Over the past decades, a number of authors have reported the presence of inactive species in as-prepared samples of members of the Mo/W-bisPGD enzyme family. This greatly complicated the spectroscopic studies of these enzymes, since it is impossible to discriminate between active and inactive species on the basis of the spectroscopic signatures alone. Escherichia coli nitrate reductase A (NarGHI) is a member of the Mo/W-bisPGD family that allows anaerobic respiration using nitrate as terminal electron acceptor. Here, using protein film voltammetry on NarGH films, we show that the enzyme is purified in a functionally heterogeneous form that contains between 20 and 40% of inactive species that activate the first time they are reduced. This activation proceeds in two steps: a non-redox reversible reaction followed by an irreversible reduction. By carefully correlating electrochemical and EPR spectroscopic data, we show that neither the two major Mo(V) signals nor those of the two FeS clusters that are the closest to the Mo center are associated with the two inactive species. We also conclusively exclude the possibility that the major "low-pH" and "high-pH" Mo(V) EPR signatures correspond to species in acid-base equilibrium.
The mechanism of H2 evolution catalyzed by the [Co(N4H)Cl2]+ complex is elucidated with quantitative determination of the rate-constants for the various protonation steps, and the identification of the aliphatic amine to act as a proton relay.
Respiratory nitrate reductases (Nars), members of the prokaryotic Mo/W-bis Pyranopterin Guanosine dinucleotide (Mo/W-bisPGD) enzyme superfamily, are key players in nitrate respiration, a major bioenergetic pathway widely used by microorganisms to cope with the absence of dioxygen. The two-electron reduction of nitrate to nitrite takes place at their active site, where the molybdenum ion cycles between Mo(VI) and Mo(IV) states via a Mo(V) intermediate. The active site shows two distinct pH-dependent Mo(V) electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) signals whose structure and catalytic relevance have long been debated. In this study, we use EPR and HYSCORE techniques to probe their nuclear environment in Escherichia coli Nar (EcNar). By using samples prepared at different pH and through different enrichment strategies in Mo andN nuclei, we demonstrate that each of the two Mo(V) species is coupled to a single nitrogen nucleus with similar quadrupole characteristics. Structure-based density functional theory calculations allow us to propose a molecular model of the low-pH Mo(V) species consistent with EPR spectroscopic data. Our results show that the metal ion is coordinated by a monodentate aspartate ligand and permit the assignment of the coupled nitrogen nuclei to the Nδ of Asn52, a residue located ∼3.9 Å to the Mo atom in the crystal structures. This is confirmed by measurements on selectively N-Asn labeled EcNar. Further, we propose a Mo-O(H)···HN structure to account for the transfer of spin density onto the interacting nitrogen nucleus deduced from HYSCORE analysis. This work provides a foundation for monitoring the structure of the molybdenum active site in the presence of various substrates or inhibitors in Nars and other molybdenum enzymes.
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