Re-examination of rhodopsin structure by hydrogen exchange

The hydrogen exchange behavior of rhodopsin was re-examined by studies of the protein in the disc membrane and after solubilization in octyl glucoside. The methods used measure either the peptide hydrogens alone (hydrogen-deuterium exchange by infrared spectroscopy) or all slowly exchanging hydrogens (hydrogen-tritium exchange by hel filtration). Under mild exchange conditions, disc membranes and solubilized lipid-free proteins show very similar exchange behavior, indicating the absence of slowly exchanging lipid protons. At high temperature, exchange of an additional large group of very slow peptide NH can be detected. The total number of slow hydrogens significantly exceeds the amide content, and apparently includes slowly exchanging protons from perhaps 40% of the protein's non-amide side chains. This is thought to require the involvement of many polar side chains in internal H-bonding. The exchange rates of the non-amide side chains sites have not been determined. However, to the extent that these contribute to the fast time region of the measured kinetic H-exchange curve, previously identified with exposed, non-H-bonded peptides, the estimate of freely exposed rhodopsin peptides must be reduced. The fraction of free peptides could range from a remarkably high value of 70% down to about 45%.