1
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Das D, Miller AF. A single hydrogen bond that tunes flavin redox reactivity and activates it for modification. Chem Sci 2024; 15:7610-7622. [PMID: 38784750 PMCID: PMC11110160 DOI: 10.1039/d4sc01642d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2024] [Accepted: 04/14/2024] [Indexed: 05/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Electron bifurcation produces high-energy products based on less energetic reagents. This feat enables biological systems to exploit abundant mediocre fuel to drive vital but demanding reactions, including nitrogen fixation and CO2 capture. Thus, there is great interest in understanding principles that can be portable to man-made devices. Bifurcating electron transfer flavoproteins (Bf ETFs) employ two flavins with contrasting reactivities to acquire pairs of electrons from a modest reductant, NADH. The bifurcating flavin then dispatches the electrons individually to a high and a low reduction midpoint potential (E°) acceptor, the latter of which captures most of the energy. Maximum efficiency requires that only one electron accesses the exergonic path that will 'pay for' the production of the low-E° product. It is therefore critical that one of the flavins, the 'electron transfer' (ET) flavin, is tuned to execute single-electron (1e-) chemistry only. To learn how, and extract fundamental principles, we systematically altered interactions with the ET-flavin O2 position. Removal of a single hydrogen bond (H-bond) disfavored the formation of the flavin anionic semiquinone (ASQ) relative to the oxidized (OX) state, lowering by 150 mV and retuning the flavin's tendency for 1e-vs. 2e- reactivity. This was achieved by replacing conserved His 290 with Phe, while also replacing the supporting Tyr 279 with Ile. Although this variant binds oxidized FADs at 90% the WT level, the ASQ state of the ET-flavin is not stable in the absence of H290's H-bond, and dissociates, in contrast to the WT. Removal of this H-bond also altered the ET-flavin's covalent chemistry. While the WT ETF accumulates modified flavins whose formation is believed to rely on an anionic paraquinone methide intermediate, the FADs of the H-bond lacking variant remain unchanged over weeks. Hence the variant that destabilizes the anionic semiquinone also suppresses the anionic intermediate in flavin modification, verifying electronic similarities between these two species. These correlations suggest that the H-bond that stabilizes the crucial flavin ASQ also promotes flavin modification. The two effects may indeed be inseparable, as a Jekyll and Hydrogen bond.
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Affiliation(s)
- Debarati Das
- Department of Chemistry, University of Kentucky Lexington Kentucky USA
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2
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Vigil W, Nguyen D, Niks D, Hille R. Rapid-reaction kinetics of the butyryl-CoA dehydrogenase component of the electron-bifurcating crotonyl-CoA-dependent NADH:ferredoxin oxidoreductase from Megasphaera elsdenii. J Biol Chem 2023:104853. [PMID: 37220854 PMCID: PMC10320503 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2023.104853] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2023] [Revised: 05/17/2023] [Accepted: 05/18/2023] [Indexed: 05/25/2023] Open
Abstract
We have investigated the equilibrium properties and rapid-reaction kinetics of the isolated butyryl-CoA dehydrogenase (bcd) component of the electron-bifurcating crotonyl-CoA-dependent NADH:ferredoxin oxidoreductase (EtfAB:bcd) from Megasphaera elsdenii. We find that a neutral FADH• semiquinone accumulates transiently during both reduction with sodium dithionite and with NADH in the presence of catalytic concentrations of EtfAB. In both cases full reduction of bcd to the hydroquinone is eventually observed, but the accumulation of FADH• indicates that a substantial portion of reduction occurs in sequential one-electron processes rather than a single two-electron event. In rapid-reaction experiments following the reaction of reduced bcd with crotonyl-CoA and oxidized bcd with butyryl-CoA, long-wavelength-absorbing intermediates are observed that are assigned to bcdred:crotonyl-CoA and bcdox:butyryl-CoA charge-transfer complexes, demonstrating their kinetic competence in the course of the reaction. In the presence of crotonyl-CoA there is an accumulation of semiquinone that is unequivocally the anionic FAD•- rather than the neutral FADH• seen in the absence of substrate, indicating that binding of substrate/product results in ionization of the bcd semiquinone. In addition to fully characterizing the rapid-reaction kinetics of both the oxidative and reductive half-reactions, our results demonstrate that one-electron processes play an important role in the reduction of bcd in EtfAB:bcd.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wayne Vigil
- Department of Biochemistry, University of California, Riverside, Riverside CA 92521.
| | - Derek Nguyen
- Department of Biochemistry, University of California, Riverside, Riverside CA 92521
| | - Dimitri Niks
- Department of Biochemistry, University of California, Riverside, Riverside CA 92521
| | - Russ Hille
- Department of Biochemistry, University of California, Riverside, Riverside CA 92521
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3
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Ortiz S, Niks D, Vigil W, Tran J, Lubner CE, Hille R. Spectral deconvolution of electron-bifurcating flavoproteins. Methods Enzymol 2023; 685:531-550. [PMID: 37245914 DOI: 10.1016/bs.mie.2023.03.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
Electron-bifurcating flavoproteins catalyze the tightly coupled reduction of high- and low-potential acceptors using a median-potential electron donor, and are invariably complex systems with multiple redox-active centers in two or more subunits. Methods are described that permit, in favorable cases, the deconvolution of spectral changes associated with reduction of specific centers, making it possible to dissect the overall process of electron bifurcation into individual, discrete steps.
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Affiliation(s)
- Steve Ortiz
- Department of Biochemistry, University of California, Riverside, United States
| | - Dimitri Niks
- Department of Biochemistry, University of California, Riverside, United States
| | - Wayne Vigil
- Department of Biochemistry, University of California, Riverside, United States
| | - Jessica Tran
- Department of Biochemistry, University of California, Riverside, United States
| | - Carolyn E Lubner
- Biosciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO, United States.
| | - Russ Hille
- Department of Biochemistry, University of California, Riverside, United States.
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4
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Unusual reactivity of a flavin in a bifurcating electron-transferring flavoprotein leads to flavin modification and a charge-transfer complex. J Biol Chem 2022; 298:102606. [PMID: 36257407 PMCID: PMC9713284 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2022.102606] [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: 07/17/2022] [Revised: 10/08/2022] [Accepted: 10/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
From the outset, canonical electron transferring flavoproteins (ETFs) earned a reputation for containing modified flavin. We now show that modification occurs in the recently recognized bifurcating (Bf) ETFs as well. In Bf ETFs, the 'electron transfer' (ET) flavin mediates single electron transfer via a stable anionic semiquinone state, akin to the FAD of canonical ETFs, whereas a second flavin mediates bifurcation (the Bf FAD). We demonstrate that the ET FAD undergoes transformation to two different modified flavins by a sequence of protein-catalyzed reactions that occurs specifically in the ET site, when the enzyme is maintained at pH 9 in an amine-based buffer. Our optical and mass spectrometric characterizations identify 8-formyl flavin early in the process and 8-amino flavins (8AFs) at later times. The latter have not previously been documented in an ETF to our knowledge. Mass spectrometry of flavin products formed in Tris or bis-tris-aminopropane solutions demonstrates that the source of the amine adduct is the buffer. Stepwise reduction of the 8AF demonstrates that it can explain a charge transfer band observed near 726 nm in Bf ETF, as a complex involving the hydroquinone state of the 8AF in the ET site with the oxidized state of unmodified flavin in the Bf site. This supports the possibility that Bf ETF can populate a conformation enabling direct electron transfer between its two flavins, as has been proposed for cofactors brought together in complexes between ETF and its partner proteins.
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5
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Vigil W, Tran J, Niks D, Schut GJ, Ge X, Adams MWW, Hille R. The reductive half-reaction of two bifurcating electron-transferring flavoproteins: Evidence for changes in flavin reduction potentials mediated by specific conformational changes. J Biol Chem 2022; 298:101927. [PMID: 35429498 PMCID: PMC9127580 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2022.101927] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2022] [Revised: 04/06/2022] [Accepted: 04/07/2022] [Indexed: 10/25/2022] Open
Abstract
The EtfAB components of two bifurcating flavoprotein systems, the crotonyl-CoA-dependent NADH:ferredoxin oxidoreductase from the bacterium Megasphaera elsdenii and the menaquinone-dependent NADH:ferredoxin oxidoreductase from the archaeon Pyrobaculum aerophilum, have been investigated. With both proteins, we find that removal of the electron-transferring flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) moiety from both proteins results in an uncrossing of the reduction potentials of the remaining bifurcating FAD; this significantly stabilizes the otherwise very unstable semiquinone state, which accumulates over the course of reductive titrations with sodium dithionite. Furthermore, reduction of both EtfABs depleted of their electron-transferring FAD by NADH was monophasic with a hyperbolic dependence of reaction rate on the concentration of NADH. On the other hand, NADH reduction of the replete proteins containing the electron-transferring FAD was multiphasic, consisting of a fast phase comparable to that seen with the depleted proteins followed by an intermediate phase that involves significant accumulation of FAD⋅-, again reflecting uncrossing of the half-potentials of the bifurcating FAD. This is then followed by a slow phase that represents the slow reduction of the electron-transferring FAD to FADH-, with reduction of the now fully reoxidized bifurcating FAD by a second equivalent of NADH. We suggest that the crossing and uncrossing of the reduction half-potentials of the bifurcating FAD is due to specific conformational changes that have been structurally characterized.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wayne Vigil
- Department of Biochemistry, University of California, Riverside, California, USA
| | - Jessica Tran
- Department of Biochemistry, University of California, Riverside, California, USA
| | - Dimitri Niks
- Department of Biochemistry, University of California, Riverside, California, USA
| | - Gerrit J Schut
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA
| | - Xiaoxuan Ge
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA
| | - Michael W W Adams
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA
| | - Russ Hille
- Department of Biochemistry, University of California, Riverside, California, USA.
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6
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Nitschke W, Schoepp‐Cothenet B, Duval S, Zuchan K, Farr O, Baymann F, Panico F, Minguzzi A, Branscomb E, Russell MJ. Aqueous electrochemistry: The toolbox for life's emergence from redox disequilibria. ELECTROCHEMICAL SCIENCE ADVANCES 2022. [DOI: 10.1002/elsa.202100192] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Simon Duval
- CNRS, BIP (UMR 7281), Aix Marseille Univ Marseille France
| | - Kilian Zuchan
- CNRS, BIP (UMR 7281), Aix Marseille Univ Marseille France
| | - Orion Farr
- CNRS, BIP (UMR 7281), Aix Marseille Univ Marseille France
- Aix Marseille Univ CINaM (UMR 7325) Luminy France
| | - Frauke Baymann
- CNRS, BIP (UMR 7281), Aix Marseille Univ Marseille France
| | - Francesco Panico
- Dipartimento di Chimica Università degli Studi di Milano Milan Italy
| | | | - Elbert Branscomb
- Department of Physics Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois Urbana Illinois USA
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7
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Mohamed-Raseek N, Miller AF. Contrasting roles for two conserved arginines: stabilizing flavin semiquinone or quaternary structure, in bifurcating electron transfer flavoproteins. J Biol Chem 2022; 298:101733. [PMID: 35176283 PMCID: PMC8958531 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2022.101733] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2021] [Revised: 02/11/2022] [Accepted: 02/12/2022] [Indexed: 01/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Bifurcating electron transfer flavoproteins (Bf ETFs) are important redox enzymes that contain two flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) cofactors, with contrasting reactivities and complementary roles in electron bifurcation. However, for both the “electron transfer” (ET) and the “bifurcating” (Bf) FADs, the only charged amino acid within 5 Å of the flavin is a conserved arginine (Arg) residue. To understand how the two sites produce different reactivities utilizing the same residue, we investigated the consequences of replacing each of the Arg residues with lysine, glutamine, histidine, or alanine. We show that absence of a positive charge in the ET site diminishes accumulation of the anionic semiquinone (ASQ) that enables the ET flavin to act as a single electron carrier, due to depression of the oxidized versus. ASQ reduction midpoint potential, E°OX/ASQ. Perturbation of the ET site also affected the remote Bf site, whereas abrogation of Bf FAD binding accelerated chemical modification of the ET flavin. In the Bf site, removal of the positive charge impaired binding of FAD or AMP, resulting in unstable protein. Based on pH dependence, we propose that the Bf site Arg interacts with the phosphate(s) of Bf FAD or AMP, bridging the domain interface via a conserved peptide loop (“zipper”) and favoring nucleotide binding. We further propose a model that rationalizes conservation of the Bf site Arg even in non-Bf ETFs, as well as AMP's stabilizing role in the latter, and provides a mechanism for coupling Bf flavin redox changes to domain-scale motion.
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8
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Duan HD, Khan SA, Miller AF. Photogeneration and reactivity of flavin anionic semiquinone in a bifurcating electron transfer flavoprotein. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA-BIOENERGETICS 2021; 1862:148415. [PMID: 33727071 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbabio.2021.148415] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2020] [Revised: 02/15/2021] [Accepted: 03/10/2021] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
Electron transfer bifurcation allows production of a strongly reducing carrier at the expense of a weaker one, by redistributing energy among a pair of electrons. Thus, two weakly-reducing electrons from NADH are consumed to produce a strongly reducing ferredoxin or flavodoxin, paid for by reduction of an oxidizing acceptor. The prevailing mechanism calls for participation of a strongly reducing flavin semiquinone which has been difficult to observe with site-certainly in multi-flavin systems. Using blue light (450 nm) to photoexcite the flavins of bifurcating electron transfer flavoprotein (ETF), we demonstrate accumulation of anionic flavin semiquinone in excess of what is observed in equilibrium titrations, and establish its ability to reduce the low-potential electron acceptor benzyl viologen. This must occur at the bifurcating flavin because the midpoint potentials of the electron transfer (ET) flavin are not sufficiently negative. We show that bis-tris propane buffer is an effective electron donor to the flavin photoreduction, but that if the system is prepared with the ET flavin chemically reduced, so that only the bifurcating flavin is oxidized and photochemically active, flavin anionic semiquinone is formed more rapidly. Thus, excited bifurcating flavin is able to draw on an electron stored at the ET flavin. Flavin semiquinone photogenerated at the bifurcation site must therefore be accompanied by additional semiquinone formation by oxidation of the ET flavin. Consistent with the expected instability of bifurcating flavin semiquinone, it subsides immediately upon cessation of illumination. However comparison with yields of semiquinone in equilibrium titrations suggest that during continuous illumination at pH 9 a steady state population of 0.3 equivalents of bifurcating flavin semiquinone accumulates, and then undergoes further photoreduction to the hydroquinone. Although transient, the population of bifurcating flavin semiquinone explains the system's ability to conduct light-driven electron transfer from bis-tris propane to benzyl viologen, in effect trapping energy from light.
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Affiliation(s)
- H Diessel Duan
- Department of Chemistry, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506, USA
| | - Sharique A Khan
- Department of Chemistry, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506, USA
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9
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Kayastha K, Vitt S, Buckel W, Ermler U. Flavins in the electron bifurcation process. Arch Biochem Biophys 2021; 701:108796. [PMID: 33609536 DOI: 10.1016/j.abb.2021.108796] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2020] [Revised: 02/01/2021] [Accepted: 02/03/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
The discovery of a new energy-coupling mechanism termed flavin-based electron bifurcation (FBEB) in 2008 revealed a novel field of application for flavins in biology. The key component is the bifurcating flavin endowed with strongly inverted one-electron reduction potentials (FAD/FAD•- ≪ FAD•-/FADH-) that cooperatively transfers in its reduced state one low and one high-energy electron into different directions and thereby drives an endergonic with an exergonic reduction reaction. As energy splitting at the bifurcating flavin apparently implicates one-electron chemistry, the FBEB machinery has to incorporate prior to and behind the central bifurcating flavin 2e-to-1e and 1e-to-2e switches, frequently also flavins, for oxidizing variable medium-potential two-electron donating substrates and for reducing high-potential two-electron accepting substrates. The one-electron carriers ferredoxin or flavodoxin serve as low-potential (high-energy) electron acceptors, which power endergonic processes almost exclusively in obligate anaerobic microorganisms to increase the efficiency of their energy metabolism. In this review, we outline the global organization of FBEB enzymes, the functions of the flavins therein and the surrounding of the isoalloxazine rings by which their reduction potentials are specifically adjusted in a finely tuned energy landscape.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kanwal Kayastha
- Max-Planck-Institut für Biophysik, Max-von-Laue-Str. 3, 60438, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Stella Vitt
- Max-Planck-Institut für Biophysik, Max-von-Laue-Str. 3, 60438, Frankfurt am Main, Germany; Laboratorium für Mikrobiologie, Fachbereich Biologie and SYNMIKRO, Philipps-Universität, 35032, Marburg, Germany
| | - Wolfgang Buckel
- Laboratorium für Mikrobiologie, Fachbereich Biologie and SYNMIKRO, Philipps-Universität, 35032, Marburg, Germany; Max-Planck-Institut für terrestrische Mikrobiologie, Karl-von-Frisch-Str. 10, 35043, Marburg, Germany
| | - Ulrich Ermler
- Max-Planck-Institut für Biophysik, Max-von-Laue-Str. 3, 60438, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
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10
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Vigil W, Niks D, Franz-Badur S, Chowdhury N, Buckel W, Hille R. Spectral deconvolution of redox species in the crotonyl-CoA-dependent NADH:ferredoxin oxidoreductase from Megasphaera elsdenii. A flavin-dependent bifurcating enzyme. Arch Biochem Biophys 2021; 701:108793. [PMID: 33587905 PMCID: PMC8040930 DOI: 10.1016/j.abb.2021.108793] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2020] [Revised: 01/26/2021] [Accepted: 02/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
We have undertaken a spectral deconvolution of the three FADs of EtfAB/bcd to the spectral changes seen in the course of reduction, including the spectrally distinct anionic and neutral semiquinone states of electron-transferring and bcd flavins. We also demonstrate that, unlike similar systems, no charge-transfer complex is observed on titration of the reduced M. elsdenii EtfAB with NAD+. Finally, and significantly, we find that removal of the et FAD from EtfAB results in an uncrossing of the half-potentials of the bifurcating FAD that remains in the protein, as reflected in the accumulation of substantial FAD•− in the course of reductive titrations of the depleted EtfAB with sodium dithionite.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wayne Vigil
- Department of Biochemistry, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, 92521, USA
| | - Dimitri Niks
- Department of Biochemistry, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, 92521, USA
| | - Sophie Franz-Badur
- Department of Biochemistry, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, 92521, USA
| | | | - Wolfgang Buckel
- Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany; Fachbereich Biologie and Synmikro, Philipps-Universität, Marburg, Germany
| | - Russ Hille
- Department of Biochemistry, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, 92521, USA.
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11
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Wise CE, Ledinina AE, Yuly JL, Artz JH, Lubner CE. The role of thermodynamic features on the functional activity of electron bifurcating enzymes. BIOCHIMICA ET BIOPHYSICA ACTA-BIOENERGETICS 2021; 1862:148377. [PMID: 33453185 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbabio.2021.148377] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2020] [Revised: 01/05/2021] [Accepted: 01/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Electron bifurcation is a biological mechanism to drive a thermodynamically unfavorable redox reaction through direct coupling with an exergonic reaction. This process allows microorganisms to generate high energy reducing equivalents in order to sustain life and is often found in anaerobic metabolism, where the energy economy of the cell is poor. Recent work has revealed details of the redox energy landscapes for a variety of electron bifurcating enzymes, greatly expanding the understanding of how energy is transformed by this unique mechanism. Here we highlight the plasticity of these emerging landscapes, what is known regarding their mechanistic underpinnings, and provide a context for interpreting their biochemical activity within the physiological framework. We conclude with an outlook for propelling the field toward an integrative understanding of the impact of electron bifurcation.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Jacob H Artz
- National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO, USA
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12
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Sucharitakul J, Buckel W, Chaiyen P. Rapid kinetics reveal surprising flavin chemistry in bifurcating electron transfer flavoprotein from Acidaminococcus fermentans. J Biol Chem 2020; 296:100124. [PMID: 33239361 PMCID: PMC7948398 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.ra120.016017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2020] [Revised: 11/20/2020] [Accepted: 11/25/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Electron bifurcation uses free energy from exergonic redox reactions to power endergonic reactions. β-FAD of the electron transfer flavoprotein (EtfAB) from the anaerobic bacterium Acidaminococcus fermentans bifurcates the electrons of NADH, sending one to the low-potential ferredoxin and the other to the high-potential α-FAD semiquinone (α-FAD•−). The resultant α-FAD hydroquinone (α-FADH−) transfers one electron further to butyryl-CoA dehydrogenase (Bcd); two such transfers enable Bcd to reduce crotonyl-CoA to butyryl-CoA. To get insight into the mechanism of these intricate reactions, we constructed an artificial reaction only with EtfAB containing α-FAD or α-FAD•− to monitor formation of α-FAD•− or α-FADH−, respectively, using stopped flow kinetic measurements. In the presence of α-FAD, we observed that NADH transferred a hydride to β-FAD at a rate of 920 s−1, yielding the charge–transfer complex NAD+:β-FADH− with an absorbance maximum at 650 nm. β-FADH− bifurcated one electron to α-FAD and the other electron to α-FAD of a second EtfAB molecule, forming two stable α-FAD•−. With α-FAD•−, the reduction of β-FAD with NADH was 1500 times slower. Reduction of β-FAD in the presence of α-FAD displayed a normal kinetic isotope effect (KIE) of 2.1, whereas the KIE was inverted in the presence of α-FAD•−. These data indicate that a nearby radical (14 Å apart) slows the rate of a hydride transfer and inverts the KIE. This unanticipated flavin chemistry is not restricted to Etf–Bcd but certainly occurs in other bifurcating Etfs found in anaerobic bacteria and archaea.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeerus Sucharitakul
- Department of Biochemistry, Chulalongkorn University, Patumwan, Bangkok, Thailand; Skeletal Disorders Research Unit, Faculty of Dentistry, Chulalongkorn University, Patumwan, Bangkok, Thailand.
| | - Wolfgang Buckel
- Laboratorium für Mikrobiologie, Fachbereich Biologie and Synmikro, Philipps-Universität, Marburg, Germany; Max-Plank-Institut für terrestrische Mikrobiologie, Marburg, Germany
| | - Pimchai Chaiyen
- School of Biomolecular Science and Engineering, Vidyasirimedhi Institute of Science and Technology (VISTEC), Rayong, Thailand
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13
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Panikov NS. True and Illusory Benefits of Modeling: Comment on "Genome-Scale Metabolic Network Reconstruction and In Silico Analysis of Hexanoic Acid Producing Megasphaera elsdenii. Microorganisms 2020, 8, 539". Microorganisms 2020; 8:microorganisms8111742. [PMID: 33172047 PMCID: PMC7694653 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms8111742] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2020] [Accepted: 11/03/2020] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
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14
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Duan HD, Mohamed-Raseek N, Miller AF. Spectroscopic evidence for direct flavin-flavin contact in a bifurcating electron transfer flavoprotein. J Biol Chem 2020; 295:12618-12634. [PMID: 32661195 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.ra120.013174] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2020] [Revised: 07/10/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
A remarkable charge transfer (CT) band is described in the bifurcating electron transfer flavoprotein (Bf-ETF) from Rhodopseudomonas palustris (RpaETF). RpaETF contains two FADs that play contrasting roles in electron bifurcation. The Bf-FAD accepts electrons pairwise from NADH, directs one to a lower-reduction midpoint potential (E°) carrier, and the other to the higher-E° electron transfer FAD (ET-FAD). Previous work noted that a CT band at 726 nm formed when ET-FAD was reduced and Bf-FAD was oxidized, suggesting that both flavins participate. However, existing crystal structures place them too far apart to interact directly. We present biochemical experiments addressing this conundrum and elucidating the nature of this CT species. We observed that RpaETF missing either FAD lacked the 726 nm band. Site-directed mutagenesis near either FAD produced altered yields of the CT species, supporting involvement of both flavins. The residue substitutions did not alter the absorption maximum of the signal, ruling out contributions from residue orbitals. Instead, we propose that the residue identities modulate the population of a protein conformation that brings the ET-flavin and Bf-flavin into direct contact, explaining the 726 nm band based on a CT complex of reduced ET-FAD and oxidized Bf-FAD. This is corroborated by persistence of the 726 nm species during gentle protein denaturation and simple density functional theory calculations of flavin dimers. Although such a CT complex has been demonstrated for free flavins, this is the first observation of such, to our knowledge, in an enzyme. Thus, Bf-ETFs may optimize electron transfer efficiency by enabling direct flavin-flavin contact.
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Affiliation(s)
- H Diessel Duan
- Department of Chemistry, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky, USA
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15
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Sucharitakul J, Buttranon S, Wongnate T, Chowdhury NP, Prongjit M, Buckel W, Chaiyen P. Modulations of the reduction potentials of flavin-based electron bifurcation complexes and semiquinone stabilities are key to control directional electron flow. FEBS J 2020; 288:1008-1026. [PMID: 32329961 DOI: 10.1111/febs.15343] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2019] [Revised: 03/08/2020] [Accepted: 04/06/2020] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
The flavin-based electron bifurcation (FBEB) system from Acidaminococcus fermentans is composed of the electron transfer flavoprotein (EtfAB) and butyryl-CoA dehydrogenase (Bcd). α-FAD binds to domain II of the A-subunit of EtfAB, β-FAD to the B-subunit of EtfAB and δ-FAD to Bcd. NADH reduces β-FAD to β-FADH- , which bifurcates one electron to the high potential α-FAD•- semiquinone followed by the other to the low potential ferredoxin (Fd). As deduced from crystal structures, upon interaction of EtfAB with Bcd, the formed α-FADH- approaches δ-FAD by rotation of domain II, yielding δ-FAD•- . Repetition of this process leads to a second reduced ferredoxin (Fd- ) and δ-FADH- , which reduces crotonyl-CoA to butyryl-CoA. In this study, we measured the redox properties of the components EtfAB, EtfaB (Etf without α-FAD), Bcd, and Fd, as well as of the complexes EtfaB:Bcd, EtfAB:Bcd, EtfaB:Fd, and EftAB:Fd. In agreement with the structural studies, we have shown for the first time that the interaction of EtfAB with Bcd drastically decreases the midpoint reduction potential of α-FAD to be within the same range of that of β-FAD and to destabilize the semiquinone of α-FAD. This finding clearly explains that these interactions facilitate the passing of electrons from β-FADH- via α-FAD•- to the final electron acceptor δ-FAD•- on Bcd. The interactions modulate the semiquinone stability of δ-FAD in an opposite way by having a greater semiquinone stability than in free Bcd.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeerus Sucharitakul
- Department of Biochemistry, Chulalongkorn University, Patumwan, Bangkok, Thailand.,Skeletal Disorders Research Unit, Faculty of Dentistry, Chulalongkorn University, Patumwan, Bangkok, Thailand
| | - Supacha Buttranon
- School of Biomolecular Science and Engineering, Vidyasirimedhi Institute of Science and Technology (VISTEC), Rayong, Thailand
| | - Thanyaporn Wongnate
- School of Biomolecular Science and Engineering, Vidyasirimedhi Institute of Science and Technology (VISTEC), Rayong, Thailand
| | - Nilanjan Pal Chowdhury
- Laboratorium für Mikrobiologie, Fachbereich Biologie and Synmikro, Philipps-Universität, Marburg, Germany.,Max-Plank-Institut für terrestrische Mikrobiologie, Marburg, Germany
| | - Methinee Prongjit
- Department of Biochemistry, Chulalongkorn University, Patumwan, Bangkok, Thailand
| | - Wolfgang Buckel
- Laboratorium für Mikrobiologie, Fachbereich Biologie and Synmikro, Philipps-Universität, Marburg, Germany.,Max-Plank-Institut für terrestrische Mikrobiologie, Marburg, Germany
| | - Pimchai Chaiyen
- School of Biomolecular Science and Engineering, Vidyasirimedhi Institute of Science and Technology (VISTEC), Rayong, Thailand
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16
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Mohamed-Raseek N, Duan HD, Hildebrandt P, Mroginski MA, Miller AF. Spectroscopic, thermodynamic and computational evidence of the locations of the FADs in the nitrogen fixation-associated electron transfer flavoprotein. Chem Sci 2019; 10:7762-7772. [PMID: 31588324 PMCID: PMC6764259 DOI: 10.1039/c9sc00942f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2019] [Accepted: 06/24/2019] [Indexed: 01/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Flavin-based electron bifurcation allows enzymes to redistribute energy among electrons by coupling endergonic and exergonic electron transfer reactions. Diverse bifurcating enzymes employ a two-flavin electron transfer flavoprotein (ETF) that accepts hydride from NADH at a flavin (the so-called bifurcating FAD, Bf-FAD). The Bf-FAD passes one electron exergonically to a second flavin thereby assuming a reactive semiquinone state able to reduce ferredoxin or flavodoxin semiquinone. The flavin that accepts one electron and passes it on via exergonic electron transfer is known as the electron transfer FAD (ET-FAD) and is believed to correspond to the single FAD present in canonical ETFs, in domain II. The Bf-FAD is believed to be the one that is unique to bifurcating ETFs, bound between domains I and III. This very reasonable model has yet to be challenged experimentally. Herein we used site-directed mutagenesis to disrupt FAD binding to the presumed Bf site between domains I and III, in the Bf-ETF from Rhodopseudomonas palustris (RpaETF). The resulting protein contained only 0.80 ± 0.05 FAD, plus 1.21 ± 0.04 bound AMP as in canonical ETFs. The flavin was not subject to reduction by NADH, confirming absence of Bf-FAD. The retained FAD displayed visible circular dichroism (CD) similar to that of the ET-FAD of RpaETF. Likewise, the mutant underwent two sequential one-electron reductions forming and then consuming anionic semiquinone, reproducing the reactivity of the ET-FAD. These data confirm that the retained FAD in domain II corresponds the ET-FAD. Quantum chemical calculations of the absorbance and CD spectra of each of WT RpaETF's two flavins reproduced the observed differences between their CD and absorbance signatures. The calculations for the flavin bound in domain II agreed better with the spectra of the ET-flavin, and those calculated based on the flavin between domains I and III agreed better with spectra of the Bf-flavin. Thus calculations independently confirm the locations of each flavin. We conclude that the site in domain II harbours the ET-FAD whereas the mutated site between domains I and III is the Bf-FAD site, confirming the accepted model by two different tests.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nishya Mohamed-Raseek
- Dept. Chemistry , University of Kentucky , 505 Rose Street , Lexington , KY 40506-0055 , USA .
| | - H Diessel Duan
- Dept. Chemistry , University of Kentucky , 505 Rose Street , Lexington , KY 40506-0055 , USA .
| | - Peter Hildebrandt
- Max Volmer Laboratorum für Biophysikalische Chemie , Technische Universität - Berlin , Sekr. PC 14, 135 Straße des 17. Juni , 10623 Berlin , Germany
| | - Maria Andrea Mroginski
- Max Volmer Laboratorum für Biophysikalische Chemie , Technische Universität - Berlin , Sekr. PC 14, 135 Straße des 17. Juni , 10623 Berlin , Germany
| | - Anne-Frances Miller
- Dept. Chemistry , University of Kentucky , 505 Rose Street , Lexington , KY 40506-0055 , USA .
- Max Volmer Laboratorum für Biophysikalische Chemie , Technische Universität - Berlin , Sekr. PC 14, 135 Straße des 17. Juni , 10623 Berlin , Germany
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17
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Miller AF, Duan HD, Varner TA, Mohamed Raseek N. Reduction midpoint potentials of bifurcating electron transfer flavoproteins. Methods Enzymol 2019; 620:365-398. [PMID: 31072494 DOI: 10.1016/bs.mie.2019.03.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
Recently, a variety of enzymes have been found to accept electrons from NAD(P)H yet reduce lower-potential carriers such as ferredoxin and flavodoxin semiquinone, in apparent violation of thermodynamics. The reaction is favorable overall, however, because these enzymes couple the foregoing endergonic one-electron transfer to exergonic transfer of the other electron from each NAD(P)H, in a process called "flavin-based electron bifurcation." The reduction midpoint potentials (E°s) of the multiple flavins in these enzymes are critical to their mechanisms. We describe methods we have found to be useful for measuring each of the E°s of each of the flavins in bifurcating electron transfer flavoproteins.
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Affiliation(s)
- A-F Miller
- Department of Chemistry, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, United States.
| | - H D Duan
- Department of Chemistry, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, United States
| | - T A Varner
- Department of Chemistry, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, United States
| | - N Mohamed Raseek
- Department of Chemistry, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, United States
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18
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Schut GJ, Mohamed-Raseek N, Tokmina-Lukaszewska M, Mulder DW, Nguyen DMN, Lipscomb GL, Hoben JP, Patterson A, Lubner CE, King PW, Peters JW, Bothner B, Miller AF, Adams MWW. The catalytic mechanism of electron-bifurcating electron transfer flavoproteins (ETFs) involves an intermediary complex with NAD<sup/>. J Biol Chem 2019; 294:3271-3283. [PMID: 30567738 PMCID: PMC6398123 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.ra118.005653] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2018] [Revised: 12/11/2018] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Electron bifurcation plays a key role in anaerobic energy metabolism, but it is a relatively new discovery, and only limited mechanistic information is available on the diverse enzymes that employ it. Herein, we focused on the bifurcating electron transfer flavoprotein (ETF) from the hyperthermophilic archaeon Pyrobaculum aerophilum The EtfABCX enzyme complex couples NADH oxidation to the endergonic reduction of ferredoxin and exergonic reduction of menaquinone. We developed a model for the enzyme structure by using nondenaturing MS, cross-linking, and homology modeling in which EtfA, -B, and -C each contained FAD, whereas EtfX contained two [4Fe-4S] clusters. On the basis of analyses using transient absorption, EPR, and optical titrations with NADH or inorganic reductants with and without NAD+, we propose a catalytic cycle involving formation of an intermediary NAD+-bound complex. A charge transfer signal revealed an intriguing interplay of flavin semiquinones and a protein conformational change that gated electron transfer between the low- and high-potential pathways. We found that despite a common bifurcating flavin site, the proposed EtfABCX catalytic cycle is distinct from that of the genetically unrelated bifurcating NADH-dependent ferredoxin NADP+ oxidoreductase (NfnI). The two enzymes particularly differed in the role of NAD+, the resting and bifurcating-ready states of the enzymes, how electron flow is gated, and the two two-electron cycles constituting the overall four-electron reaction. We conclude that P. aerophilum EtfABCX provides a model catalytic mechanism that builds on and extends previous studies of related bifurcating ETFs and can be applied to the large bifurcating ETF family.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gerrit J Schut
- From the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia 30602-7229
| | | | | | - David W Mulder
- the Biosciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, Colorado 80401, and
| | - Diep M N Nguyen
- From the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia 30602-7229
| | - Gina L Lipscomb
- From the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia 30602-7229
| | - John P Hoben
- the Department of Chemistry, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky 40506
| | - Angela Patterson
- the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montana State University, Bozeman, Montana 59717
| | - Carolyn E Lubner
- the Biosciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, Colorado 80401, and
| | - Paul W King
- the Biosciences Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, Colorado 80401, and
| | - John W Peters
- the Institute of Biological Chemistry, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington 99164
| | - Brian Bothner
- the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montana State University, Bozeman, Montana 59717
| | - Anne-Frances Miller
- the Department of Chemistry, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky 40506
| | - Michael W W Adams
- From the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia 30602-7229,
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19
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Baymann F, Schoepp-Cothenet B, Duval S, Guiral M, Brugna M, Baffert C, Russell MJ, Nitschke W. On the Natural History of Flavin-Based Electron Bifurcation. Front Microbiol 2018; 9:1357. [PMID: 30018596 PMCID: PMC6037941 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2018.01357] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2018] [Accepted: 06/05/2018] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Electron bifurcation is here described as a special case of the continuum of electron transfer reactions accessible to two-electron redox compounds with redox cooperativity. We argue that electron bifurcation is foremost an electrochemical phenomenon based on (a) strongly inverted redox potentials of the individual redox transitions, (b) a high endergonicity of the first redox transition, and (c) an escapement-type mechanism rendering completion of the first electron transfer contingent on occurrence of the second one. This mechanism is proposed to govern both the traditional quinone-based and the newly discovered flavin-based versions of electron bifurcation. Conserved and variable aspects of the spatial arrangement of electron transfer partners in flavoenzymes are assayed by comparing the presently available 3D structures. A wide sample of flavoenzymes is analyzed with respect to conserved structural modules and three major structural groups are identified which serve as basic frames for the evolutionary construction of a plethora of flavin-containing redox enzymes. We argue that flavin-based and other types of electron bifurcation are of primordial importance to free energy conversion, the quintessential foundation of life, and discuss a plausible evolutionary ancestry of the mechanism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Frauke Baymann
- CNRS, BIP, UMR 7281, IMM FR3479, Aix-Marseille University, Marseille, France
| | | | - Simon Duval
- CNRS, BIP, UMR 7281, IMM FR3479, Aix-Marseille University, Marseille, France
| | - Marianne Guiral
- CNRS, BIP, UMR 7281, IMM FR3479, Aix-Marseille University, Marseille, France
| | - Myriam Brugna
- CNRS, BIP, UMR 7281, IMM FR3479, Aix-Marseille University, Marseille, France
| | - Carole Baffert
- CNRS, BIP, UMR 7281, IMM FR3479, Aix-Marseille University, Marseille, France
| | - Michael J. Russell
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, United States
| | - Wolfgang Nitschke
- CNRS, BIP, UMR 7281, IMM FR3479, Aix-Marseille University, Marseille, France
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20
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Buckel W, Thauer RK. Flavin-Based Electron Bifurcation, A New Mechanism of Biological Energy Coupling. Chem Rev 2018; 118:3862-3886. [PMID: 29561602 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.7b00707] [Citation(s) in RCA: 189] [Impact Index Per Article: 31.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
There are two types of electron bifurcation (EB), either quinone- or flavin-based (QBEB/FBEB), that involve reduction of a quinone or flavin by a two-electron transfer and two reoxidations by a high- and low-potential one-electron acceptor with a reactive semiquinone intermediate. In QBEB, the reduced low-potential acceptor (cytochrome b) is exclusively used to generate ΔμH+. In FBEB, the "energy-rich" low-potential reduced ferredoxin or flavodoxin has dual function. It can give rise to ΔμH+/Na+ via a ferredoxin:NAD reductase (Rnf) or ferredoxin:proton reductase (Ech) or conducts difficult reductions such as CO2 to CO. The QBEB membrane complexes are similar in structure and function and occur in all domains of life. In contrast, FBEB complexes are soluble and occur only in strictly anaerobic bacteria and archaea (FixABCX being an exception). The FBEB complexes constitute a group consisting of four unrelated families that contain (1) electron-transferring flavoproteins (EtfAB), (2) NAD(P)H dehydrogenase (NuoF homologues), (3) heterodisulfide reductase (HdrABC) or HdrABC homologues, and (4) NADH-dependent ferredoxin:NADP reductase (NfnAB). The crystal structures and electron transport of EtfAB-butyryl-CoA dehydrogenase and NfnAB are compared with those of complex III of the respiratory chain (cytochrome bc1), whereby unexpected common features have become apparent.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wolfgang Buckel
- Fachbereich Biologie , Philipps-Universität , 35032 Marburg , Germany.,Max-Planck-Institut für Terrestrische Mikrobiologie , 35043 Marburg , Germany
| | - Rudolf K Thauer
- Fachbereich Biologie , Philipps-Universität , 35032 Marburg , Germany.,Max-Planck-Institut für Terrestrische Mikrobiologie , 35043 Marburg , Germany
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21
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Buckel W, Thauer RK. Flavin-Based Electron Bifurcation, Ferredoxin, Flavodoxin, and Anaerobic Respiration With Protons (Ech) or NAD + (Rnf) as Electron Acceptors: A Historical Review. Front Microbiol 2018; 9:401. [PMID: 29593673 PMCID: PMC5861303 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2018.00401] [Citation(s) in RCA: 182] [Impact Index Per Article: 30.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2017] [Accepted: 02/21/2018] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Flavin-based electron bifurcation is a newly discovered mechanism, by which a hydride electron pair from NAD(P)H, coenzyme F420H2, H2, or formate is split by flavoproteins into one-electron with a more negative reduction potential and one with a more positive reduction potential than that of the electron pair. Via this mechanism microorganisms generate low- potential electrons for the reduction of ferredoxins (Fd) and flavodoxins (Fld). The first example was described in 2008 when it was found that the butyryl-CoA dehydrogenase-electron-transferring flavoprotein complex (Bcd-EtfAB) of Clostridium kluyveri couples the endergonic reduction of ferredoxin (E0′ = −420 mV) with NADH (−320 mV) to the exergonic reduction of crotonyl-CoA to butyryl-CoA (−10 mV) with NADH. The discovery was followed by the finding of an electron-bifurcating Fd- and NAD-dependent [FeFe]-hydrogenase (HydABC) in Thermotoga maritima (2009), Fd-dependent transhydrogenase (NfnAB) in various bacteria and archaea (2010), Fd- and H2-dependent heterodisulfide reductase (MvhADG-HdrABC) in methanogenic archaea (2011), Fd- and NADH-dependent caffeyl-CoA reductase (CarCDE) in Acetobacterium woodii (2013), Fd- and NAD-dependent formate dehydrogenase (HylABC-FdhF2) in Clostridium acidi-urici (2013), Fd- and NADP-dependent [FeFe]-hydrogenase (HytA-E) in Clostridium autoethanogrenum (2013), Fd(?)- and NADH-dependent methylene-tetrahydrofolate reductase (MetFV-HdrABC-MvhD) in Moorella thermoacetica (2014), Fd- and NAD-dependent lactate dehydrogenase (LctBCD) in A. woodii (2015), Fd- and F420H2-dependent heterodisulfide reductase (HdrA2B2C2) in Methanosarcina acetivorans (2017), and Fd- and NADH-dependent ubiquinol reductase (FixABCX) in Azotobacter vinelandii (2017). The electron-bifurcating flavoprotein complexes known to date fall into four groups that have evolved independently, namely those containing EtfAB (CarED, LctCB, FixBA) with bound FAD, a NuoF homolog (HydB, HytB, or HylB) harboring FMN, NfnB with bound FAD, or HdrA harboring FAD. All these flavoproteins are cytoplasmic except for the membrane-associated protein FixABCX. The organisms—in which they have been found—are strictly anaerobic microorganisms except for the aerobe A. vinelandii. The electron-bifurcating complexes are involved in a variety of processes such as butyric acid fermentation, methanogenesis, acetogenesis, anaerobic lactate oxidation, dissimilatory sulfate reduction, anaerobic- dearomatization, nitrogen fixation, and CO2 fixation. They contribute to energy conservation via the energy-converting ferredoxin: NAD+ reductase complex Rnf or the energy-converting ferredoxin-dependent hydrogenase complex Ech. This Review describes how this mechanism was discovered.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wolfgang Buckel
- Laboratory for Microbiology, Faculty of Biology, Philipps-Universität Marburg, Marburg, Germany
| | - Rudolf K Thauer
- Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology, Marburg, Germany
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22
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Duan HD, Lubner CE, Tokmina-Lukaszewska M, Gauss GH, Bothner B, King PW, Peters JW, Miller AF. Distinct properties underlie flavin-based electron bifurcation in a novel electron transfer flavoprotein FixAB from Rhodopseudomonas palustris. J Biol Chem 2018; 293:4688-4701. [PMID: 29462786 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.ra117.000707] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2017] [Revised: 02/08/2018] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
A newly recognized third fundamental mechanism of energy conservation in biology, electron bifurcation, uses free energy from exergonic redox reactions to drive endergonic redox reactions. Flavin-based electron bifurcation furnishes low-potential electrons to demanding chemical reactions, such as reduction of dinitrogen to ammonia. We employed the heterodimeric flavoenzyme FixAB from the diazotrophic bacterium Rhodopseudomonas palustris to elucidate unique properties that underpin flavin-based electron bifurcation. FixAB is distinguished from canonical electron transfer flavoproteins (ETFs) by a second FAD that replaces the AMP of canonical ETF. We exploited near-UV-visible CD spectroscopy to resolve signals from the different flavin sites in FixAB and to interrogate the putative bifurcating FAD. CD aided in assigning the measured reduction midpoint potentials (E° values) to individual flavins, and the E° values tested the accepted model regarding the redox properties required for bifurcation. We found that the higher-E° flavin displays sequential one-electron (1-e-) reductions to anionic semiquinone and then to hydroquinone, consistent with the reactivity seen in canonical ETFs. In contrast, the lower-E° flavin displayed a single two-electron (2-e-) reduction without detectable accumulation of semiquinone, consistent with unstable semiquinone states, as required for bifurcation. This is the first demonstration that a FixAB protein possesses the thermodynamic prerequisites for bifurcating activity, and the separation of distinct optical signatures for the two flavins lays a foundation for mechanistic studies to learn how electron flow can be directed in a protein environment. We propose that a novel optical signal observed at long wavelength may reflect electron delocalization between the two flavins.
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Affiliation(s)
- H Diessel Duan
- Department of Chemistry, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky 40506
| | | | | | - George H Gauss
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montana State University, Bozeman, Montana 59717
| | - Brian Bothner
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montana State University, Bozeman, Montana 59717
| | - Paul W King
- National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, Colorado 80401
| | - John W Peters
- Institute of Biological Chemistry, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington 99163
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23
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Demmer JK, Pal Chowdhury N, Selmer T, Ermler U, Buckel W. The semiquinone swing in the bifurcating electron transferring flavoprotein/butyryl-CoA dehydrogenase complex from Clostridium difficile. Nat Commun 2017; 8:1577. [PMID: 29146947 PMCID: PMC5691135 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-017-01746-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2017] [Accepted: 10/13/2017] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
The electron transferring flavoprotein/butyryl-CoA dehydrogenase (EtfAB/Bcd) catalyzes the reduction of one crotonyl-CoA and two ferredoxins by two NADH within a flavin-based electron-bifurcating process. Here we report on the X-ray structure of the Clostridium difficile (EtfAB/Bcd)4 complex in the dehydrogenase-conducting D-state, α-FAD (bound to domain II of EtfA) and δ-FAD (bound to Bcd) being 8 Å apart. Superimposing Acidaminococcus fermentans EtfAB onto C. difficile EtfAB/Bcd reveals a rotation of domain II of nearly 80°. Further rotation by 10° brings EtfAB into the bifurcating B-state, α-FAD and β-FAD (bound to EtfB) being 14 Å apart. This dual binding mode of domain II, substantiated by mutational studies, resembles findings in non-bifurcating EtfAB/acyl-CoA dehydrogenase complexes. In our proposed mechanism, NADH reduces β-FAD, which bifurcates. One electron goes to ferredoxin and one to α-FAD, which swings over to reduce δ-FAD to the semiquinone. Repetition affords a second reduced ferredoxin and δ-FADH−, which reduces crotonyl-CoA. The electron-transferring flavoprotein / butyryl-CoA dehydrogenase (EtfAB/Bcd) complex catalyzes the reduction of crotonyl-CoA and ferredoxins by NADH in anaerobic microbes. Here, the authors present the crystal structure of Clostridium difficile EtfAB/Bcd and discuss the bifurcation mechanism for electron flow.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julius K Demmer
- Max-Planck-Institut für Biophysik, Max-von-Laue-Str. 3, 60438, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Nilanjan Pal Chowdhury
- Laboratorium für Mikrobiologie, Fachbereich Biologie and SYNMIKRO, Philipps-Universität, 35032, Marburg, Germany.,Max-Planck-Institut für terrestrische Mikrobiologie, Karl-von-Frisch-Str. 10, 35043, Marburg, Germany
| | - Thorsten Selmer
- Fachbereich Chemie und Biotechnologie, FH Aachen, Heinrich-Mußmann-Str. 1, 52428, Jülich, Germany
| | - Ulrich Ermler
- Max-Planck-Institut für Biophysik, Max-von-Laue-Str. 3, 60438, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
| | - Wolfgang Buckel
- Laboratorium für Mikrobiologie, Fachbereich Biologie and SYNMIKRO, Philipps-Universität, 35032, Marburg, Germany. .,Max-Planck-Institut für terrestrische Mikrobiologie, Karl-von-Frisch-Str. 10, 35043, Marburg, Germany.
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24
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Ledbetter RN, Garcia Costas AM, Lubner CE, Mulder DW, Tokmina-Lukaszewska M, Artz JH, Patterson A, Magnuson TS, Jay ZJ, Duan HD, Miller J, Plunkett MH, Hoben JP, Barney BM, Carlson RP, Miller AF, Bothner B, King PW, Peters JW, Seefeldt LC. The Electron Bifurcating FixABCX Protein Complex from Azotobacter vinelandii: Generation of Low-Potential Reducing Equivalents for Nitrogenase Catalysis. Biochemistry 2017; 56:4177-4190. [PMID: 28704608 DOI: 10.1021/acs.biochem.7b00389] [Citation(s) in RCA: 98] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
The biological reduction of dinitrogen (N2) to ammonia (NH3) by nitrogenase is an energetically demanding reaction that requires low-potential electrons and ATP; however, pathways used to deliver the electrons from central metabolism to the reductants of nitrogenase, ferredoxin or flavodoxin, remain unknown for many diazotrophic microbes. The FixABCX protein complex has been proposed to reduce flavodoxin or ferredoxin using NADH as the electron donor in a process known as electron bifurcation. Herein, the FixABCX complex from Azotobacter vinelandii was purified and demonstrated to catalyze an electron bifurcation reaction: oxidation of NADH (Em = -320 mV) coupled to reduction of flavodoxin semiquinone (Em = -460 mV) and reduction of coenzyme Q (Em = 10 mV). Knocking out fix genes rendered Δrnf A. vinelandii cells unable to fix dinitrogen, confirming that the FixABCX system provides another route for delivery of electrons to nitrogenase. Characterization of the purified FixABCX complex revealed the presence of flavin and iron-sulfur cofactors confirmed by native mass spectrometry, electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy, and transient absorption spectroscopy. Transient absorption spectroscopy further established the presence of a short-lived flavin semiquinone radical, suggesting that a thermodynamically unstable flavin semiquinone may participate as an intermediate in the transfer of an electron to flavodoxin. A structural model of FixABCX, generated using chemical cross-linking in conjunction with homology modeling, revealed plausible electron transfer pathways to both high- and low-potential acceptors. Overall, this study informs a mechanism for electron bifurcation, offering insight into a unique method for delivery of low-potential electrons required for energy-intensive biochemical conversions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rhesa N Ledbetter
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Utah State University , Logan, Utah 84322, United States
| | - Amaya M Garcia Costas
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montana State University , Bozeman, Montana 59717, United States
| | - Carolyn E Lubner
- National Renewable Energy Laboratory , Golden, Colorado 80401, United States
| | - David W Mulder
- National Renewable Energy Laboratory , Golden, Colorado 80401, United States
| | - Monika Tokmina-Lukaszewska
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montana State University , Bozeman, Montana 59717, United States
| | - Jacob H Artz
- Institute of Biological Chemistry, Washington State University , Pullman, Washington 99163, United States
| | - Angela Patterson
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montana State University , Bozeman, Montana 59717, United States
| | - Timothy S Magnuson
- Department of Biological Sciences, Idaho State University , Pocatello, Idaho 83201, United States
| | - Zackary J Jay
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Center for Biofilm Engineering and Thermal Biology Institute, Montana State University , Bozeman, Montana 59717, United States
| | - H Diessel Duan
- Department of Chemistry, University of Kentucky , Lexington, Kentucky 40506, United States
| | - Jacquelyn Miller
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montana State University , Bozeman, Montana 59717, United States
| | - Mary H Plunkett
- Department of Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering and Biotechnology Institute, University of Minnesota , St. Paul, Minnesota 55108, United States
| | - John P Hoben
- Department of Chemistry, University of Kentucky , Lexington, Kentucky 40506, United States
| | - Brett M Barney
- Department of Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering and Biotechnology Institute, University of Minnesota , St. Paul, Minnesota 55108, United States
| | - Ross P Carlson
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Center for Biofilm Engineering and Thermal Biology Institute, Montana State University , Bozeman, Montana 59717, United States
| | - Anne-Frances Miller
- Department of Chemistry, University of Kentucky , Lexington, Kentucky 40506, United States
| | - Brian Bothner
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montana State University , Bozeman, Montana 59717, United States
| | - Paul W King
- National Renewable Energy Laboratory , Golden, Colorado 80401, United States
| | - John W Peters
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montana State University , Bozeman, Montana 59717, United States.,Institute of Biological Chemistry, Washington State University , Pullman, Washington 99163, United States
| | - Lance C Seefeldt
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Utah State University , Logan, Utah 84322, United States
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25
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Chowdhury NP, Klomann K, Seubert A, Buckel W. Reduction of Flavodoxin by Electron Bifurcation and Sodium Ion-dependent Reoxidation by NAD+ Catalyzed by Ferredoxin-NAD+ Reductase (Rnf). J Biol Chem 2016; 291:11993-2002. [PMID: 27048649 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m116.726299] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2016] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Electron-transferring flavoprotein (Etf) and butyryl-CoA dehydrogenase (Bcd) from Acidaminococcus fermentans catalyze the endergonic reduction of ferredoxin by NADH, which is also driven by the concomitant reduction of crotonyl-CoA by NADH, a process called electron bifurcation. Here we show that recombinant flavodoxin from A. fermentans produced in Escherichia coli can replace ferredoxin with almost equal efficiency. After complete reduction of the yellow quinone to the blue semiquinone, a second 1.4 times faster electron transfer affords the colorless hydroquinone. Mediated by a hydrogenase, protons reoxidize the fully reduced flavodoxin or ferredoxin to the semi-reduced species. In this hydrogen-generating system, both electron carriers act catalytically with apparent Km = 0.26 μm ferredoxin or 0.42 μm flavodoxin. Membrane preparations of A. fermentans contain a highly active ferredoxin/flavodoxin-NAD(+) reductase (Rnf) that catalyzes the irreversible reduction of flavodoxin by NADH to the blue semiquinone. Using flavodoxin hydroquinone or reduced ferredoxin obtained by electron bifurcation, Rnf can be measured in the forward direction, whereby one NADH is recycled, resulting in the simple equation: crotonyl-CoA + NADH + H(+) = butyryl-CoA + NAD(+) with Km = 1.4 μm ferredoxin or 2.0 μm flavodoxin. This reaction requires Na(+) (Km = 0.12 mm) or Li(+) (Km = 0.25 mm) for activity, indicating that Rnf acts as a Na(+) pump. The redox potential of the quinone/semiquinone couple of flavodoxin (Fld) is much higher than that of the semiquinone/hydroquinone couple. With free riboflavin, the opposite is the case. Based on this behavior, we refine our previous mechanism of electron bifurcation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nilanjan Pal Chowdhury
- From the Laboratorium für Mikrobiologie, Fachbereich Biologie and Synmikro and the Max-Plank-Institut für terrestrische Mikrobiologie, 35043 Marburg, Germany
| | - Katharina Klomann
- From the Laboratorium für Mikrobiologie, Fachbereich Biologie and Synmikro and
| | - Andreas Seubert
- the Fachbereich Chemie, Philipps-Universität, 35032 Marburg, and
| | - Wolfgang Buckel
- From the Laboratorium für Mikrobiologie, Fachbereich Biologie and Synmikro and the Max-Plank-Institut für terrestrische Mikrobiologie, 35043 Marburg, Germany
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26
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Chowdhury NP, Kahnt J, Buckel W. Reduction of ferredoxin or oxygen by flavin-based electron bifurcation in Megasphaera elsdenii. FEBS J 2015; 282:3149-60. [PMID: 25903584 DOI: 10.1111/febs.13308] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2014] [Revised: 04/21/2015] [Accepted: 04/21/2015] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Over 50 years ago, it was reported that, in the anaerobic rumen bacterium Megasphaera elsdenii, the reduction of crotonyl-CoA to butyryl-CoA by NADH involved an electron transferring flavoprotein (Etf) as mediator [Baldwin RL, Milligan LP (1964) Biochim Biophys Acta 92, 421-432]. Purification and spectroscopic characterization revealed that this Etf contained 2 FAD, whereas, in the Etfs from aerobic and facultative bacteria, one FAD is replaced by AMP. Recently we detected a similar system in the related anaerobe Acidaminococcus fermentans that differed in the requirement of additional ferredoxin as electron acceptor. The whole process was established as flavin-based electron bifurcation in which the exergonic reduction of crotonyl-CoA by NADH mediated by Etf + butyryl-CoA dehydrogenase (Bcd) was coupled to the endergonic reduction of ferredoxin also by NADH. In the present study, we demonstrate that, under anaerobic conditions, Etf + Bcd from M. elsdenii bifurcate as efficiently as Etf + Bcd from A. fermentans. Under the aerobic conditions used in the study by Baldwin and Milligan and in the presence of catalytic amounts of crotonyl-CoA or butyryl-CoA, however, Etf + Bcd act as NADH oxidase producing superoxide and H2 O2 , whereas ferredoxin is not required. We hypothesize that, during bifurcation, oxygen replaces ferredoxin to yield superoxide. In addition, the formed butyryl-CoA is re-oxidized by a second oxygen molecule to crotonyl-CoA, resulting in a stoichiometry of 2 NADH consumed and 2 H2 O2 formed. As a result of the production of reactive oxygen species, electron bifurcation can be regarded as an Achilles' heel of anaerobes when exposed to air.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nilanjan P Chowdhury
- Laboratorium für Mikrobiologie, Fachbereich Biologie and Synmikro, Philipps-Universität, Marburg, Germany.,Max-Plank-Institut für terrestrische Mikrobiologie, Marburg, Germany
| | - Jörg Kahnt
- Max-Plank-Institut für terrestrische Mikrobiologie, Marburg, Germany
| | - Wolfgang Buckel
- Laboratorium für Mikrobiologie, Fachbereich Biologie and Synmikro, Philipps-Universität, Marburg, Germany.,Max-Plank-Institut für terrestrische Mikrobiologie, Marburg, Germany
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27
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Chowdhury NP, Mowafy AM, Demmer JK, Upadhyay V, Koelzer S, Jayamani E, Kahnt J, Hornung M, Demmer U, Ermler U, Buckel W. Studies on the mechanism of electron bifurcation catalyzed by electron transferring flavoprotein (Etf) and butyryl-CoA dehydrogenase (Bcd) of Acidaminococcus fermentans. J Biol Chem 2013; 289:5145-57. [PMID: 24379410 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m113.521013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 88] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Electron bifurcation is a fundamental strategy of energy coupling originally discovered in the Q-cycle of many organisms. Recently a flavin-based electron bifurcation has been detected in anaerobes, first in clostridia and later in acetogens and methanogens. It enables anaerobic bacteria and archaea to reduce the low-potential [4Fe-4S] clusters of ferredoxin, which increases the efficiency of the substrate level and electron transport phosphorylations. Here we characterize the bifurcating electron transferring flavoprotein (EtfAf) and butyryl-CoA dehydrogenase (BcdAf) of Acidaminococcus fermentans, which couple the exergonic reduction of crotonyl-CoA to butyryl-CoA to the endergonic reduction of ferredoxin both with NADH. EtfAf contains one FAD (α-FAD) in subunit α and a second FAD (β-FAD) in subunit β. The distance between the two isoalloxazine rings is 18 Å. The EtfAf-NAD(+) complex structure revealed β-FAD as acceptor of the hydride of NADH. The formed β-FADH(-) is considered as the bifurcating electron donor. As a result of a domain movement, α-FAD is able to approach β-FADH(-) by about 4 Å and to take up one electron yielding a stable anionic semiquinone, α-FAD, which donates this electron further to Dh-FAD of BcdAf after a second domain movement. The remaining non-stabilized neutral semiquinone, β-FADH(•), immediately reduces ferredoxin. Repetition of this process affords a second reduced ferredoxin and Dh-FADH(-) that converts crotonyl-CoA to butyryl-CoA.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nilanjan Pal Chowdhury
- From the Laboratorium für Mikrobiologie, Fachbereich Biologie and SYNMIKRO, Philipps-Universität, 35032 Marburg, Germany
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