Crossing of low-lying electronic levels of high-spin ferrous ion in deoxyhemoglobin and deoxymyoglobin.

The electronic structure of high-spin S = 2 ferrous ion in deoxy forms of hemoglobin and myoglobin is considered in terms of spin Hamiltonian formalism. Spin Hamiltonian parameters of the second order B0(2)(D), B2(2)(E) and, for the first time in the available literature, of fourth order B0(4), B2(4) and B4(4), are calculated for the rhombic symmetry case of Fe2+. The Hamiltonian matrix is diagonalized for several sets of Bq(k) parameters compatible with other experimental data. The low-lying Fe2+ levels exhibit crossings in a high magnetic field, applied along the z-axis perpendicular to the heme plane. The cross-over values of the magnetic field are determined to be Hc1 = 46 kOe and Hc2 = 168 kOe for D = 5.2, E = 0.6 cm-1 (close to the magnetic data of Nakano, N., Otsuka, J. and Tasaki, A. (1972) Biochim. Biophys. Acta 278, 355-371) and with B0(4) = 0.037, B2(4) = 0.005, B4(4) = 0.013 cm-1 and gz = 2.028. Experimental techniques for measurement of the crossing effects are discussed.