Binding of triethyltin to cat haemoglobin and modification of the binding sites by diethyl pyrocarbonate

Abstract

Cat haemoglobin binds 2 mol of triethyltin/mol of haemoglobin. Pretreatment of the haemoglobin with diethyl pyrocarbonate at pH6.0 prevents binding to one site only, whereas photo-oxidation with Methylene Blue removes both sites. Pretreatment of rat haemoglobin with diethyl pyrocarbonate also leads to the loss of one binding site. The possibility is discussed that the two binding sites for triethyltin on both cat and rat haemoglobin have a different chemical nature.