Photoaffinity labeling of opioid receptor of rat brain membranes with 125I(D-Ala2, p-N3-Phe4-Met5)enkephalin.

A photoreactive (D-Ala2, p-N3-Phe4-Met5)enkephalin derivative was prepared, iodinated with carrier-free 125I, and then purified by high-performance liquid chromatography. The purified radioactive photoprobe was monoiodinated at the amino terminal tyrosine residue. This radioactive photoprobe was used to photoaffinity label membranes prepared from the rat brain (minus cerebellum) and the spinal cord. The photolabeled membranes were analyzed by sodium dodecyl sulfate gel electrophoresis. A 46,000-Da protein was specifically photolabeled in these membrane preparations. The photolabeling of this protein was inhibited by peptides related to enkephalin but not by unrelated substance P or gastrin tetrapeptide. A concentration-dependent inhibition of the photolabeling of the 46,000-Da protein was observed in the presence of competing ligands specific for the mu-, delta-, and kappa-opioid receptors. These data demonstrate that the radioactive photoprobe labels the mu-, delta-, and kappa-opioid receptors. Although there is no evidence available to show that the 46,000-Da protein is identical in all the cases, our data strongly suggest that it is a binding protein common to all of the opioid receptor subtypes.