Electrostatic effect on electron transfer between cytochrome b5 and cytochrome c

The binding and electron transfer between wild type, E44A, E56A, E44/56A, E44/48/56A/D60Aand F35Y variants of cytochrome b5 and cytochrome c were studied. When mixed with cytochrome c, the cytochrome b5E44/48/56A/D60A did not show the typical UV-vis difference spectrum of absorption, indicating that the alteration ofthe surface electrostatic potential obviously influenced the spectrum. The electron transfer rates of wild type cytochromeb5, its variants and cytochrome e at different temperature and ionic strength exhibited an order of F35Y > wild type >E56A > E44A > E44/48/56A/D60A. The enthalpy and entropy of the reaction did not change obviously, suggestingthat the mutation did not significantly disturb the electron transfer conformation. The investigation of electron transfer rateconstants at different ionic strength demonstrated that electrostatic interaction obviously affected the electron transfer pro-cess. The significant difference of Cyt b5 F35Y and E44/48/56A/D60A from the wild type protein further confirmed thegreat importance of the electrostatic interaction in the protein electron transfer.     

Electrostatic orientation during electron transfer between flavodoxin and cytochrome c

Various studies have shown that reaction rates between reversibly binding electron transfer proteins depend strongly on solution ionic strength. These observations suggest that intermolecular electrostatic interactions are important in facilitating the formation of a productive reaction complex. A recently examined system involves the reduction of vertebrate cytochrome c by bacterial flavodoxin. Although this is a nonphysiological reaction, it proceeds with rates typical for natural partners and is similarly inhibited at high ionic strengths. Here we describe computational studies which examine the role of electrostatics in the formation of a putative reaction complex between flavodoxin and cytochrome c. The results suggest that electrostatic interactions preorient the molecules before they make physical contact, facilitating the formation of an optimal reaction complex.     

Proton-coupled electron transfer drives the proton pump of cytochrome c oxidase

Electron transfer in cell respiration is coupled to proton translocation across mitochondrial and bacterial membranes, which is a primary event of biological energy transduction. The resulting electrochemical proton gradient is used to power energy-requiring reactions, such as ATP synthesis. Cytochrome c oxidase is a key component of the respiratory chain, which harnesses dioxygen as a sink for electrons and links O2 reduction to proton pumping. Electrons from cytochrome c are transferred sequentially to the O2 reduction site of cytochrome c oxidase via two other metal centres, Cu(A) and haem a, and this is coupled to vectorial proton transfer across the membrane by a hitherto unknown mechanism. On the basis of the kinetics of proton uptake and release on the two aqueous sides of the membrane, it was recently suggested that proton pumping by cytochrome c oxidase is not mechanistically coupled to internal electron transfer. Here we have monitored translocation of electrical charge equivalents as well as electron transfer within cytochrome c oxidase in real time. The results show that electron transfer from haem a to the O2 reduction site initiates the proton pump mechanism by being kinetically linked to an internal vectorial proton transfer. This reaction drives the proton pump and occurs before relaxation steps in which protons are taken up from the aqueous space on one side of the membrane and released on the other.     

Structural insights into electron transfer in caa3-type cytochrome oxidase

Cytochrome c oxidase is a member of the haem copper oxidase superfamily (HCO). HCOs function as the terminal enzymes in the respiratory chain of mitochondria and aerobic prokaryotes, coupling molecular oxygen reduction to transmembrane proton pumping. Integral to the enzyme's function is the transfer of electrons from cytochrome c to the oxidase via a transient association of the two proteins. Electron entry and exit are proposed to occur from the same site on cytochrome c. Here we report the crystal structure of the caa3-type cytochrome oxidase from Thermus thermophilus, which has a covalently tethered cytochrome c domain. Crystals were grown in a bicontinuous mesophase using a synthetic short-chain monoacylglycerol as the hosting lipid. From the electron density map, at 2.36?? resolution, a novel integral membrane subunit and a native glycoglycerophospholipid embedded in the complex were identified. Contrary to previous electron transfer mechanisms observed for soluble cytochrome c, the structure reveals the architecture of the electron transfer complex for the fused cupredoxin/cytochrome c domain, which implicates different sites on cytochrome c for electron entry and exit. Support for an alternative to the classical proton gate characteristic of this HCO class is presented.     

Reduction of cytochrome c oxidase by a second electron leads to proton translocation

Cytochrome c oxidase, the terminal enzyme of cellular respiration in mitochondria and many bacteria, reduces O(2) to water. This four-electron reduction process is coupled to translocation (pumping) of four protons across the mitochondrial or bacterial membrane; however, proton pumping is poorly understood. Proton pumping was thought to be linked exclusively to the oxidative phase, that is, to the transfer of the third and fourth electron. Upon re-evaluation of these data, however, this proposal has been questioned, and a transport mechanism including proton pumping in the reductive phase--that is, during the transfer of the first two electrons--was suggested. Subsequently, additional studies reported that proton pumping during the reductive phase can occur, but only when it is immediately preceded by an oxidative phase. To help clarify the issue we have measured the generation of the electric potential across the membrane, starting from a defined one-electron reduced state. Here we show that a second electron transfer into the enzyme leads to charge translocation corresponding to pumping of one proton without necessity for a preceding turnover.     

Structure of cytochrome c nitrite reductase.

The enzyme cytochrome c nitrite reductase catalyses the six-electron reduction of nitrite to ammonia as one of the key steps in the biological nitrogen cycle, where it participates in the anaerobic energy metabolism of dissimilatory nitrate ammonification. Here we report on the crystal structure of this enzyme from the microorganism Sulfurospirillum deleyianum, which we solved by multiwavelength anomalous dispersion methods. We propose a reaction scheme for the transformation of nitrite based on structural and spectroscopic information. Cytochrome c nitrite reductase is a functional dimer, with 10 close-packed haem groups of type c and an unusual lysine-coordinated high-spin haem at the active site. By comparing the haem arrangement of this nitrite reductase with that of other multihaem cytochromes, we have been able to identify a family of proteins in which the orientation of haem groups is conserved whereas structure and function are not.     

Proton translocation by cytochrome c oxidase.

Cell respiration in mitochondria and some bacteria is catalysed by cytochrome c oxidase, which reduces O2 to water, coupled with translocation of four protons across the mitochondrial or bacterial membrane. The enzyme's catalytic cycle consists of a reductive phase, in which the oxidized enzyme receives electrons from cytochrome c, and an oxidative phase, in which the reduced enzyme is oxidized by O2. Previous studies indicated that proton translocation is coupled energetically only to the oxidative phase, but this has been challenged. Here, with the purified enzyme inlaid in liposomes, we report time-resolved measurements of membrane potential, which show that half of the electrical charges due to proton-pumping actually cross the membrane during reduction after a preceding oxidative phase. pH measurements confirm that proton translocation also occurs during reduction, but only when immediately preceded by an oxidative phase. We conclude that all the energy for proton translocation is conserved in the enzyme during its oxidation by O2. One half of it is utilized for proton-pumping during oxidation, but the other half is unlatched for this purpose only during re-reduction of the enzyme.     

纳米火棉胶膜自组装细胞色素c的直接电化学研究

用纳米火棉胶膜将细胞色素c固定在玻碳电极表面,制备了细胞色素c-火棉胶膜修饰电极.吸附在火棉胶膜上的细胞色素c可以与电极发生直接电子传递.在pH=7.0的0.1mol/LPBS缓冲溶液中可得到一对准可逆的细胞色素c的血红素辅基Fe(Ⅲ)/Fe(Ⅱ)电对氧化还原峰,实验求得细胞色素c异相电子传递速率常数k0为65.4μm/s.进一步考察了扫速、溶液pH值等因素对细胞色素c电子传递的影响,并用电化学阻抗法研究了修饰电极的电化学行为.