Under appropriate conditions, hemoglobin dissociates into its four subunits. The isolated a subunits binds oxygen, but the O2-saturation curve is hyperbolic rather than sigmoidal. In addition, the binding of oxygen to the isolated a subunit is not affected by the presence of H*, CO2, or BPG (2,3-Bisphosphoglyceric acid). What do these observations indicate about the source of the cooperativity in hemoglobin?

Human Physiology: From Cells to Systems (MindTap Course List)
9th Edition
ISBN:9781285866932
Author:Lauralee Sherwood
Publisher:Lauralee Sherwood
Chapter11: The Blood
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Under appropriate conditions, hemoglobin dissociates into its four subunits. The isolated
a subunits binds oxygen, but the O2-saturation curve is hyperbolic rather than sigmoidal.
In addition, the binding of oxygen to the isolated a subunit is not affected by the presence
of H*, CO2, or BPG (2,3-Bisphosphoglyceric acid). What do these observations indicate
about the source of the cooperativity in hemoglobin?
Transcribed Image Text:Under appropriate conditions, hemoglobin dissociates into its four subunits. The isolated a subunits binds oxygen, but the O2-saturation curve is hyperbolic rather than sigmoidal. In addition, the binding of oxygen to the isolated a subunit is not affected by the presence of H*, CO2, or BPG (2,3-Bisphosphoglyceric acid). What do these observations indicate about the source of the cooperativity in hemoglobin?
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