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. 1980 Oct;66(4):758–761. doi: 10.1104/pp.66.4.758

Identification of Selenocysteine in the Proteins of Selenate-grown Vigna radiata1

Terence A Brown 1, Alex Shrift 1
PMCID: PMC440718  PMID: 16661517

Abstract

Selenocysteine, the selenium analog of cysteine, was identified in proteins of Vigna radiata (L.) Wilczak grown with selenate. To stabilize selenocysteine and prevent its breakdown, the carboxymethyl derivative was synthesized by the addition of iodoacetic acid to the protein extract from [75Se]selenate-grown plants. A 75Se-labeled component of the carboxymethylated protein hydrolysate possessed chromatographic properties identical to those of a 14C-labeled carboxymethylselenocysteine standard during paper and thin layer chromatography and during gel-exclusion, anion-exchange, and cation-exchange column chromatography. Detection of selenocysteine in proteins of a selenium-sensitive plant, and the possibility that the presence of this compound alters normal functions, provides an explanation for the toxic effects of selenium.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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