Structure-function relationships in immobilized chymotrypsin catalysis

Specific activities and the amounts of active immobilized enzyme were determined for several different preparations of alpha-chymotrypsin immobilized on CNBr-activated Sepharose 4B. Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy of free and immobilized enzyme with a spin label coupled to the active site was used to probe the effects of different immobilization conditions on the immobilized enzyme active site configuration. Specific activity of active enzyme decreased and rotational correlation time of the spin label increased with increasing immobilized enzyme loading. Enzyme immobilized using an intermediate six-carbon spacer arm exhibited greater specific activity and spin label mobility than directly coupled enzyme. The observed activity changes due to immobilization were completely consistent with corresponding active site structure alterations revealed by EPR spectroscopy.     

Structure-function relationships in immobilized chymotrypsin catalysis

Specific activities and the amounts of active immobilized enzyme were determined for several different preparations of alpha-chymotrypsin immobilized on CNBr-activated Sepharose 4B. Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy of free and immobilized enzyme with a spin label coupled to the active site was used to probe the effects of different immobilization conditions on the immobilized enzyme active site configuration. Specific activity of active enzyme decreased and rotational correlation time of the spin label increased with increasing immobilized enzyme loading. Enzyme immobilized using an intermediate six-carbon spacer arm exhibited greater specific activity and spin label mobility than directly coupled enzyme. The observed activity changes due to immobilization were completely consistent with corresponding active site structure alterations revealed by EPR spectroscopy.     

Determination of metal-metal distances in E. coli glutamine synthetase by EPR.

This paper reports the first determination of the distance between the two metal ions (per subunit) of $\text{E. coli}$ glutamine synthetase. When Mn(II) is bound at the n₁ metal ion site its EPR spectrum is diminished in intensity but not broadened as Cr(III)-ATP or Cr(III)-ADP is bound to the enzyme. A paramagnetic spin-spin interaction is responsible for this phenomenon and a metal-metal distance of ～7 Å is calculated for enzyme - Mn(II) - Cr(III)-ATP and ～6Å for enzyme - Mn(II) - Cr(III)-ADP. The metal-metal distance changes slightly when substrates or inhibitors are also bound to the enzyme demonstrating induced conformational changes in the protein at the metal ion sites.     

In situ ion exchange resin bags to estimate forest site quality

Cation and anion exchange resin bags were placed just under the humus layer at five adjacent forest sample sites with differing site quality classes in order to assess the available nutrient supply. For comparison, humus samples were collected from the same sites. Nutrients were extracted from humus samples by conventional extraction methods and by shaking together with ion exchange resin bags. Ca and Mg corresponded best to differences in site quality class, of all analysed ions in thein situ resin bag eluates. Thein situ resin bag adsorption of NH₄−N, Na and Mn also showed a positive correlation with site quality. The adsorption of PO₄−P was negatively correlated to site quality class. Inadequate amounts of exchange resin, or leaving resin bagsin situ for too long a time result in the replacement of already adsorbed ions by ions with higher ion exchange constants.     

Evidence for an association between a 33 kDa extrinsic membrane protein,manganese and photosynthetic oxygen evolution. I. Correlation with the S2 multiline EPR signal

The removal of peripheral membrane proteins of a molecular mass of 17 and 23 kDa by washing of spinach Photosystem-II (PS II) membranes in 1 M salt between pH 4.5 and 6.5 produces a minimal loss of the S₁ → S₂ reaction, as seen by the multiline EPR signal for the S₂ state of the water-oxidizing complex, while reversibly inhibiting O₂ evolution. The multiline EPR signal simplifies from a ‘19-line’ spectrum to a ‘16-line’ spectrum, suggestive of partial uncoupling of a cluster of 3 or 4 to yield photo-oxidation of a binuclear Mn site. Alkaline salt washing progressively releases a 33 kDa peripheral protein between pH 6.5 and 9.5, in direct parallel with the loss of O₂ evolution and the S₂ multiline EPR signal. The 33 kDa protein can be partially removed (20%) at pH 8.0 prior to managanese release. Salt treatment releases four Mn ions between pH 8.0 and 9.5 with the first 2 or 3 Mn ions released cooperatively. A common binding site is thus suggested in agreement with earlier EPR spectroscopic data establishing a tetranuclear Mn site. At least two of these Mn ions bind directly at a site in the PS II complex for which photooxidation by the reaction center is controlled by the 33 kDa protein. The washing of PS II membranes with 1 M CaCl₂ to affect the release of the 33 kDa protein, while preserving Mn binding to the membrane (Ono, T.-A. and Inoue, Y. (1983) FEBS Lett. 164, 255–260), is found to leave some 33 kDa protein undissociated in proportion to the extent of O₂ evolution and S₂ multiline yield. These depleted membranes do not oxidize water or produce the normal S₂ state without the binding of the 33 kDa protein. A method for the accurate determination of relative concentrations of the peripheral membrane proteins using gel electrophoresis is presented.     

Investigations of the metal ion-binding sites of yeast inorganic pyrophosphatase

Yeast inorganic pyrophosphatase was found to bind two Mn2+ per subunit in the absence of phosphate and three Mn2+ per subunit in the presence of phosphate. Kinetic studies of the pyrophosphatase-catalyzed hydrolysis of Cr(NH3)4PP and Cr(H2O)4PP were carried out with Mn2+ and with Mg2+ as activators. The results from these studies suggest that three divalent cations per pyrophosphatase active site are required for catalysis. NMR and EPR studies were conducted to evaluate the relative location of the metal ion binding sites on the enzyme. The two Mn2+ ions bound to the free enzyme are in close enough proximity to magnetically interact. Analysis of the NMR and EPR data in terms of a dipolar relaxation mechanism between Mn2+ ions provides an estimate of the distance between them of 10-14 A. When the diamagnetic substrate analog [Co(NH3)4PNP]- or intermediate analog [Co(NH3)4 (P)2]- are bound to pyrophosphatase, two Mn2+ ions still bind to the enzyme and their magnetic interaction increases. In the presence of these Co3+ complexes, the Mn2+--Mn2+ separation decreases to 7-9 A. Several NMR and EPR experiments were conducted at low Mn2+ to pyrophosphatase ratios (approximately 0.3), where only one Mn2+ ion binds per subunit, in the presence of Cr3+ or Co3+ complexes of PNP or PP. Analysis of the Mn2+--Cr3+ dipolar relaxation evident in proton NMR and EPR data provided for the calculation of Mn2+--Cr3+ distances. When the substrate analog CrPNP was present, the Mn2+--Cr3+ distance was congruent to 7 A whereas, when Cr(P)2 was bound to pyrophosphatase, the Mn2+--Cr3+ distance was congruent to 5 A. These results strongly support a model for the catalytic site of pyrophosphatase that involves three metal ion cofactors.     

Conversion of cellobiose to glucose using immobilized β-glucosidase reactors

Cellobiose is an intermediate in the enzymatic hydrolysis of cellulose to glucose and acts as an inhibitor for the cellulase enzymes. The conversion of cellobiose to glucose was studied with β-glucosidase adsorbed on Amberlite DP-1, a cation-exchange resin. The best overall pH for adsorption and reactor operation was near 5.0. The K_m values increased with increasing enzyme loading due to competitive inhibition. The maximum practical enzyme loading was about 28 units/g resin. The immobilized enzyme was operated continously in both packed bed and fluidized bed reactors, giving half-lives between 200 and 375 h.     

EPR and magnetic properties of [Mn(μ-Cl)2(bpy)]n: An unusual ferromagnetic interaction in a Mn(II) chloro-bridged polymer

The study of the magnetic properties and EPR spectra of the one-dimensional bis(μ-chloro) Mn(II) polymer [Mn(μ-Cl)₂(bpy)]_n (1) (bpy = 2,2′-bipyridine) is reported. Magnetic susceptibility measurements reveal a weak ferromagnetic interaction between the Mn(II) ions (J = +0.19 cm⁻¹). This is the first polymer of six-coordinated Mn(II) ions with a [Mn₂(μ-Cl)₂]²⁺ magnetic repeating unit, showing a ferromagnetic interaction. The coordination octahedra are elongated in the Cl?Cl direction and the elongation axes are parallel along the chain. Extended Hückel calculations show that the octahedra share an equatorial-apical edge, with the equatorial plane being parallel, and perpendicular to the Mn₂(μ-Cl)₂. Due to this disposition, the overlap through the chloride bridges is small, so the antiferromagnetic contribution must also be small and, therefore, a ferromagnetic behaviour is observed. The EPR spectra of a polycrystalline sample of 1 at different temperatures are also reported. A variation of the bandwidth with temperature is observed, which could be because this ferromagnetic interaction is weak: above 150 K the dipolar interaction is the predominant effect, while below 150 K the magnetic exchange interaction dominates.     

Structural studies on the active site of Escherichia coli RNA polymerase. 1. Interaction of metals on the i and i + 1 sites

The two substrates between which an internucleotide bond is formed in RNA synthesis occupy two subsites, i and i + 1, on the active site of Escherichia coli RNA polymerase, and each subsite is associated with a metal ion. These ions are therefore useful as probes of substrate interaction during RNA synthesis. We have studied interactions between the metals by EPR spectroscopy. The Zn(II) in the i site and the Mg(II) in the i + 1 site were substituted separately or jointly by Mn(II). The proximity of the metals was established by EPR monitoring of the titration at 5.5 K of the enzyme containing Mn(II) in i with Mn(II) going into the i + 1 site, and the 1:1 ratio of the metals in the two sites was confirmed in this way. The distance between the two metals was determined by EPR titration at room temperature of both the enzyme containing Zn(II) in i and Mn(II) in i with Mn(II) going into the i + 1 site, making use of the fact that EPR spectra are affected by dipolar interactions between the metals. The distances calculated in the presence of enzyme alone, in the presence of enzyme and two ATP substrates, and when poly(dAdT).poly(dAdT) was added to the latter system ranged from 5.2 to 6.7 A.     

Mn-Mn interaction in adenylylated and unadenylylated glutamine synthetase

The distance between the two catalytically important metal ions of glutamine synthetase was determined by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR). Mn(II) binds more tightly to the n1 site of this enzyme in the presence of methionine sulfoximine and the influence of Mn(II) bound at the n2 site on the EPR spectrum of Mn(II) at n1 was studied. A monotonic increase in the EPR spectrum of Mn(II) was observed at Mn:E (subunit) ratios of 0 to 0.8. After this point as Mn(II) was added to about 1.8 Mn:E, a decrease in the EPR signal was observed. This phenomenon was found for both adenylylated and unadenylylated forms of glutamine synthetase. The data were analyzed using a theory for dipolar electron-electron relaxation and a distance of 10-12 A was computed for the Mn(II)-Mn(II) separation. These data demonstrate that both modified and unmodified forms of glutamine synthetase which have different catalytic activities have a similar spatial relationship between the two catalytic metal ion sites.     

Characterization of the active site and insight into the binding mode of the anti-angiogenesis agent fumagillin to the manganese(II)-loaded methionyl aminopeptidase from Escherichia coli

EPR spectra were recorded for methionine aminopeptidase from Escherichia coli (EcMetAP-I) samples (~2.5 mM) to which one and two equivalents of Mn(II) were added (the latter is referred to as [MnMn(EcMetAP-I)]). The spectra for each sample were indistinguishable except that the spectrum of [MnMn(EcMetAP-I)] was twice as intense. The EPR spectrum of [MnMn(EcMetAP-I)] exhibited the characteristic six-line g2 EPR signal of mononuclear Mn(II) with A_av(⁵⁵Mn)=9.3 mT (93 G) and exhibited Curie-law temperature dependence. This signal is typical of Mn(II) in a ligand sphere comprising oxygen and/or nitrogen atoms. Other features in the spectrum were observed only as the temperature was raised from that of liquid helium. The temperature dependences of these features are consistent with their assignment to excited state transitions in the S=1, 2 ... 5 non-Kramers doublets, due to two antiferromagnetically coupled Mn(II) ions with an S=0 ground state. This assignment is supported by the observation of a characteristic 4.5 mT hyperfine pattern, and by the presence of signals in the parallel mode consistent with a non-Kramers spin ladder. Upon the addition of the anti-angiogenesis agent fumagillin to [MnMn(EcMetAP-I)], very small changes were observed in the EPR spectrum. MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry indicated that fumagillin was, however, covalently coordinated to EcMetAP-I. Therefore, the inhibitory action of this anti-angiogenesis agent on EcMetAP-I appears to involve covalent binding to a polypeptide component at or near the active site rather than direct binding to the metal ions.     

A study of the binding of Mn2+ to bovine pancreatic deoxyribonuclease I and to deoxyribonucleic acid by electron paramagnetic resonance.

EPR studies of Mn2+ binding to bovine pancreatic deoxyribonuclease I show that the enzyme can bind three Mn2+ ions at pH 7.5 and 2 degrees. Two sites bind Mn2+ strongly, with a Kd of 10(-4)M, and the third binds Mn2+ weakly, with a Kd of 10(-3)M. Ca2+ competes with the two strong sites, whereas Mg2+ competes only with one of them, indicating that both sites are not equivalent. Mn2+ binding to DNA has been confirmed by EPR measurements. Two types of sites, with different affinities for Mn2+ binding, were found on DNA molecules, one with a Kd of 1.2 times 10(-4)M and the other with a Kd of 10(-3)M. Mg2+ ions can displace Mn2+ from the high affinity sites, but not from the low affinity sites. These results suggest the Mn2+ binds not only to the phosphate groups, but also to the electron donor groups of the base rings.     

Specific loss of the extrinsic 18 KDa protein from Photosystem II upon heating to 47 °C causes inactivation of oxygen evolution likely due to Ca release from the Mn-complex

Exposure of Photosystem II (PS II) membrane particles from spinach to a temperature of 47 °C caused the rapid release of the 18 kDa protein in parallel to inactivation of oxygen evolution. Previously, it has been suggested that the first heat-jump response involves rapid Ca release from the Mn complex of O₂-evolution, followed by the slower release of (2 + 2) Mn^II ions [Pospisil P et al. (2003) Biophys J 84: 1370–1386]. Here, the predicted biphasic Mn^II release to the bulk was verified by atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS). Analysis of laser flash-induced delayed fluorescence transients suggests that the loss of the essential Ca ion from the Mn₄Ca complex in the dark is due to the loss of the 18 kDa protein. The S₂-state multiline EPR signal of the Mn complex was still generated in heat-treated PS II presumably lacking Ca, but retaining four Mn ions.Dedicated to Professor Norio Murata on the occasion of his retirement     

A simple and rapid chromatographic method for the immobilization of acetylcholinesterase from electric eel.

Acetylcholinesterase from electric eel is selectively immobilized on Amberlite IR-120 resin equilibrated with Al³⁺ ions. Immobilized acetylcholinesterase activity is stable at least for 85 days in the wet state at 10°C and for 180 days in the dry state at room temperature. Activity determinations in the presence of eserine sulfate, decamethonium bromide, quinidine sulfate and butyryl thiocholine iodide suggested that the immobilized enzyme exhibited essentially the same properties as did the free enzyme.     

The action of gamma irradiation on terrilytin immobilized on cellulose-fiber materials

The effect of gamma-radiation on terrilytin, a proteolytic enzyme immobilized on modified and nonmodified cellulose materials was studied by EPR. Dialdehyde cellulose and graft copolymer of cellulose and polyacrylic acid were used as the modified cellulose materials. Dependence of the native and immobilized terrilytin activity and the content of free radicals in the irradiated samples on the irradiation dose was observed. It was shown that immobilization of the enzyme led to increasing of its stability to the effect of the ionizing radiation. This was due to transfer of the free valency from terrilytin to the carrying polymer which prevented radiation and chemical destruction of the enzyme. The proteolytic activity of native terrilytin subjected to gamma-irradiation markedly decreased because of intramolecular and intermolecular interactions during reactions of the terrilytin free radicals, since in this case there was no polymer as an acceptor of the enzyme free valency.     

Manganese proteins isolated from spinach thylakoid membranes and their role in O2 evolution: II. A binuclear manganese-containing 34 kilodalton protein,a probable component of the water dehydrogenase enzyme

Extraction conditions have been found which result in the retention of managanese to the 33–34 kDa protein, first isolated as an apoprotein by Kuwabara and Murata (Kuwabara, T. and Murata, N. (1979) Biochim. Biophys Acta 581, 228–236). By maintaining an oxidizing-solution potential, with hydrophilic and lipophilic redox buffers during protein extraction of spinach grana-thylakoid membranes, the 33–34 kDa protein is observed to bind a maximum of 2 Mn/protein which are not released by extended dialysis versus buffer. This manganese is a part of the pool of 4 Mn/Photosystem II normally associated with the oxygen-evolving complex. The mechanism for retention of Mn to the protein during isolation appears to be by suppression of chemical reduction of natively bound, high-valent Mn to the labile Mn(II) oxidation state. This protein is also present in stoichiometric levels in highly active, O₂-evolving, detergent-extracted PS-II particles which contain 4–5 Mn/PS II. Conditions which result in the loss of Mn and O₂ evolution activity from functional membranes, such as incubation in 1.5 mM NH₂OH or in ascorbate plus dithionite, also release Mn from the protein. The protein exists as a monomer of 33 kDa by gel filtration and 34 kDa by gel electrophoresis, with an isoelectric point of 5.1 ± 0.1. The protein exhibits an EPR spectrum only below 12 K which extends over at least 2000 G centered at g = 2 consisting of non-uniformly separated hyperfine transitions with average splitting of 45–55 G. The magnitude of this splitting is nominally one-half the splitting observed in monomeric manganese complexes having O or N donor ligands. This is apparently due to electronic coupling of the two ⁵⁵Mn nuclei in a presumed binuclear site. Either a ferromagnetically coupled binuclear Mn₂(III,III) site or an antiferromagnetically coupled mixed-valence Mn₂(II,III) site are considered as possible oxidation states to account for the EPR spectrum. Qualitatively similar hyperfine structure splittings are observed in ferromagnetically coupled binuclear Mn complexes having even-spin ground states. The extreme temperature dependence suggests the population of low-lying excited spin states such as are present in weakly coupled dimers and higher clusters of Mn ions, or, possibly, from efficient spin relaxation such as occurs in the Mn(III) oxidation state. Either 1.5 mM NH₂OH or incubation with reducing agents abolishes the low temperature EPR signal and releases two Mn(II) ions to solution. This is consistent with the presence of Mn(III) in the isolated protein. The intrinsically unstable Mn₂(II,III) oxidation state observed in model compounds favors the assignment of the stable protein oxidation state to the Mn₂(III,III) formulation. This protein exhibits characteristics consistent with an identification with the long-sought Mn site for photosynthetic O₂ evolution. An EPR spectrum having qualitatively similar features is observable in dark-adapted intact, photosynthetic membranes (Dismukes, G.C., Abramowicz, D.A., Ferris, F.K., Mathur, P., Upadrashta, B. and Watnick, P. (1983) in The Oxygen-Evolving System of Plant Photosynthesis (Inoue, Y., ed.), pp. 145–158, Academic Press, Tokyo) and in detergent-extracted, O₂-evolving Photosystem-II particles (Abramowicz, D.A., Raab, T.K. and Dismukes, G.C. (1984) Proceedings of the Sixth International Congress on Photosynthesis (Sybesma, C., ed.), Vol. I, pp. 349–354, Martinus Nijhoff/Dr. W. Junk Publishers, The Hague, The Netherlands), thus establishing a direct link with the O₂ evolving complex.     

Catalytic properties of the immobilized Aspergillus tamarii xylanase

Xylanase from Aspergillus tamarii was covalently immobilized on Duolite A147 pretreated with the bifunctional agent glutaraldehyde. The bound enzyme retained 54.2% of the original specific activity exhibited by the free enzyme (120 U/mg protein). Compared to the free enzyme, the immobilized enzyme exhibited lower optimum pH, higher optimum reaction temperature, lower energy of activation, higher K_m (Michaelis constant), lower V_max (maximal reaction rate). The half-life for the free enzyme was 186.0, 93.0, and 50.0 min for 40, 50, and 60°C, respectively, whereas the immobilized form at the same temperatures had half-life of 320, 136, and 65 min. The deactivation rate constant at 60°C for the immobilized enzyme is about 6.0 × 10⁻³, which is lower than that of the free enzyme (7.77 × 10⁻³ min). The energy of thermal deactivation was 15.22 and 20.72 kcal/mol, respectively for the free and immobilized enzyme, confirming stabilization by immobilization. An external mass transfer resistance was identified with the immobilization carrier (Duolite A147). The effect of some metal ions on the activity of the free and immobilized xylanase has been investigated. The immobilized enzyme retained about 73.0% of the initial catalytic activity even after being used 8 cycles.     

Mn2+ is a native metal ion activator for bacteriophage lambda protein phosphatase

Bacteriophage lambda protein phosphatase (lambdaPP) is a member of a large family of metal-containing phosphoesterases, including purple acid phosphatase, protein serine/threonine phosphatases, 5'-nucleotidase, and DNA repair enzymes such as Mre11. lambdaPP can be activated several-fold by various divalent metal ions, with Mn(2+) and Ni(2+) providing the most significant activation. Despite the extensive characterization of purified lambdaPP in vitro, little is known about the identity and stoichiometry of metal ions used by lambdaPP in vivo. In this report, we describe the use of metal analysis, activity measurements, and whole cell EPR spectroscopy to investigate in vivo metal binding and activation of lambdaPP. Escherichia coli cells overexpressing lambdaPP show a 22.5-fold increase in intracellular Mn concentration and less dramatic changes in the intracellular concentration of other biologically relevant metal ions compared to control cells that do not express lambdaPP. Phosphatase activity assessed using para-nitrophenylphosphate as substrate is increased 850-fold in cells overexpressing lambdaPP, indicating the presence of metal-activated enzyme in cell lysate. EPR spectra of intact cells overexpressing lambdaPP exhibit resonances previously attributed to mononuclear Mn(2+) and dinuclear [(Mn(2+))(2)] species bound to lambdaPP. Spin quantitation of EPR spectra of intact E. coli cells overexpressing lambdaPP indicates the presence of approximately 40 microM mononuclear Mn(2+)-lambdaPP and 60 microM [(Mn(2+))(2)]-lambdaPP. The data suggest that overexpression of lambdaPP results in a mixture of apo-, mononuclear-Mn(2+), and dinuclear-[(Mn(2+))(2)] metalloisoforms and that Mn(2+) is a physiologically relevant activating metal ion in E. coli.     

Batch production of deacetyl 7-aminocephalosporanic acid by immobilized cephalosporin-C deacetylase

Bacillus subtilis SHS0133 cephalosporin-C deacetylase (CAH) overexpressed in Escherichia coli was immobilized on an anion-exchange resin, KA-890, using glutaraldehyde. The activity yield of immobilized enzyme was approximately 55% of the free enzyme. The pH range for stability of the immobilized enzyme (pH 5–10) was broader than that for free enzyme. The K_m^app value of immobilized enzyme for 7-aminocephalosporanic acid (7-ACA) was similar to that of the free enzyme. This immobilized enzyme obeyed Michaelis–Menten kinetics similar to those of the free enzyme. A batch-type reactor with a water jacket was employed for deacetylation of 7-ACA using CAH immobilized on KA-890. Ten kilograms of 7-ACA were completely converted to deacetyl 7-ACA at pH 8.0 within 90 min. The reaction kinetics agreed well with a computer simulation model. Moreover, the immobilized enzyme exhibited only a slight loss of the initial activity even after repeated use (52 times ) over a period of 70 days. This reaction will thus be useful for the production of cephalosporin-type antibiotics.     

Kinetic and spectroscopic studies on the quercetin 2,3-dioxygenase from Bacillus subtilis

Quercetin 2,3-dioxygenase from Bacillus subtilis (QueD) converts the flavonol quercetin and molecular oxygen to 2-protocatechuoylphloroglucinolcarboxylic acid and carbon monoxide. QueD, the only known quercetin 2,3-dioxygenase from a prokaryotic organism, has been described as an Fe2+-dependent bicupin dioxygenase. Metal-substituted QueDs were generated by expressing the enzyme in Escherichia coli grown on minimal media in the presence of a number of divalent metals. The addition of Mn2+, Co2+, and Cu2+ generated active enzymes, but the addition of Zn2+, Fe2+, and Cd2+ did not increase quercetinase activity to any significant level over a control in which no divalent ions were added to the media. The Mn2+- and Co2+-containing QueDs were purified, characterized by metal analysis and EPR spectroscopy, and studied by steady-state kinetics. Mn2+ was found to be incorporated nearly stoichiometrically to the two cupin motifs. The hyperfine coupling constant of the g = 2 signal in the EPR spectra of the Mn2+-containing enzyme showed that the two Mn2+ ions are ligated in an octahedral coordination. The turnover number of this enzyme was found to be in the order of 25 s(-1), nearly 40-fold higher than that of the Fe2+-containing enzyme and similar in magnitude to that of the Cu2+-containing quercertin 2,3-dioxygenase from Aspergillus japonicus. In addition, kinetic and spectroscopic data suggest that the catalytic mechanism of QueD is different from that of the Aspergillus quercetinases but similar to that proposed for the extradiol catechol dioxygenases. This study provides evidence that Mn2+ might be the preferred cofactor for this enzyme and identifies QueD as a new member of the manganese dioxygenase family.