1
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Riepl D, Gamiz-Hernandez AP, Kovalova T, Król SM, Mader SL, Sjöstrand D, Högbom M, Brzezinski P, Kaila VRI. Long-range charge transfer mechanism of the III 2IV 2 mycobacterial supercomplex. Nat Commun 2024; 15:5276. [PMID: 38902248 PMCID: PMC11189923 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-49628-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2023] [Accepted: 06/12/2024] [Indexed: 06/22/2024] Open
Abstract
Aerobic life is powered by membrane-bound redox enzymes that shuttle electrons to oxygen and transfer protons across a biological membrane. Structural studies suggest that these energy-transducing enzymes operate as higher-order supercomplexes, but their functional role remains poorly understood and highly debated. Here we resolve the functional dynamics of the 0.7 MDa III2IV2 obligate supercomplex from Mycobacterium smegmatis, a close relative of M. tuberculosis, the causative agent of tuberculosis. By combining computational, biochemical, and high-resolution (2.3 Å) cryo-electron microscopy experiments, we show how the mycobacterial supercomplex catalyses long-range charge transport from its menaquinol oxidation site to the binuclear active site for oxygen reduction. Our data reveal proton and electron pathways responsible for the charge transfer reactions, mechanistic principles of the quinone catalysis, and how unique molecular adaptations, water molecules, and lipid interactions enable the proton-coupled electron transfer (PCET) reactions. Our combined findings provide a mechanistic blueprint of mycobacterial supercomplexes and a basis for developing drugs against pathogenic bacteria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Riepl
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, The Arrhenius Laboratories for Natural Sciences, Stockholm University, SE-106 91, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Ana P Gamiz-Hernandez
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, The Arrhenius Laboratories for Natural Sciences, Stockholm University, SE-106 91, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Terezia Kovalova
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, The Arrhenius Laboratories for Natural Sciences, Stockholm University, SE-106 91, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Sylwia M Król
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, The Arrhenius Laboratories for Natural Sciences, Stockholm University, SE-106 91, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Sophie L Mader
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, The Arrhenius Laboratories for Natural Sciences, Stockholm University, SE-106 91, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Dan Sjöstrand
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, The Arrhenius Laboratories for Natural Sciences, Stockholm University, SE-106 91, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Martin Högbom
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, The Arrhenius Laboratories for Natural Sciences, Stockholm University, SE-106 91, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Peter Brzezinski
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, The Arrhenius Laboratories for Natural Sciences, Stockholm University, SE-106 91, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Ville R I Kaila
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, The Arrhenius Laboratories for Natural Sciences, Stockholm University, SE-106 91, Stockholm, Sweden.
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2
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Bujnowicz Ł, Pietras R, Sarewicz M, Osyczka A. Low-cost stopped-flow and freeze-quench device for double mixing. HARDWAREX 2023; 14:e00409. [PMID: 36910022 PMCID: PMC9999200 DOI: 10.1016/j.ohx.2023.e00409] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2022] [Revised: 07/22/2022] [Accepted: 02/24/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Experiments based on fast reagent mixing and observation of reaction progress are considered a powerful tool for investigating the kinetics of chemical and enzymatic reactions. Various spectroscopic methods are used in monitoring the reaction progress, which require different sample preparation methods. Stopped-flow is the most widespread method, where the reaction in the liquid phase is observed by optical absorption spectroscopy. Albeit less popular, the freeze-quench method is also used, in which the reaction is rapidly stopped by freezing the sample at a given time point after the reaction onset. The frozen droplets of the sample are collected and measured at low temperatures in the solid state. Currently, many commercial solutions are available for freeze-quench or stopped-flow experiments, but despite the high price of the devices, most of these do not allow combining both these methods in a single experiment. This study presents a relatively simple solution that combines both these methods, thus making a complete study of chemical or enzymatic reactions possible. Besides, the presented solution enables sequential double mixing of reagents, which is generally problematic and cannot be done using commercial instruments.
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3
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Borek A, Ekiert R, Osyczka A. On the inter-monomer electron transfer in cytochrome bc 1. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA. BIOENERGETICS 2023; 1864:148981. [PMID: 37164301 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbabio.2023.148981] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2023] [Accepted: 04/20/2023] [Indexed: 05/12/2023]
Abstract
Cytochrome bc1 is a structural and functional homodimer. The catalytically-relevant inter-monomer electron transfer has been implicated by a number of experiments, including those based on analyses of the cross-dimer mutated derivatives. As some of the original data on these derivatives have recently been questioned, we extend kinetic analysis of these mutants to confirm the enzymatic origin of the observed activities and their relevance in exploration of conditions that expose electron transfer between the monomers. While obtained data consistently implicate rapid inter-monomer electron equilibration in cytochrome bc1, the mechanistic and physiological meaning of this equilibration is yet to be established.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arkadiusz Borek
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 7, 30-387 Kraków, Poland
| | - Robert Ekiert
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 7, 30-387 Kraków, Poland
| | - Artur Osyczka
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 7, 30-387 Kraków, Poland.
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4
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Havens J, Su T, Wang Q, Yu CA, Yu L, Durham B, Millett F. Photoinduced electron transfer in cytochrome bc 1: Dynamics of rotation of the Iron-sulfur protein during bifurcated electron transfer from ubiquinol to cytochrome c 1 and cytochrome b L. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA. BIOENERGETICS 2023; 1864:148957. [PMID: 36709837 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbabio.2023.148957] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2022] [Revised: 01/12/2023] [Accepted: 01/20/2023] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
The electron transfer reactions within wild-type Rhodobacter sphaeroides cytochrome bc1 (cyt bc1) were studied using a binuclear ruthenium complex to rapidly photooxidize cyt c1. When cyt c1, the iron‑sulfur center Fe2S2, and cyt bH were reduced before the reaction, photooxidation of cyt c1 led to electron transfer from Fe2S2 to cyt c1 with a rate constant of ka = 80,000 s-1, followed by bifurcated reduction of both Fe2S2 and cyt bL by QH2 in the Qo site with a rate constant of k2 = 3000 s-1. The resulting Q then traveled from the Qo site to the Qi site and oxidized one equivalent each of cyt bL and cyt bH with a rate constant of k3 = 340 s-1. The rate constant ka was decreased in a nonlinear fashion by a factor of 53 as the viscosity was increased to 13.7. A mechanism that is consistent with the effect of viscosity involves rotational diffusion of the iron‑sulfur protein from the b state with reduced Fe2S2 close to cyt bL to one or more intermediate states, followed by rotation to the final c1 state with Fe2S2 close to cyt c1, and rapid electron transfer to cyt c1.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeffrey Havens
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701, United States of America; Vaccines and Therapeutics Division, Chemical and Biological Technologies, Defense Threat Reduction Agency, Fort Belvoir, VA 22060, United States of America
| | - Ting Su
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK 74078, United States of America; ABclonal Technology Woburn, MA 01801, United States of America
| | - Qiyu Wang
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK 74078, United States of America; Vesigen Therapeutics Cambridge, MA 02139, United States of America
| | - Chang-An Yu
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK 74078, United States of America
| | - Linda Yu
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK 74078, United States of America
| | - Bill Durham
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701, United States of America
| | - Francis Millett
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701, United States of America.
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5
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Sarewicz M, Pintscher S, Bujnowicz Ł, Wolska M, Artur Osyczka. The High-Spin Heme b L Mutant Exposes Dominant Reaction Leading to the Formation of the Semiquinone Spin-Coupled to the [2Fe-2S] + Cluster at the Q o Site of Rhodobacter capsulatus Cytochrome bc 1. Front Chem 2021; 9:658877. [PMID: 34026724 PMCID: PMC8138165 DOI: 10.3389/fchem.2021.658877] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2021] [Accepted: 04/19/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Cytochrome bc 1 (mitochondrial complex III) catalyzes electron transfer from quinols to cytochrome c and couples this reaction with proton translocation across lipid membrane; thus, it contributes to the generation of protonmotive force used for the synthesis of ATP. The energetic efficiency of the enzyme relies on a bifurcation reaction taking place at the Qo site which upon oxidation of ubiquinol directs one electron to the Rieske 2Fe2S cluster and the other to heme b L. The molecular mechanism of this reaction remains unclear. A semiquinone spin-coupled to the reduced 2Fe2S cluster (SQo-2Fe2S) was identified as a state associated with the operation of the Qo site. To get insights into the mechanism of the formation of this state, we first constructed a mutant in which one of the histidine ligands of the iron ion of heme b L Rhodobacter capsulatus cytochrome bc 1 was replaced by asparagine (H198N). This converted the low-spin, low-potential heme into the high-spin, high-potential species which is unable to support enzymatic turnover. We performed a comparative analysis of redox titrations of antimycin-supplemented bacterial photosynthetic membranes containing native enzyme and the mutant. The titrations revealed that H198N failed to generate detectable amounts of SQo-2Fe2S under neither equilibrium (in dark) nor nonequilibrium (in light), whereas the native enzyme generated clearly detectable SQo-2Fe2S in light. This provided further support for the mechanism in which the back electron transfer from heme b L to a ubiquinone bound at the Qo site is mainly responsible for the formation of semiquinone trapped in the SQo-2Fe2S state in R. capusulatus cytochrome bc 1.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcin Sarewicz
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Poland
| | - Sebastian Pintscher
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Poland
| | - Łukasz Bujnowicz
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Poland
| | - Małgorzata Wolska
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Poland
| | - Artur Osyczka
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Poland
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6
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Crofts AR. The modified Q-cycle: A look back at its development and forward to a functional model. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA-BIOENERGETICS 2021; 1862:148417. [PMID: 33745972 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbabio.2021.148417] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2021] [Revised: 02/28/2021] [Accepted: 03/11/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
On looking back at a lifetime of research, it is interesting to see, in the light of current progress, how things came to be, and to speculate on how things might be. I am delighted in the context of the Mitchell prize to have that excuse to present this necessarily personal view of developments in areas of my interests. I have focused on the Q-cycle and a few examples showing wider ramifications, since that had been the main interest of the lab in the 20 years since structures became available, - a watershed event in determining our molecular perspective. I have reviewed the evidence for our model for the mechanism of the first electron transfer of the bifurcated reaction at the Qo-site, which I think is compelling. In reviewing progress in understanding the second electron transfer, I have revisited some controversies to justify important conclusions which appear, from the literature, not to have been taken seriously. I hope this does not come over as nitpicking. The conclusions are important to the final section in which I develop an internally consistent mechanism for turnovers of the complex leading to a state similar to that observed in recent rapid-mix/freeze-quench experiments, reported three years ago. The final model is necessarily speculative but is open to test.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antony R Crofts
- Department of Biochemistry, 417 Roger Adams Laboratory, 600 South Mathews Avenue, Urbana, IL 61801, United States of America
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7
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Sarewicz M, Pintscher S, Pietras R, Borek A, Bujnowicz Ł, Hanke G, Cramer WA, Finazzi G, Osyczka A. Catalytic Reactions and Energy Conservation in the Cytochrome bc1 and b6f Complexes of Energy-Transducing Membranes. Chem Rev 2021; 121:2020-2108. [PMID: 33464892 PMCID: PMC7908018 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.0c00712] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
This review focuses on key components of respiratory and photosynthetic energy-transduction systems: the cytochrome bc1 and b6f (Cytbc1/b6f) membranous multisubunit homodimeric complexes. These remarkable molecular machines catalyze electron transfer from membranous quinones to water-soluble electron carriers (such as cytochromes c or plastocyanin), coupling electron flow to proton translocation across the energy-transducing membrane and contributing to the generation of a transmembrane electrochemical potential gradient, which powers cellular metabolism in the majority of living organisms. Cytsbc1/b6f share many similarities but also have significant differences. While decades of research have provided extensive knowledge on these enzymes, several important aspects of their molecular mechanisms remain to be elucidated. We summarize a broad range of structural, mechanistic, and physiological aspects required for function of Cytbc1/b6f, combining textbook fundamentals with new intriguing concepts that have emerged from more recent studies. The discussion covers but is not limited to (i) mechanisms of energy-conserving bifurcation of electron pathway and energy-wasting superoxide generation at the quinol oxidation site, (ii) the mechanism by which semiquinone is stabilized at the quinone reduction site, (iii) interactions with substrates and specific inhibitors, (iv) intermonomer electron transfer and the role of a dimeric complex, and (v) higher levels of organization and regulation that involve Cytsbc1/b6f. In addressing these topics, we point out existing uncertainties and controversies, which, as suggested, will drive further research in this field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcin Sarewicz
- Department
of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, 30-387 Kraków, Poland
| | - Sebastian Pintscher
- Department
of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, 30-387 Kraków, Poland
| | - Rafał Pietras
- Department
of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, 30-387 Kraków, Poland
| | - Arkadiusz Borek
- Department
of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, 30-387 Kraków, Poland
| | - Łukasz Bujnowicz
- Department
of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, 30-387 Kraków, Poland
| | - Guy Hanke
- School
of Biological and Chemical Sciences, Queen
Mary University of London, London E1 4NS, U.K.
| | - William A. Cramer
- Department
of Biological Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907 United States
| | - Giovanni Finazzi
- Laboratoire
de Physiologie Cellulaire et Végétale, Université Grenoble Alpes, Centre National Recherche Scientifique,
Commissariat Energie Atomique et Energies Alternatives, Institut National
Recherche l’agriculture, l’alimentation et l’environnement, 38054 Grenoble Cedex 9, France
| | - Artur Osyczka
- Department
of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, 30-387 Kraków, Poland
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8
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Pagacz J, Broniec A, Wolska M, Osyczka A, Borek A. ROS signaling capacity of cytochrome bc 1: Opposing effects of adaptive and pathogenic mitochondrial mutations. Free Radic Biol Med 2021; 163:243-254. [PMID: 33352219 DOI: 10.1016/j.freeradbiomed.2020.12.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2020] [Revised: 12/07/2020] [Accepted: 12/12/2020] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Cytochrome bc1, also known as mitochondrial complex III, is considered to be one of the important producers of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in living organisms. Under physiological conditions, a certain level of ROS produced by mitochondrial electron transport chain (ETC) might be beneficial and take part in cellular signaling. However, elevated levels of ROS might exhibit negative effects, resulting in cellular damage. It is well known that inhibiting the electron flow within mitochondrial complex III leads to high production of ROS. However, superoxide production by cytochrome bc1 in a non-inhibited system remained controversial. Here, we propose a novel method for ROS detection in ETC hybrid system in solution comprising bacterial cytochrome bc1 and mitochondrial complex IV. We clearly show that non-inhibited cytochrome bc1 generates ROS and that adaptive and pathogenic mitochondrial mutations suppress and enhance ROS production, respectively. We also noted that cytochrome bc1 produces ROS in a rate-dependent manner and that the mechanism of ROS generation changes according to the rate of operation of the enzyme. This dependency has not yet been reported, but seems to be crucial when discussing ROS signaling originating from mitochondria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jakub Pagacz
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 7, 30-387, Kraków, Poland
| | - Agnieszka Broniec
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 7, 30-387, Kraków, Poland
| | - Małgorzata Wolska
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 7, 30-387, Kraków, Poland
| | - Artur Osyczka
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 7, 30-387, Kraków, Poland
| | - Arkadiusz Borek
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 7, 30-387, Kraków, Poland.
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9
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Pintscher S, Wójcik-Augustyn A, Sarewicz M, Osyczka A. Charge polarization imposed by the binding site facilitates enzymatic redox reactions of quinone. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA-BIOENERGETICS 2020; 1861:148216. [PMID: 32387188 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbabio.2020.148216] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2020] [Revised: 04/27/2020] [Accepted: 04/29/2020] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Quinone reduction site (Qi) of cytochrome bc1 represents one of the canonical sites used to explore the enzymatic redox reactions involving semiquinone (SQ) states. However, the mechanism by which Qi allows the completion of quinone reduction during the sequential transfers of two electrons from the adjacent heme bH and two protons to C1- and C4-carbonyl remains unclear. Here we established that the SQ coupled to an oxidized heme bH is a dominant intermediate of catalytic forward reaction and, contrary to the long-standing assumption, represents a significant population of SQ detected across pH 5-9. The pH dependence of its redox midpoint potential implicated proton exchange with histidine. Complementary quantum mechanical calculations revealed that the SQ anion formed after the first electron transfer undergoes charge and spin polarization imposed by the electrostatic field generated by histidine and the aspartate/lysine pair interacting with the C4- and C1-carbonyl, respectively. This favors a barrierless proton exchange between histidine and the C4-carbonyl, which continues until the second electron reaches the SQi. Inversion of charge polarization facilitates the uptake of the second proton by the C1-carbonyl. Based on these findings we developed a comprehensive scheme for electron and proton transfers at Qi featuring the equilibration between the anionic and neutral states of SQi as means for a leak-proof stabilization of the radical intermediate. The key catalytic role of the initial charge/spin polarization of the SQ anion at the active site, inherent to the proposed mechanism, may also be applicable to the other quinone oxidoreductases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian Pintscher
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Kraków 30387, Poland.
| | - Anna Wójcik-Augustyn
- Department of Computational Biophysics and Bioinformatics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Kraków 30387, Poland.
| | - Marcin Sarewicz
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Kraków 30387, Poland.
| | - Artur Osyczka
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Kraków 30387, Poland.
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10
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Kinetic advantage of forming respiratory supercomplexes. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA-BIOENERGETICS 2020; 1861:148193. [PMID: 32201307 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbabio.2020.148193] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2020] [Revised: 03/11/2020] [Accepted: 03/16/2020] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Components of respiratory chains in mitochondria and some aerobic bacteria assemble into larger, multiprotein membrane-bound supercomplexes. Here, we address the functional significance of supercomplexes composed of respiratory-chain complexes III and IV. Complex III catalyzes oxidation of quinol and reduction of water-soluble cytochrome c (cyt c), while complex IV catalyzes oxidation of the reduced cyt c and reduction of dioxygen to water. We focus on two questions: (i) under which conditions does diffusion of cyt c become rate limiting for electron transfer between these two complexes? (ii) is there a kinetic advantage of forming a supercomplex composed of complexes III and IV? To answer these questions, we use a theoretical approach and assume that cyt c diffuses in the water phase while complexes III and IV either diffuse independently in the two dimensions of the membrane or form supercomplexes. The analysis shows that the electron flux between complexes III and IV is determined by the equilibration time of cyt c within the volume of the intermembrane space, rather than the cyt c diffusion time constant. Assuming realistic relative concentrations of membrane-bound components and cyt c and that all components diffuse independently, the data indicate that electron transfer between complexes III and IV can become rate limiting. Hence, there is a kinetic advantage of bringing complexes III and IV together in the membrane to form supercomplexes.
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11
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Bujnowicz Ł, Borek A, Kuleta P, Sarewicz M, Osyczka A. Suppression of superoxide production by a spin‐spin coupling between semiquinone and the Rieske cluster in cytochrome
bc
1. FEBS Lett 2018; 593:3-12. [DOI: 10.1002/1873-3468.13296] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2018] [Revised: 11/05/2018] [Accepted: 11/05/2018] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Łukasz Bujnowicz
- Department of Molecular Biophysics Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology Jagiellonian University Kraków Poland
| | - Arkadiusz Borek
- Department of Molecular Biophysics Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology Jagiellonian University Kraków Poland
| | - Patryk Kuleta
- Department of Molecular Biophysics Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology Jagiellonian University Kraków Poland
| | - Marcin Sarewicz
- Department of Molecular Biophysics Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology Jagiellonian University Kraków Poland
| | - Artur Osyczka
- Department of Molecular Biophysics Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology Jagiellonian University Kraków Poland
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12
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Pintscher S, Pietras R, Sarewicz M, Osyczka A. Electron sweep across four b-hemes of cytochrome bc1 revealed by unusual paramagnetic properties of the Qi semiquinone intermediate. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA-BIOENERGETICS 2018; 1859:459-469. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bbabio.2018.03.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2017] [Revised: 02/08/2018] [Accepted: 03/18/2018] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
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13
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Pietras R, Sarewicz M, Osyczka A. Distinct properties of semiquinone species detected at the ubiquinol oxidation Qo site of cytochrome bc1 and their mechanistic implications. J R Soc Interface 2017; 13:rsif.2016.0133. [PMID: 27194483 PMCID: PMC4892266 DOI: 10.1098/rsif.2016.0133] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2016] [Accepted: 04/18/2016] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
The two-electron ubiquinol oxidation or ubiquinone reduction typically involves semiquinone (SQ) intermediates. Natural engineering of ubiquinone binding sites of bioenergetic enzymes secures that SQ is sufficiently stabilized, so that it does not leave the site to membranous environment before full oxidation/reduction is completed. The ubiquinol oxidation Qo site of cytochrome bc1 (mitochondrial complex III, cytochrome b6f in plants) has been considered an exception with catalytic reactions assumed to involve highly unstable SQ or not to involve any SQ intermediate. This view seemed consistent with long-standing difficulty in detecting any reaction intermediates at the Qo site. New perspective on this issue is now offered by recent, independent reports on detection of SQ in this site. Each of the described SQs seems to have different spectroscopic properties leaving space for various interpretations and mechanistic considerations. Here, we comparatively reflect on those properties and their consequences on the SQ stabilization, the involvement of SQ in catalytic reactions, including proton transfers, and the reactivity of SQ with oxygen associated with superoxide generation activity of the Qo site.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rafał Pietras
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Poland
| | - Marcin Sarewicz
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Poland
| | - Artur Osyczka
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Poland
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14
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Crofts AR, Rose SW, Burton RL, Desai AV, Kenis PJA, Dikanov SA. The Q-Cycle Mechanism of the bc1 Complex: A Biologist’s Perspective on Atomistic Studies. J Phys Chem B 2017; 121:3701-3717. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.6b10524] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Antony R. Crofts
- Department
of Biochemistry, University of Illinois at Urbana−Champaign, 419 Roger Adams Lab, 600 South Mathews Avenue, Urbana, Illinois 61801, United States
- Center
for Biophysics and Quantitative Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana−Champaign, 179 Loomis, 1110 West Green Street, Urbana, Illinois 61801, United States
| | - Stuart W. Rose
- Center
for Biophysics and Quantitative Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana−Champaign, 179 Loomis, 1110 West Green Street, Urbana, Illinois 61801, United States
| | - Rodney L. Burton
- Department
of Biochemistry, University of Illinois at Urbana−Champaign, 419 Roger Adams Lab, 600 South Mathews Avenue, Urbana, Illinois 61801, United States
| | - Amit V. Desai
- Department of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana−Champaign, 600 South Mathews Avenue, Urbana, Illinois 61801, United States
| | - Paul J. A. Kenis
- Department of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana−Champaign, 600 South Mathews Avenue, Urbana, Illinois 61801, United States
| | - Sergei A. Dikanov
- Department
of Veterinary Clinical Medicine, University of Illinois at Urbana−Champaign, 1008 West Hazelwood Drive, Urbana, Illinois 61801, United States
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15
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Geiss AF, Khandelwal R, Baurecht D, Bliem C, Reiner-Rozman C, Boersch M, Ullmann GM, Loew LM, Naumann RLC. pH and Potential Transients of the bc 1 Complex Co-Reconstituted in Proteo-Lipobeads with the Reaction Center from Rb. sphaeroides. J Phys Chem B 2017; 121:143-152. [PMID: 27992230 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.6b11116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
His-tag technology is employed to bind membrane proteins, such as the bc1 complex and the reaction center (RC) from Rhodobacter sphaeroides, to spherical as well as planar surfaces in a strict orientation. Subsequently, the spherical and planar surfaces are subjected to in situ dialysis to form proteo-lipobeads (PLBs) and protein-tethered bilayer membranes, respectively. PLBs based on Ni-nitrileotriacetic acid-functionalized agarose beads that have diameters ranging from 50 to 150 μm are used to assess proton release and membrane potential parameters by confocal laser-scanning microscopy. The pH and potential transients are thus obtained from bc1 activated by the RC. To assess the turnover of bc1 excited by the RC in a similar setting, we used the planar surface of an attenuated total reflection crystal modified with a thin gold layer to carry out time-resolved surface-enhanced IR absorption spectroscopy triggered by flash lamp excitation. The experiments suggest that both proteins interact in a cyclic manner in both environments. The activity of the proteins seems to be preserved in the same manner as that in chromatophores or reconstituted in liposomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas F Geiss
- Biosensor Technologies, Austrian Institute of Technology GmbH, AIT , Donau-City Street 1, 1220 Vienna, Austria.,University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences , Gregor-Mendel-Straße 33, 1180 Wien, Austria
| | - Raghav Khandelwal
- Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur , Kalyanpur, Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh 208016, India
| | - Dieter Baurecht
- Faculty of Chemistry, Department of Physical Chemistry, University of Vienna , Währinger Straße 42, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Christina Bliem
- Biosensor Technologies, Austrian Institute of Technology GmbH, AIT , Donau-City Street 1, 1220 Vienna, Austria.,Center of Electrochemical Surface Technology, CEST , Viktor-Kaplan-Str. 2, 2700 Wiener Neustadt, Austria
| | - Ciril Reiner-Rozman
- Biosensor Technologies, Austrian Institute of Technology GmbH, AIT , Donau-City Street 1, 1220 Vienna, Austria.,Center of Electrochemical Surface Technology, CEST , Viktor-Kaplan-Str. 2, 2700 Wiener Neustadt, Austria
| | - Michael Boersch
- Single-Molecule Microscopy Group, Jena University Hospital , Nonnenplan 2-4, 07743 Jena, Germany
| | - G Matthias Ullmann
- Computational Biochemistry Group, University of Bayreuth , Universitätsstraße 30, NWI, 95447 Bayreuth, Germany
| | - Leslie M Loew
- R. D. Berlin Center for Cell Analysis and Modeling, University of Connecticut Health Center , Farmington, Connecticut 06030, United States
| | - Renate L C Naumann
- Biosensor Technologies, Austrian Institute of Technology GmbH, AIT , Donau-City Street 1, 1220 Vienna, Austria
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16
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Sarewicz M, Dutka M, Pietras R, Borek A, Osyczka A. Effect of H bond removal and changes in the position of the iron-sulphur head domain on the spin-lattice relaxation properties of the [2Fe-2S](2+) Rieske cluster in cytochrome bc(1). Phys Chem Chem Phys 2016; 17:25297-308. [PMID: 26355649 PMCID: PMC5716461 DOI: 10.1039/c5cp02815a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
Here, comparative electron spin–lattice relaxation studies of the 2Fe–2S iron–sulphur (Fe–S) cluster embedded in a large membrane protein complex – cytochrome bc1 – are reported.
Here, comparative electron spin–lattice relaxation studies of the 2Fe–2S iron–sulphur (Fe–S) cluster embedded in a large membrane protein complex – cytochrome bc1 – are reported. Structural modifications of the local environment alone (mutations S158A and Y160W removing specific H bonds between Fe–S and amino acid side chains) or in combination with changes in global protein conformation (mutations/inhibitors changing the position of the Fe–S binding domain within the protein complex) resulted in different redox potentials as well as g-, g-strain and the relaxation rates (T1–1) for the Fe–S cluster. The relaxation rates for T < 25 K were measured directly by inversion recovery, while for T > 60 K they were deduced from simulation of continuous wave EPR spectra of the cluster using a model that included anisotropy of Lorentzian broadening. In all cases, the relaxation rate involved contributions from direct, second-order Raman and Orbach processes, each dominating over different temperature ranges. The analysis of T1–1 (T) over the range 5–120 K yielded the values of the Orbach energy (EOrb), Debye temperature θD and Raman process efficiency CRam for each variant of the protein. As the Orbach energy was generally higher for mutants S158A and Y160W, compared to wild-type protein (WT), it is suggested that H bond removal influences the geometry leading to increased strength of antiferromagnetic coupling between two Fe ions of the cluster. While θD was similar for all variants (∼107 K), the efficiency of the Raman process generally depends on the spin–orbit coupling that is lower for S158A and Y160W mutants, when compared to the WT. However, in several cases CRam did not only correlate with spin–orbit coupling but was also influenced by other factors – possibly the modification of protein rigidity and therefore the vibrational modes around the Fe–S cluster that change upon the movement of the iron–sulphur head domain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcin Sarewicz
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Poland.
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17
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Pintscher S, Kuleta P, Cieluch E, Borek A, Sarewicz M, Osyczka A. Tuning of Hemes b Equilibrium Redox Potential Is Not Required for Cross-Membrane Electron Transfer. J Biol Chem 2016; 291:6872-81. [PMID: 26858251 PMCID: PMC4807273 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m115.712307] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2015] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
In biological energy conversion, cross-membrane electron transfer often involves an assembly of two hemes b. The hemes display a large difference in redox midpoint potentials (ΔEm_b), which in several proteins is assumed to facilitate cross-membrane electron transfer and overcome a barrier of membrane potential. Here we challenge this assumption reporting on heme b ligand mutants of cytochrome bc1 in which, for the first time in transmembrane cytochrome, one natural histidine has been replaced by lysine without loss of the native low spin type of heme iron. With these mutants we show that ΔEm_b can be markedly increased, and the redox potential of one of the hemes can stay above the level of quinone pool, or ΔEm_b can be markedly decreased to the point that two hemes are almost isopotential, yet the enzyme retains catalytically competent electron transfer between quinone binding sites and remains functional in vivo. This reveals that cytochrome bc1 can accommodate large changes in ΔEm_b without hampering catalysis, as long as these changes do not impose overly endergonic steps on downhill electron transfer from substrate to product. We propose that hemes b in this cytochrome and in other membranous cytochromes b act as electronic connectors for the catalytic sites with no fine tuning in ΔEm_b required for efficient cross-membrane electron transfer. We link this concept with a natural flexibility in occurrence of several thermodynamic configurations of the direction of electron flow and the direction of the gradient of potential in relation to the vector of the electric membrane potential.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian Pintscher
- From the Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, 30-387 Kraków, Poland
| | - Patryk Kuleta
- From the Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, 30-387 Kraków, Poland
| | - Ewelina Cieluch
- From the Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, 30-387 Kraków, Poland
| | - Arkadiusz Borek
- From the Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, 30-387 Kraków, Poland
| | - Marcin Sarewicz
- From the Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, 30-387 Kraków, Poland
| | - Artur Osyczka
- From the Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, 30-387 Kraków, Poland
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18
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Sarewicz M, Osyczka A. Electronic connection between the quinone and cytochrome C redox pools and its role in regulation of mitochondrial electron transport and redox signaling. Physiol Rev 2015; 95:219-43. [PMID: 25540143 PMCID: PMC4281590 DOI: 10.1152/physrev.00006.2014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 106] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Mitochondrial respiration, an important bioenergetic process, relies on operation of four membranous enzymatic complexes linked functionally by mobile, freely diffusible elements: quinone molecules in the membrane and water-soluble cytochromes c in the intermembrane space. One of the mitochondrial complexes, complex III (cytochrome bc1 or ubiquinol:cytochrome c oxidoreductase), provides an electronic connection between these two diffusible redox pools linking in a fully reversible manner two-electron quinone oxidation/reduction with one-electron cytochrome c reduction/oxidation. Several features of this homodimeric enzyme implicate that in addition to its well-defined function of contributing to generation of proton-motive force, cytochrome bc1 may be a physiologically important point of regulation of electron flow acting as a sensor of the redox state of mitochondria that actively responds to changes in bioenergetic conditions. These features include the following: the opposing redox reactions at quinone catalytic sites located on the opposite sides of the membrane, the inter-monomer electronic connection that functionally links four quinone binding sites of a dimer into an H-shaped electron transfer system, as well as the potential to generate superoxide and release it to the intermembrane space where it can be engaged in redox signaling pathways. Here we highlight recent advances in understanding how cytochrome bc1 may accomplish this regulatory physiological function, what is known and remains unknown about catalytic and side reactions within the quinone binding sites and electron transfers through the cofactor chains connecting those sites with the substrate redox pools. We also discuss the developed molecular mechanisms in the context of physiology of mitochondria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcin Sarewicz
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Poland
| | - Artur Osyczka
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Poland
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19
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Ekiert R, Czapla M, Sarewicz M, Osyczka A. Hybrid fusions show that inter-monomer electron transfer robustly supports cytochrome bc1 function in vivo. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2014; 451:270-5. [PMID: 25089001 PMCID: PMC4152375 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2014.07.117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2014] [Accepted: 07/24/2014] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
Electronic connection between Qo and Qi quinone catalytic sites of dimeric cytochrome bc1 is a central feature of the energy-conserving Q cycle. While both the intra- and inter-monomer electron transfers were shown to connect the sites in the enzyme, mechanistic and physiological significance of the latter remains unclear. Here, using a series of mutated hybrid cytochrome bc1-like complexes, we show that inter-monomer electron transfer robustly sustains the function of the enzyme in vivo, even when the two subunits in a dimer come from different species. This indicates that minimal requirement for bioenergetic efficiency is to provide a chain of cofactors for uncompromised electron flux between the catalytic sites, while the details of protein scaffold are secondary.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert Ekiert
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, 30-387 Kraków, Poland
| | - Monika Czapla
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, 30-387 Kraków, Poland
| | - Marcin Sarewicz
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, 30-387 Kraków, Poland
| | - Artur Osyczka
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University, 30-387 Kraków, Poland.
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20
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Hasan SS, Zakharov SD, Chauvet A, Stadnytskyi V, Savikhin S, Cramer WA. A map of dielectric heterogeneity in a membrane protein: the hetero-oligomeric cytochrome b6f complex. J Phys Chem B 2014; 118:6614-25. [PMID: 24867491 PMCID: PMC4067154 DOI: 10.1021/jp501165k] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
![]()
The
cytochrome b6f complex,
a member of the cytochrome bc family that
mediates energy transduction in photosynthetic and respiratory membranes,
is a hetero-oligomeric complex that utilizes two pairs of b-hemes in a symmetric dimer to accomplish trans-membrane
electron transfer, quinone oxidation–reduction, and generation
of a proton electrochemical potential. Analysis of electron storage
in this pathway, utilizing simultaneous measurement of heme reduction,
and of circular dichroism (CD) spectra, to assay heme–heme
interactions, implies a heterogeneous distribution of the dielectric
constants that mediate electrostatic interactions between the four
hemes in the complex. Crystallographic information was used to determine
the identity of the interacting hemes. The Soret band CD signal is
dominated by excitonic interaction between the intramonomer b-hemes, bn and bp, on the electrochemically negative and positive sides
of the complex. Kinetic data imply that the most probable pathway
for transfer of the two electrons needed for quinone oxidation–reduction
utilizes this intramonomer heme pair, contradicting the expectation
based on heme redox potentials and thermodynamics, that the two higher
potential hemes bn on different monomers
would be preferentially reduced. Energetically preferred intramonomer
electron storage of electrons on the intramonomer b-hemes is found to require heterogeneity of interheme dielectric
constants. Relative to the medium separating the two higher potential
hemes bn, a relatively large dielectric
constant must exist between the intramonomer b-hemes,
allowing a smaller electrostatic repulsion between the reduced hemes.
Heterogeneity of dielectric constants is an additional structure–function
parameter of membrane protein complexes.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Saif Hasan
- Department of Biological Sciences and ‡Department of Physics, Purdue University , West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, United States
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21
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Crofts AR, Hong S, Wilson C, Burton R, Victoria D, Harrison C, Schulten K. The mechanism of ubihydroquinone oxidation at the Qo-site of the cytochrome bc1 complex. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA 2013; 1827:1362-77. [PMID: 23396004 PMCID: PMC3995752 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbabio.2013.01.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 75] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2012] [Revised: 12/12/2012] [Accepted: 01/18/2013] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
1. Recent results suggest that the major flux is carried by a monomeric function, not by an intermonomer electron flow. 2. The bifurcated reaction at the Qo-site involves sequential partial processes, - a rate limiting first electron transfer generating a semiquinone (SQ) intermediate, and a rapid second electron transfer in which the SQ is oxidized by the low potential chain. 3. The rate constant for the first step in a strongly endergonic, proton-first-then-electron mechanism, is given by a Marcus-Brønsted treatment in which a rapid electron transfer is convoluted with a weak occupancy of the proton configuration needed for electron transfer. 4. A rapid second electron transfer pulls the overall reaction over. Mutation of Glu-295 of cyt b shows it to be a key player. 5. In more crippled mutants, electron transfer is severely inhibited and the bell-shaped pH dependence of wildtype is replaced by a dependence on a single pK at ~8.5 favoring electron transfer. Loss of a pK ~6.5 is explained by a change in the rate limiting step from the first to the second electron transfer; the pK ~8.5 may reflect dissociation of QH. 6. A rate constant (<10(3)s(-1)) for oxidation of SQ in the distal domain by heme bL has been determined, which precludes mechanisms for normal flux in which SQ is constrained there. 7. Glu-295 catalyzes proton exit through H(+) transfer from QH, and rotational displacement to deliver the H(+) to exit channel(s). This opens a volume into which Q(-) can move closer to the heme to speed electron transfer. 8. A kinetic model accounts well for the observations, but leaves open the question of gating mechanisms. For the first step we suggest a molecular "escapement"; for the second a molecular ballet choreographed through coulombic interactions. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Respiratory complex III and related bc complexes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antony R Crofts
- Center for Biophysics and Computational Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana, IL 61801, USA; Department of Biochemistry, University of Illinois, Urbana, IL 61801, USA.
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22
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Khalfaoui-Hassani B, Lanciano P, Daldal F. A robust genetic system for producing heterodimeric native and mutant cytochrome bc(1). Biochemistry 2013; 52:7184-95. [PMID: 24028512 DOI: 10.1021/bi400560p] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
The ubihydroquinone:cytochrome c oxidoreductase, or cytochrome bc1, is central to the production of ATP by oxidative phosphorylation and photophosphorylation in many organisms. Its three-dimensional structure depicts it as a homodimer with each monomer composed of the Fe-S protein, cytochrome b, and cytochrome c1 subunits. Recent genetic approaches successfully produced heterodimeric variants of this enzyme, providing insights into its mechanism of function. However, these experimental setups are inherently prone to genetic rearrangements as they carry repeated copies of cytochrome bc1 structural genes. Duplications present on a single replicon (one-plasmid system) or a double replicon (two-plasmid system) could yield heterogeneous populations via homologous recombination or other genetic events at different frequencies, especially under selective growth conditions. In this work, we assessed the origins and frequencies of genetic variations encountered in these systems and describe an improved variant of the two-plasmid system. We found that use of a recombination-deficient background (recA) minimizes spontaneous formation of co-integrant plasmids and renders the homologous recombination within the cytochrome b gene copies inconsequential. On the basis of the data, we conclude that both the newly improved RecA-deficient and the previously used RecA-proficient two-plasmid systems reliably produce native and mutant heterodimeric cytochrome bc1 variants. The two-plasmid system developed here might contribute to the study of "mitochondrial heteroplasmy"-like heterogeneous states in model bacteria (e.g., Rhodobacter species) suitable for bioenergetics studies. In the following paper (DOI 10.1021/bi400561e), we describe the use of the two-plasmid system to produce and characterize, in membranes and in purified states, an active heterodimeric cytochrome bc1 variant with unusual intermonomer electron transfer properties.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bahia Khalfaoui-Hassani
- Department of Biology, University of Pennsylvania , Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, United States
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23
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Lanciano P, Khalfaoui-Hassani B, Selamoglu N, Daldal F. Intermonomer electron transfer between the b hemes of heterodimeric cytochrome bc(1). Biochemistry 2013; 52:7196-206. [PMID: 24028549 DOI: 10.1021/bi400561e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
The ubihydroquinone:cytochrome c oxidoreductase, or cytochrome bc1, is a central component of respiratory and photosynthetic energy transduction pathways in many organisms. It contributes to the generation of membrane potential and proton gradient used for cellular energy (ATP) production. The three-dimensional structures of cytochrome bc1 show a homodimeric organization of its three catalytic subunits. The unusual architecture revived the issue of whether the monomers operate independently or function cooperatively during the catalytic cycle of the enzyme. In recent years, different genetic approaches allowed the successful production of heterodimeric cytochrome bc1 variants and evidenced the occurrence of intermonomer electron transfer between the monomers of this enzyme. Here we used a version of the "two-plasmid" genetic system, also described in the preceding paper (DOI: 10.1021/bi400560p), to study a new heterodimeric mutant variant of cytochrome bc1. The strain producing this heterodimeric variant sustained photosynthetic growth of Rhodobacter capsulatus and yielded an active heterodimer. Interestingly, kinetic data showed equilibration of electrons among the four b heme cofactors of the heterodimer, via "reverse" intermonomer electron transfer between the bL hemes. Both inactive homodimeric and active heterodimeric cytochrome bc1 variants were purified to homogeneity from the same cells, and purified samples were subjected to mass spectrometry analyses. The data unequivocally supported the idea that the cytochrome b subunits carried the expected mutations and their associated epitope tags. Implications of these findings on our interpretation of light-activated transient cytochrome b and c redox kinetics and the mechanism of function of a dimeric cytochrome bc1 are discussed with respect to the previously proposed heterodimeric Q cycle model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pascal Lanciano
- Department of Biology, University of Pennsylvania , Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, United States
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24
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Sarewicz M, Dutka M, Pintscher S, Osyczka A. Triplet state of the semiquinone-Rieske cluster as an intermediate of electronic bifurcation catalyzed by cytochrome bc1. Biochemistry 2013; 52:6388-95. [PMID: 23941428 PMCID: PMC3889490 DOI: 10.1021/bi400624m] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Efficient energy conversion often requires stabilization of one-electron intermediates within catalytic sites of redox enzymes. While quinol oxidoreductases are known to stabilize semiquinones, one of the famous exceptions includes the quinol oxidation site of cytochrome bc1 (Qo), for which detection of any intermediate states is extremely difficult. Here we discover a semiquinone at the Qo site (SQo) that is coupled to the reduced Rieske cluster (FeS) via spin-spin exchange interaction. This interaction creates a new electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) transitions with the most prominent g = 1.94 signal shifting to 1.96 with an increase in the EPR frequency from X- to Q-band. The estimated value of isotropic spin-spin exchange interaction (|J0| = 3500 MHz) indicates that at a lower magnetic field (typical of X-band) the SQo-FeS coupled centers can be described as a triplet state. Concomitantly with the appearance of the SQo-FeS triplet state, we detected a g = 2.0045 radical signal that corresponded to the population of unusually fast-relaxing SQo for which spin-spin exchange does not exist or is too small to be resolved. The g = 1.94 and g = 2.0045 signals reached up to 20% of cytochrome bc1 monomers under aerobic conditions, challenging the paradigm of the high reactivity of SQo toward molecular oxygen. Recognition of stable SQo reflected in g = 1.94 and g = 2.0045 signals offers a new perspective on understanding the mechanism of Qo site catalysis. The frequency-dependent EPR transitions of the SQo-FeS coupled system establish a new spectroscopic approach for the detection of SQo in mitochondria and other bioenergetic systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcin Sarewicz
- Department of Molecular Biophysics, Faculty of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University , Kraków, Poland
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25
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Czapla M, Cieluch E, Borek A, Sarewicz M, Osyczka A. Catalytically-relevant electron transfer between two hemes bL in the hybrid cytochrome bc1-like complex containing a fusion of Rhodobacter sphaeroides and capsulatus cytochromes b. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA-BIOENERGETICS 2013; 1827:751-60. [PMID: 23428397 PMCID: PMC4330944 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbabio.2013.02.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2012] [Revised: 02/06/2013] [Accepted: 02/11/2013] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
To address mechanistic questions about the functioning of dimeric cytochrome bc1 new genetic approaches have recently been developed. They were specifically designed to enable construction of asymmetrically-mutated variants suitable for functional studies. One approach exploited a fusion of two cytochromes b that replaced the separate subunits in the dimer. The fusion protein, built from two copies of the same cytochrome b of purple bacterium Rhodobacter capsulatus, served as a template to create a series of asymmetrically-mutated cytochrome bc1-like complexes (B–B) which, through kinetic studies, disclosed several important principles of dimer engineering. Here, we report on construction of another fusion protein complex that adds a new tool to investigate dimeric function of the enzyme through the asymmetrically mutated forms of the protein. This complex (BS–B) contains a hybrid protein that combines two different cytochromes b: one coming from R. capsulatus and the other — from a closely related species, R. sphaeroides. With this new fusion we addressed a still controversial issue of electron transfer between the two hemes bL in the core of dimer. Kinetic data obtained with a series of BS–B variants provided new evidence confirming the previously reported observations that electron transfer between those two hemes occurs on a millisecond timescale, thus is a catalytically-relevant event. Both types of the fusion complexes (B–B and BS–B) consistently implicate that the heme-bL–bL bridge forms an electronic connection available for inter-monomer electron transfer in cytochrome bc1.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Artur Osyczka
- Corresponding author. Tel.: + 48 12 664 6348; fax: + 48 12 664 69 02.
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26
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Key role of water in proton transfer at the Qo-site of the cytochrome bc1 complex predicted by atomistic molecular dynamics simulations. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA-BIOENERGETICS 2013; 1827:761-8. [PMID: 23428399 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbabio.2013.02.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2012] [Revised: 01/24/2013] [Accepted: 02/11/2013] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Cytochrome (cyt) bc1 complex, which is an integral part of the respiratory chain and related energy-conserving systems, has two quinone-binding cavities (Qo- and Qi-sites), where the substrate participates in electron and proton transfer. Due to its complexity, many of the mechanistic details of the cyt bc1 function have remained unclear especially regarding the substrate binding at the Qo-site. In this work we address this issue by performing extensive atomistic molecular dynamics simulations with the cyt bc1 complex of Rhodobacter capsulatus embedded in a lipid bilayer. Based on the simulations we are able to show the atom-level binding modes of two substrate forms: quinol (QH2) and quinone (Q). The QH2 binding at the Qo-site involves a coordinated water arrangement that produces an exceptionally close and stable interaction between the cyt b and iron sulfur protein subunits. In this arrangement water molecules are positioned suitably in relation to the hydroxyls of the QH2 ring to act as the primary acceptors of protons detaching from the oxidized substrate. In contrast, water does not have a similar role in the Q binding at the Qo-site. Moreover, the coordinated water molecule is also a prime candidate to act as a structural element, gating for short-circuit suppression at the Qo-site.
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Victoria D, Burton R, Crofts AR. Role of the -PEWY-glutamate in catalysis at the Q(o)-site of the Cyt bc(1) complex. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA-BIOENERGETICS 2012; 1827:365-86. [PMID: 23123515 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbabio.2012.10.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2012] [Revised: 10/19/2012] [Accepted: 10/23/2012] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
We re-examine the pH dependence of partial processes of ubihydroquinone (QH(2)) turnover in Glu-295 mutants in Rhodobacter sphaeroides to clarify the mechanistic role. In more crippled mutants, the bell-shaped pH profile of wildtype was replaced by dependence on a single pK at ~8.5 favoring electron transfer. Loss of the pK at 6.5 reflects a change in the rate-limiting step from the first to the second electron transfer. Over the range of pH 6-8, no major pH dependence of formation of the initial reaction complex was seen, and the rates of bypass reactions were similar to the wildtype. Occupancy of the Q(o)-site by semiquinone (SQ) was similar in the wildtype and the Glu→Trp mutant. Since heme b(L) is initially oxidized in the latter, the bifurcated reaction can still occur, allowing estimation of an empirical rate constant <10(3)s(-1) for reduction of heme b(L) by SQ from the domain distal from heme b(L), a value 1000-fold smaller than that expected from distance. If the pK ~8.5 in mutant strains is due to deprotonation of the neutral semiquinone, with Q(•-) as electron donor to heme b(L), then in wildtype this low value would preclude mechanisms for normal flux in which semiquinone is constrained to this domain. A kinetic model in which Glu-295 catalyzes H(+) transfer from QH•, and delivery of the H(+) to exit channel(s) by rotational displacement, and facilitates rapid electron transfer from SQ to heme b(L) by allowing Q(•-) to move closer to the heme, accounts well for the observations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Doreen Victoria
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Illinois, Urbana, IL 61801, USA
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Millett F, Havens J, Rajagukguk S, Durham B. Design and use of photoactive ruthenium complexes to study electron transfer within cytochrome bc1 and from cytochrome bc1 to cytochrome c. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA-BIOENERGETICS 2012; 1827:1309-19. [PMID: 22985600 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbabio.2012.09.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2012] [Revised: 08/29/2012] [Accepted: 09/03/2012] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
The cytochrome bc1 complex (ubiquinone:cytochrome c oxidoreductase) is the central integral membrane protein in the mitochondrial respiratory chain as well as the electron-transfer chains of many respiratory and photosynthetic prokaryotes. Based on X-ray crystallographic studies of cytochrome bc1, a mechanism has been proposed in which the extrinsic domain of the iron-sulfur protein first binds to cytochrome b where it accepts an electron from ubiquinol in the Qo site, and then rotates by 57° to a position close to cytochrome c1 where it transfers an electron to cytochrome c1. This review describes the development of a ruthenium photooxidation technique to measure key electron transfer steps in cytochrome bc1, including rapid electron transfer from the iron-sulfur protein to cytochrome c1. It was discovered that this reaction is rate-limited by the rotational dynamics of the iron-sulfur protein rather than true electron transfer. A conformational linkage between the occupant of the Qo ubiquinol binding site and the rotational dynamics of the iron-sulfur protein was discovered which could play a role in the bifurcated oxidation of ubiquinol. A ruthenium photoexcitation method is also described for the measurement of electron transfer from cytochrome c1 to cytochrome c. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Respiratory Complex III and related bc complexes.
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Key Words
- 2,2′-bipyrazine
- 2,2′-bipyridine
- 2,2′:4′,4″:2″,2‴-quaterpyridine
- 2Fe2S
- 3,3′-bipyridazine
- 4,4′-dimethyl-2,2′-bipridine
- Cc
- CcO
- Cytochrome bc(1)
- Cytochrome c
- Electron transfer
- ISP
- JG144
- MOAS
- P(f)
- P(m)
- Q
- Q(i)
- Q(o)
- Q(o) site inhibitor which fixes ISP in b state
- Q(o) site inhibitor which promotes mobile state of ISP
- QH(2)
- R. sphaeroides
- Rhodobacter sphaeroides
- Rieske iron–sulfur center
- Ru(2)D
- Ruthenium
- S-3-anilino-5-methyl-5-(4,6-difluorophenyl)-1,3-oxazolidine-2,4-dione
- [Ru(bpy)(2)](2)qpy(4+)
- bpd
- bpy
- bpz
- cyt bc(1)
- cytochrome bc(1)
- cytochrome c
- cytochrome c oxidase
- dmb
- inside ubiquinone binding site
- iron–sulfur protein
- methoxyacrylate stilbene
- outside ubiquinol binding site
- qpy
- ubiquinol
- ubiquionone
- yCc
- yeast Cc
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Affiliation(s)
- Francis Millett
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701, USA.
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Fusing proteins as an approach to study bioenergetic enzymes and processes. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA-BIOENERGETICS 2012; 1817:1847-51. [PMID: 22484274 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbabio.2012.03.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2012] [Revised: 03/21/2012] [Accepted: 03/22/2012] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Fusing proteins is an attractive genetic tool used in several biochemical and biophysical investigations. Within a group of redox proteins, certain fusion constructs appear to provide valuable templates for spectroscopy with which specific bioenergetic questions can be addressed. Here we briefly summarize three different cases of fusions reported for bacterial cytochrome bc(1) (prokaryotic equivalent of mitochondrial respiratory complex III), a common component of electron transport chains. These fusions were used to study supramolecular organization of enzymatic complexes in bioenergetic membrane, influence of the accessory subunits on the activity and stability of the complex, and molecular mechanism of operation of the enzyme in the context of its dimeric structure. Besides direct connotation to molecular bioenergetics, these fusions also appeared interesting from the protein design, biogenesis, and assembly points of view. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: 17th European Bioenergetics Conference (EBEC 2012).
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Hong S, Victoria D, Crofts AR. Inter-monomer electron transfer is too slow to compete with monomeric turnover in bc(1) complex. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA-BIOENERGETICS 2012; 1817:1053-62. [PMID: 22465023 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbabio.2012.03.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2011] [Revised: 03/08/2012] [Accepted: 03/11/2012] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
The homodimeric bc(1) complexes are membrane proteins essential in respiration and photosynthesis. The ~11Å distance between the two b(L)-hemes of the dimer opens the possibility of electron transfer between them, but contradictory reports make such inter-monomer electron transfer controversial. We have constructed in Rhodobacter sphaeroides a heterodimeric expression system similar to those used before, in which the bc(1) complex can be mutated differentially in the two copies of cyt b to test for inter-monomer electron transfer, but found that genetic recombination by cross-over then occurs to produce wild-type homodimer. Selection pressure under photosynthetic growth always favored the homodimer over heterodimeric variants enforcing inter-monomer electron transfer, showing that the latter are not competitive. These results, together with kinetic analysis of myxothiazol titrations, demonstrate that inter-monomer electron transfer does not occur at rates competitive with monomeric turnover. We examine the results from other groups interpreted as demonstrating rapid inter-monomer electron transfer, conclude that similar mechanisms are likely to be in play, and suggest that such claims might need to be re-examined.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sangjin Hong
- Departments of Biochemistry, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL 61801, USA.
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