The amino acid sequence of rabbit skeletal alpha-tropomyosin. The NH2-terminal half and complete sequence

The amino acid sequence of the large cyanogen bromide fragment (residues 11 to 127) derived from the NH2-terminal half of alpha-tropomyosin has been determined. This was achieved by automatic sequence analysis of the whole fragment as well as manual sequencing of fragments derived from tryptic digestion of the maleylated fragment and thermolytic, Myxobacter 495 alpha-lytic and Staphylococcus aureus protease digestion of the unmodified fragment. Methionine-containing overlap peptides have been isolated from tryptic digests of the maleylated protein as well as from S. aureus protease digests of the unmodified protein. Coupled with previously published information on the small cyanogen bromide fragments and methionine sequences of tropomyosin, these analyses have permitted the completion of the primary structure of the protein. The complete sequence differs by only 1 residue (Gln-24 instead of Glu-24) from that previously reported. Analysis of the sequence by several authors has permitted rational explanations for the stabilization of its coiled-coil structure, for the existence of its two chains in a nonstaggered arrangement, for a head-to-tail overlap of molecular ends of 8 to 9 residues, for the existence of 14 actin-binding sites on each tropomyosin molecule, and a suggestion for the site of binding of troponin-T.