In their article, Di Nardo et al. presented the results of the experiment on assigning the value of pKa to a specific residue related to a cytochrome P450 (1186). It is possible to agree with the results of this experiment that is associated with observing the evidence regarding an elevated aspartate pKa level in aromatase (CYP19A1) (Di Nardo et al. 1187). The reasons to agree with the information provided in the article are the following ones: the researchers described elements of the experiment in detail, the results were analyzed using appropriate strategies, and the findings were analyzed with reference to the previously collected data in the field.
The experimental procedures conducted by the researchers allowed them to study fully the effects associated with the elevation of pKa for Asp309 in the context of the protonation of a residue. The researchers effectively applied resonance Raman spectroscopy and circular dichroism among other methods to examine the phenomenon (Di Nardo et al. 1188). All assumptions made by the researchers before conducting the experiment were guided by previously completed studies. Moreover, the results of the experiment were compared to theoretical calculations to prove their validity (Di Nardo et al. 1189). Finally, the results were compared to other findings on the topic to support the appropriateness of the used approach to examine the phenomenon.
Furthermore, those researchers who studied the associated phenomena and processes in 2016 noted that this article provided important biophysical evidence regarding the presence of an aspartate residue in the human aromatase’s active site with the focus on the increased pKa (Ghosh et al. 5140). These data are viewed as significant to contribute to further studies in the field in order to examine this phenomenon in detail. Therefore, it is possible to agree with conclusions made by the authors of the reviewed article.
Works Cited
Di Nardo, Giovanna, et al. “Evidence for an Elevated Aspartate pKa in the Active Site of Human Aromatase.” Journal of Biological Chemistry, vol. 290, no. 2, 2015, pp. 1186-1196.
Ghosh, Debashis, et al. “Recent Progress in the Discovery of Next Generation Inhibitors of Aromatase from the Structure-Function Perspective.” Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, vol. 59, no. 11, 2016, pp. 5131-5148.