Abstract: | The distribution of the vitamin K-dependent amino acid, gamma-carboxyglutamic acid was examined in proteins from a variety of sources. Proteins examined include purified rat and bovine coagulation proteins, barium citrate-adsorbing proteins from trout plasma, lamprey plasma, earthworm hemolymph, army worm hemolymph, lobster hemolymph, E. coli B/5, soybean leaf, the protein lysate from the hemolymph cell of the horseshoe crab and parathyroid extract. Other purified proteins examined included human alpha-1-antitrypsin, pepsinogen, S-100, fetuin, tropomyosin-troponin and complement protein C-3. Of these, only the blood-cotting proteins and the vertebrate plasma samples were shown to contain gamma-carboxyglutamic acid. |