Purification of beef-heart cytochrome c oxidase by hydrophobic interaction chromatography on octyl-Sepharose CL-4B

1. Hydrophobic interaction chromatography on Octyl-Sepharose CL-4B is used as a new and simple method for the preparation of large amounts of beef-heart cytochrome c oxidase (ferrocytochrome c:oxygen oxidoreductase, EC 1.9.3.1). 2. The method involves only one cycle of (NH4)2SO4 fractionation before the material is applied to the column. After washing with 10% cholate and 1.5% Tween 80, elution of the enzyme is accomplished with 1% Triton X-100. 3. The enzyme so prepared contains about 10 nmol heme alpha/mg protein and about 0.2% phospholipid. 4. Characterization of the enzyme has been made with optical and EPR spectroscopy and polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The preparation appears by these criteria to be at least as good as other purified enzyme preparations. 5. The turnover rate at infinite cytochrome c concentration in 0.1 M sodium phosphate buffer and 0.5% Tween 80 at pH 6.1 is 80 s-1 per functional unit of the enzyme. A more than three-fold activation could be obtained by the addition of phosphatidylcholine at neutral pH.