The mechanism of the nonenzymatic iodination of tyrosine by molecular iodine

Abstract

Over the pH range 7–10, at very low buffer concentration, the nonenzymatic iodination of tyrosine obeys the rate law[Formula: see text]where kapp is the measured second order rate constant based upon the total initial concentrations of molecular iodine and tyrosine and K2 (units M) is the equilibrium constant for [Formula: see text]. The value of k′ is 3.5 × 10−8 M∙s−1. There are three plausible mechanisms that fit the experimental data. One, the simplest, is a concerted process in which hypoiodous acid attacks tyrosine with its phenolic group unionized. The other two involve the formation of an iodinated quinoid reactive intermediate species in a rapid pre-equilibrium between unionized tyrosine and either hypoiodous acid or molecular iodine. The pre-equilibrium, if it occurs, favors the initial reactants. It is followed by a slow step in which the quinoid is converted to mono-iodinated tyrosine. Positive deviations from the rate law for pH dependence indicate that some specific acid catalysis (H3O+) is occurring in the pH range 5–7. In the presence of sufficient buffer, general acid–base catalysis is observed with acetic acid acting as a general acid catalyst in the vicinity of pH 5 and carbonate acting as a general base at pH ~ 9.5. The nonenzymatic iodination of tyrosine occurs more rapidly as the pH is increased, in marked contrast to the peroxidase-catalyzed iodination, which has its optimum at low pH.