistry Vet. Pathol., July 1, 2005; 42(4): 405 - 426. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
C. Montero The Antigen-Antibody Reaction in Immunohistochemistry J. Histochem. Cytochem., January 1, 2003; 51(1): 1 - 4. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
P A Mote, J F Johnston, T Manninen, P Tuohimaa, and C L Clarke Detection of progesterone receptor forms A and B by immunohistochemical analysis J. Clin. Pathol., August 1, 2001; 54(8): 624 - 630. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
K. Ikeda, T. Monden, T. Kanoh, M. Tsujie, H. Izawa, A. Haba, T. Ohnishi, M. Sekimoto, N. Tomita, H. Shiozaki, et al. Extraction and Analysis of Diagnostically Useful Proteins from Formalin-fixed, Paraffin-embedded Tissue Sections J. Histochem. Cytochem., March 1, 1998; 46(3): 397 - 404. [Abstract] [Full Text] |
||||
![]() |
S.-R. Shi, R. J. Cote, and C. R. Taylor Antigen Retrieval Immunohistochemistry: Past, Present, and Future J. Histochem. Cytochem., March 1, 1997; 45(3): 327 - 344. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
| Guidelines | Subscriptions | About | exPRESS - Current - Archive | Business Information | Contact |