Magnetic susceptibility of laccases and ceruloplasmin.

1. Recent magnetic susceptibility measurements on laccase (monophenol,dihydroxyphenylalanine:oxygen oxidoreductase, EC 1.14.18.1) from the lacquer tree Rhus vernicifera showed a deviation from Curie behaviour above 50 K, which was taken as evidence for an antiferromagnetically coupled Cu(II)-Cu(II) pair in the oxidized enzyme. The magnetic susceptibility of this protein has been reinvestigated. Further measurements on laccase from the fungus Polyporus versicolor and human ceruloplasmin (iron(II):oxygen oxidoreductase, EC 1.16.3.1) are presented. 2. The magnetic susceptibility of fungal laccase and lacquer tree laccase can be accounted for by the EPR detectable copper ions in the temperature range 40--300 K. 3. If an antiferromagnetically coupled Cu(II)-Cu(II) pair exists in the laccases, then the coupling, expressed as --J, should be at least of the order of 300 cm-1, as deduced from the Curie dependence of the susceptibility and the sensitivity in our measurements. 4. If an analogy with the laccases is assumed for the EPR invisible copper in ceruloplasmin then a limiting value of the coupling may be deduced also in this case, with --J at least of the order of 200 cm-1.