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. 1997 Mar 1;322(Pt 2):507–510. doi: 10.1042/bj3220507

Metal substitution of tetanus neurotoxin.

F Tonello 1, G Schiavo 1, C Montecucco 1
PMCID: PMC1218219  PMID: 9065770

Abstract

Tetanus neurotoxin was depleted of its catalytic Zn2+ ion, and the apotoxin was reconstituted with different transition metal ions. The Mn2+- and Co2+-tetanus neurotoxins are highly active in the proteolysis of vesicle-associated membrane protein/synaptobrevin, the natural substrate of this toxin, whereas Cu2+ and Fe2+ minimally supported proteolytic activity. The visible absorbance spectrum of Co2+-tetanus neurotoxin shows a maximum at 538 nm with a molar absorption coefficient of 82 M(-1) x cm(-1). These results indicate that the Zn2+ environment at the active site of tetanus neurotoxin is different from those of known Zn2+-endopeptidases and provide a structural basis for the definition of tetanus neurotoxin, and the related clostridial neurotoxins, as an independent family of metalloproteases.

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Selected References

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