Proposed temperature-dependent conformational transition in D-amino acid oxidase: a differential scanning microcalorimetric study.

A number of authors have reported observations on D-amino acid oxidase [D-amino acid: O2 oxidoreductase (deaminating), EC 1.4.3.3.] that they have interpreted in terms of a temperature-dependent conformational transition having a van't Hoff enthalpy amounting to more than 1 cal per g of protein (1 cal = 4.184J). No indication of this transition is obtained by using a differential scanning calorimeter having a sensitivity considerably in excess of that required to detect such a transition. The implications of this discrepancy are discussed.