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Abstract
Does Hevein Stabilise or Destabilise Rubber Latex?
The acidic protein hevein is the major protein
in the lutoid-body fraction of rubber latex. The purified protein has a
stabilising effect on suspensions of rubber particles in the presence of
unfractionated lutoid-body preparations, which contain destabilisation basic
proteins. The hevein contents in lutoid-body fractions from rubber clones
GT 1 and PR 261 are about two times higher than in that of clone LCB 1320,
which may explain the faster destabilisation of latex from the latter clone
after tapping. Hevein and pseudo-hevein bind chitin and can be isolated
by affinity chromatography on a chitin column. Pseudo-hevein binds less
strongly to this material than hevein, which can be explained by a replacement
of a tryptophan residue by tyrosine in the carbohydrate-binding site of
the protein.

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