Abalone (Haliotis tuberculata) hemocyanin type 1 (HtH1) . Organization of the = 400 kDa subunit, and amino acid sequence of its functional units f, g and h

We have identified two separate hemocyanin types (HtH1 and HtH2) in the European abalone Haliotis tuberculata. HtH1/HtH2 hybrid molecules were not found. By selective dissociation of HtH2 we isolated HtH1 which, as revealed by electron microscopy and SDS/PAGE, is present as didecamers of a approximately 400 kDa subunit. Immunologically, HtH1 and HtH2 correspond to keyhole limpet hemocyanin (KLH)1 and KLH2, respectively, the two well-studied hemocyanin types of the closely related marine gastropod Megathura crenulata. On the basis of limited proteolytic cleavage, two-dimensional immunoelectrophoresis, SDS/PAGE and N-terminal sequencing, we identified eight different 40-60 kDa functional unit…