CONSPECTUSThe controlled oxidation of methane to methanol is a chemical transformation of great industrial importance that is underutilized because of inefficient and costly synthetic procedures. Methane monooxygenase enzymes (MMOs) from methanotrophic bacteria achieve this chemistry efficiently under ambient conditions. In this Account we discuss the first step in the oxidation of methane at the carboxylate-bridged diiron active site of the soluble MMO (sMMO), namely, the reductive activation of atmospheric O 2 . The results provide benchmarks against which the dioxygen activation mechanisms of other bacterial multicomponent monooxygenases can be measured.Molecular oxygen reacts rapidly with the reduced, diiron(II) center of the hydroxylase component of sMMO (MMOH). The first spectroscopically characterized intermediate that results from this process is an antiferromagnetically coupled peroxodiiron(III) species, P*, in which the iron atoms have identical environments. P* converts to a second peroxodiiron(III) unit, H peroxo , in a process accompanied by the transfer of a proton, probably with the assistance of a residue near the active site. Proton-promoted O-O bond scission and rearrangement of the diiron core then leads to a diiron(IV) unit termed Q that is directly responsible for the oxidation of methane to methanol. In the first half of this Account we provide a detailed discussion of these processes, with particular emphasis on possible structures of the intermediates. The geometries of P* and H peroxo are currently unknown, and recent synthetic modeling chemistry has highlighted the need for further structural characterization of Q, previously assigned as a di(μ-oxo)diiron(IV) `diamond core'.In the second half of the Account, we discuss in detail proton transfer during the O 2 activation events. The role of protons in promoting O-O bond cleavage, thereby initiating the conversion of H peroxo to Q, was previously a controversial topic. Recent studies performed over a range of pH values and in D 2 O instead of H 2 O confirmed conclusively that the transfer of protons, possibly at * To whom correspondence should be addressed. lippard@mit.edu. Telephone: (617) 253-1892. Fax: (617) or near the active site, is necessary for both P* to H peroxo and H peroxo to Q conversions. Specific mechanistic insights into these processes are provided.In the last section of the Account we present our view of experiments that need to be done to further define crucial aspects of sMMO chemistry. Here our goal is to provide the reader with the challenges that we and others face in this research, particularly with respect to some longstanding questions about the system, as well as approaches that might be used to solve them. INTRODUCTIONA current challenge in renewable energy is the development of processes that allow us to generate alternative fuels in a sustainable manner. Methane gas is an abundant precursor of liquid fuels, but current strategies for its selective conversion to methanol, a necessary step in its utilization,...

The ability to design proteins with high affinity and selectivity for any given small molecule would have numerous applications in biosensing, diagnostics, and therapeutics, and is a rigorous test of our understanding of the physiochemical principles that govern molecular recognition phenomena. Attempts to design ligand binding proteins have met with little success, however, and the computational design of precise molecular recognition between proteins and small molecules remains an “unsolved problem”1. We describe a general method for the computational design of small molecule binding sites with pre-organized hydrogen bonding and hydrophobic interfaces and high overall shape complementary to the ligand, and use it to design protein binding sites for the steroid digoxigenin (DIG). Of 17 designs that were experimentally characterized, two bind DIG; the highest affinity design has the lowest predicted interaction energy and the most pre-organized binding site in the set. A comprehensive binding-fitness landscape of this design generated by library selection and deep sequencing was used to guide optimization of binding affinity to a picomolar level, and two X-ray co-crystal structures of optimized complexes show atomic level agreement with the design models. The designed binder has a high selectivity for DIG over the related steroids digitoxigenin, progesterone, and β-estradiol, which can be reprogrammed through the designed hydrogen-bonding interactions. Taken together, the binding fitness landscape, co-crystal structures, and thermodynamic binding parameters illustrate how increases in binding affinity can result from distal sequence changes that limit the protein ensemble to conformers making the most energetically favorable interactions with the ligand. The computational design method presented here should enable the development of a new generation of biosensors, therapeutics, and diagnostics.

The presence of zinc in glutamatergic synaptic vesicles of excitatory neurons of mammalian cerebral cortex suggests that zinc might regulate plasticity of synapses formed by these neurons. Long term potentiation (LTP) is a form of synaptic plasticity that may underlie learning and memory. We tested the hypothesis that zinc within vesicles of mossy fibers (mf) contributes to mf-LTP, a classical form of presynaptic LTP. We synthesized an extracellular zinc chelator with selectivity and kinetic properties suitable for study of the large transient of zinc in the synaptic cleft induced by mf stimulation. We found that vesicular zinc is required for presynaptic mf-LTP. Unexpectedly, vesicular zinc also inhibits a novel form of postsynaptic mf-LTP. Because the mf-CA3 synapse provides a major source of excitatory input to the hippocampus, regulating its efficacy by these dual actions of vesicular zinc is critical to proper function of hippocampal circuitry in health and disease.

For many drugs, finding the balance between efficacy and toxicity requires monitoring their concentrations in the patient's blood. Quantifying drug levels at the bedside or at home would have advantages in terms of therapeutic outcome and convenience, but current techniques require the setting of a diagnostic laboratory. We have developed semisynthetic bioluminescent sensors that permit precise measurements of drug concentrations in patient samples by spotting minimal volumes on paper and recording the signal using a simple point-and-shoot camera. Our sensors have a modular design consisting of a protein-based and a synthetic part and can be engineered to selectively recognize a wide range of drugs, including immunosuppressants, antiepileptics, anticancer agents and antiarrhythmics. This low-cost point-of-care method could make therapies safer, increase the convenience of doctors and patients and make therapeutic drug monitoring available in regions with poor infrastructure.