The binding stoichiometry between Cu(II) and the full-length beta-amyloid Abeta(1-42) and the oxidation state of copper in the resultant complex were determined by electrospray ionization-Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (ESI-FTICR-MS) and cyclic voltammetry. The same approach was extended to the copper complexes of Abeta(1-16) and Abeta(1-28). A stoichiometric ratio of 1:1 was directly observed, and the oxidation state of copper was deduced to be 2+ for all of the complexes, and residues tyrosine-10 and methionine-35 are not oxidized in the Abeta(1-42)-Cu(II) complex. The stoichiometric ratio remains the same in the presence of more than a 10-fold excess of Cu(II). Redox potentials of the sole tyrosine residue and the Cu(II) center were determined to be ca. 0.75 and 0.08 V vs Ag/AgCl [or 0.95 and 0.28 V vs normal hydrogen electrode (NHE)], respectively. More importantly, for the first time, the Abeta-Cu(I) complex has been generated electrochemically and was found to catalyze the reduction of oxygen to produce hydrogen peroxide. The voltammetric behaviors of the three Abeta segments suggest that diffusion of oxygen to the metal center can be affected by the length and hydrophobicity of the Abeta peptide. The determination and assignment of the redox potentials clarify some misconceptions in the redox reactions involving Abeta and provide new insight into the possible roles of redox metal ions in the Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathogenesis. In cellular environments, the reduction potential of the Abeta-Cu(II) complex is sufficiently high to react with antioxidants (e.g., ascorbic acid) and cellular redox buffers (e.g., glutathione), and the Abeta-Cu(I) complex produced could subsequently reduce oxygen to form hydrogen peroxide via a catalytic cycle. Using voltammetry, the Abeta-Cu(II) complex formed in solution was found to be readily reduced by ascorbic acid. Hydrogen peroxide produced, in addition to its role in damaging DNA, protein, and lipid molecules, can also be involved in the further consumption of antioxidants, causing their depletion in neurons and eventually damaging the neuronal defense system. Another possibility is that Abeta-Cu(II) could react with species involved in the cascade of electron transfer events of mitochondria and might potentially sidetrack the electron transfer processes in the respiratory chain, leading to mitochondrial dysfunction.

The interaction of amyloid-β (Aβ) and redox-active metals, two important biomarkers present in the senile plaques of AD brain, has been suggested to either enhance the Aβ aggregation or facilitate the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). The present study investigates the nature of the interaction between the metal-binding domain of Aβ, viz,, and the Fe(III) or Fe(II) complex with nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA). Using electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS), the formation of a ternary complex of Aβ(1-16), Fe(III), and NTA with a stoichiometry of 1:1:1 was identified. MS also revealed that the NTA moiety can be detached via collision-induced dissociation. The cumulative dissociation constants of both Aβ-Fe(III)-NTA and Aβ-Fe(II)-NTA were deduced to be 6.3 × 10 -21 M 2 and 5.0 × 10 -12 M 2 , respectively, via measuring the fluorescence quenching of the sole tyrosine residue on Aβ upon the complex formation. The redox properties of these two complexes were investigated by cyclic voltammetry. The redox potential of the Aβ-Fe(III)-NTA complex was found to be 0.03 V vs. Ag/AgCl, which is negatively shifted by 0.54 V when compared to the redox potential of free Fe(III)/Fe(II). Despite such a large potential modulation, the redox potential of the Aβ-Fe(III)-NTA complex is still sufficiently high for occurrence of a range of redox reactions with cellular species. Aβ-Fe(II)-NTA electrogenerated from Aβ-Fe(III)-NTA was also found to catalyze the reduction of oxygen to produce H 2 O 2 . These findings provide significant insight into the role of iron and Aβ in the development of AD. The binding of iron by Aβ modulates the redox potential to a level where its redox cycling occurs. In the presence of a biological reductant (antioxidant), redox cycling of iron could disrupt the redox balance within the cellular milieu. As a consequence, not only ROS is continuously produced, but also oxygen and biological reductants can be depleted. A cascade of biological processes can therefore be affected. In addition, the strong binding affinity of Aβ toward Fe(III) and Fe(II) indicates Aβ could compete for iron against other iron-containing protein. Particularly, its strong affinity to Fe(II), which is eight orders of magnitude stronger than transferrin, would greatly interfere with the iron homeostasis.A major hallmark of Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the deposition of aggregates of amyloid-β (Aβ) peptides in the senile plaques.(1) The in vivo aggregation/deposition of Aβ peptides is suggested to either enhance neurotoxicity or be a result of aberrant cellular processes.(2) The

The oxidation of the sulfhydryl group in cysteine to sulfenic acid, sulfinic acid, and sulfonic acid in proteins is important in a number of enzymatic processes. In this study we examined the fragmentation of four peptides containing cysteine, cysteine sulfinic acid (Cys-SO 2 H), and cysteine sulfonic acid (Cys-SO 3 H) in an ion-trap mass spectrometer. Our results show that the presence of a Cys-SO 2 H in a peptide leads to preferential cleavage of the amide bond at the C-terminal side of the oxidized cysteine residue. The results are important for the determination of the site of the cysteine oxidation and might be useful for the sequencing of cysteine-containing peptides. (J Am Soc Mass Spectrom 2004, 15, 697-702)

Yeast alcohol dehydrogenase (YADH) plays an important role in the conversion of alcohols to aldehydes or ketones. YADH-1 is a zinc-containing protein, and it accounts for the major part of ADH activity in growing baker's yeast. To gain insight into how oxidative modification of the enzyme affects its function, we exposed YADH-1 to hydrogen peroxide in vitro and assessed the oxidized protein by LC-MS/MS analysis of proteolytic cleavage products of the protein and by measurements of enzymatic activity, zinc release, and thiol/thiolate loss. The results illustrated that Cys43 and Cys153, which reside at the active site of the protein, could be selectively oxidized to cysteine sulfinic acid (Cys-SO2H) and cysteine sulfonic acid (Cys-SO3H). In addition, H2O2 induced the formation of three disulfide bonds: Cys43-Cys153 in the catalytic domain, Cys103-Cys111 in the noncatalytic zinc center, and Cys276-Cys277. Therefore, our results support the notion that the oxidation of cysteine residues in the zinc-binding domain of proteins can go beyond the formation of disulfide bond(s); the formation of Cys-SO2H and Cys-SO3H is also possible. Furthermore, most methionines could be oxidized to methionine sulfoxides. Quantitative measurement results revealed that, among all the cysteine residues, Cys43 was the most susceptible to H2O2 oxidation, and the major oxidation products of this cysteine were Cys-SO2H and Cys-SO3H. The oxidation of Cys43 might be responsible for the inactivation of the enzyme upon H2O2 treatment.