Spectroscopic and genetic evidence for two heme-Cu-containing oxidases in Rhodobacter sphaeroides.

It has recently become evident that many bacterial respiratory oxidases are members of a superfamily that is related to the eukaryotic cytochrome c oxidase. These oxidases catalyze the reduction of oxygen to water at a heme-copper binuclear center. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy has been used to examine the heme-copper-containing respiratory oxidases of Rhodobacter sphaeroides Ga. This technique monitors the stretching frequency of CO bound at the oxygen binding site and can be used to characterize the oxidases in situ with membrane preparations. Oxidases that have a heme-copper binuclear center are recognizable by FTIR spectroscopy because the bound CO moves from the heme iron to the nearby copper upon photolysis at low temperature, where it exhibits a diagnostic spectrum. The FTIR spectra indicate that the binuclear center of the R. sphaeroides aa3-type cytochrome c oxidase is remarkably similar to that of the bovine mitochondrial oxidase. Upon deletion of the ctaD gene, encoding subunit I of the aa3-type oxidase, substantial cytochrome c oxidase remains in the membranes of aerobically grown R. sphaeroides. This correlates with a second wild-type R. sphaeroides is grown photosynthetically, the chromatophore membranes lack the aa3-type oxidase but have this second heme-copper oxidase. Subunit I of the heme-copper oxidase superfamily contains the binuclear center. Amino acid sequence alignments show that this subunit is structurally very highly conserved among both eukaryotic and prokaryotic species. The polymerase chain reaction was used to show that the chromosome of R. sphaeroides contains at least one other gene that is a homolog of ctaD, the gene encoding subunit I of the aa3-type cytochrome c oxidase.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Time-resolved single-turnover of ba3 oxidase from Thermus thermophilus

The kinetics of the oxidation of fully-reduced ba(3) cytochrome c oxidase from Thermus thermophilus by oxygen were followed by time-resolved optical spectroscopy and electrometry. Four catalytic intermediates were resolved during this reaction. The chemical nature and the spectral properties of three intermediates (compounds A, P and O) reproduce the general features of aa(3)-type oxidases. However the F intermediate in ba(3) oxidase has a spectrum identical to the P state. This indicates that the proton taken up during the P-->F transition does not reside in the binuclear site but is rather transferred to the covalently cross-linked tyrosine near that site. The total charge translocation associated with the F-->O transition in ba(3) oxidase is close to that observed during the F-->O transition in the aa(3) oxidases. However, the P(R)-->F transition is characterized by significantly lower charge translocation, which probably reflects the overall lower measured pumping efficiency during multiple turnovers.     

Time-resolved step-scan Fourier transform infrared investigation of heme-copper oxidases: implications for O2 input and H2O/H+ output channels

We have applied FTIR and time-resolved step-scan Fourier transform infrared (TRS(2)-FTIR) spectroscopy to investigate the dynamics of the heme-Cu(B) binuclear center and the protein dynamics of mammalian aa(3), Pseudomonas stutzeri cbb(3), and caa(3) and ba(3) from Thermus thermophilus cytochrome oxidases. The implications of these results with respect to (1) the molecular motions that are general to the photodynamics of the binuclear center in heme-copper oxidases, and (2) the proton pathways located in the ring A propionate of heme a(3)-Asp372-H(2)O site that is conserved among all structurally known oxidases are discussed.     

Demonstration by FTIR that the bo-type ubiquinol oxidase of Escherichia coli contains a heme-copper binuclear center similar to that in cytochrome c oxidase and that proper assembly of the binuclear center requires the cyoE gene product.

Amino acid sequence data have revealed that the bo-type ubiquinol oxidase from Escherichia coli is closely related to the eukaryotic aa3-type cytochrome c oxidases. In the cytochrome c oxidases, the reduction of oxygen to water occurs at a binuclear center comprised of heme a3 and Cu(B). In this paper, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy of CO bound to the enzyme is used to directly demonstrate that the E. coli bo-type ubiquinol oxidase also contains a heme-copper binuclear center. Photolysis of CO ligated to heme o at low temperatures (e.g., 30 K) results in formation of a CO-Cu complex, showing that there is a heme-Cu(B) binuclear center similar to that formed by heme a3 and Cu(B) in the eukaryotic oxidase. It is further demonstrated that the cyoE gene product is required for the correct assembly of this binuclear center, although this polypeptide is not required as a component of the active enzyme in vitro. The cyoE gene product is homologous to COX10, a nuclear gene product from Saccharomyces cerevisiae, which is required for the assembly of yeast cytochrome c oxidase. Deletion of the cyoE gene results in an inactive quinol oxidase that is, however, assembled in the membrane. FTIR analysis of bound CO shows that Cu(B) is present in this mutant but that the heme-Cu(B) binuclear center is abnormal. Analysis of the heme content of the membrane suggests that the cyoE deletion results in the insertion of heme B (protoheme IX) in the binuclear center, rather than heme O.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Terminal oxidases of Bacillus subtilis strain 168: one quinol oxidase, cytochrome aa(3) or cytochrome bd, is required for aerobic growth

The gram-positive endospore-forming bacterium Bacillus subtilis has, under aerobic conditions, a branched respiratory system comprising one quinol oxidase branch and one cytochrome oxidase branch. The system terminates in one of four alternative terminal oxidases. Cytochrome caa(3) is a cytochrome c oxidase, whereas cytochrome bd and cytochrome aa(3) are quinol oxidases. A fourth terminal oxidase, YthAB, is a putative quinol oxidase predicted from DNA sequence analysis. None of the terminal oxidases are, by themselves, essential for growth. However, one quinol oxidase (cytochrome aa(3) or cytochrome bd) is required for aerobic growth of B. subtilis strain 168. Data indicating that cytochrome aa(3) is the major oxidase used by exponentially growing cells in minimal and rich medium are presented. We show that one of the two heme-copper oxidases, cytochrome caa(3) or cytochrome aa(3), is required for efficient sporulation of B. subtilis strain 168 and that deletion of YthAB in a strain lacking cytochrome aa(3) makes the strain sporulation deficient.     

Over-expression of cbaAB genes of Bacillus stearothermophilus produces a two-subunit SoxB-type cytochrome c oxidase with proton pumping activity

We constructed expression plasmids containing cbaAB, the structural genes for the two-subunit cytochrome bo(3)-type cytochrome c oxidase (SoxB type) recently isolated from a Gram-positive thermophile Bacillus stearothermophilus. B. stearothermophilus cells transformed with the plasmids over-expressed an enzymatically active bo(3)-type cytochrome c oxidase protein composed of the two subunits, while the transformed Escherichia coli cells produced an inactive protein composed of subunit I without subunit II. The oxidase over-expressed in B. stearothermophilus was solubilized and purified. The oxidase contained protoheme IX and heme O, as the main low-spin heme and the high-spin heme, respectively. Analysis of the substrate specificity indicated that the high-affinity site is very specific for cytochrome c-551, a cytochrome c that is a membrane-bound lipoprotein of thermophilic Bacillus. The purified enzyme reconstituted into liposomal vesicles with cytochrome c-551 showed H(+) pumping activity, although the efficiency was lower than those of cytochrome aa(3)-type oxidases belonging to the SoxM-type.     

Biogenesis of cbb(3)-type cytochrome c oxidase in Rhodobacter capsulatus

The cbb(3)-type cytochrome c oxidases (cbb(3)-Cox) constitute the second most abundant cytochrome c oxidase (Cox) group after the mitochondrial-like aa(3)-type Cox. They are present in bacteria only, and are considered to represent a primordial innovation in the domain of Eubacteria due to their phylogenetic distribution and their similarity to nitric oxide (NO) reductases. They are crucial for the onset of many anaerobic biological processes, such as anoxygenic photosynthesis or nitrogen fixation. In addition, they are prevalent in many pathogenic bacteria, and important for colonizing low oxygen tissues. Studies related to cbb(3)-Cox provide a fascinating paradigm for the biogenesis of sophisticated oligomeric membrane proteins. Complex subunit maturation and assembly machineries, producing the c-type cytochromes and the binuclear heme b(3)-Cu(B) center, have to be coordinated precisely both temporally and spatially to yield a functional cbb(3)-Cox enzyme. In this review we summarize our current knowledge on the structure, regulation and assembly of cbb(3)-Cox, and provide a highly tentative model for cbb(3)-Cox assembly and formation of its heme b(3)-Cu(B) binuclear center. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Biogenesis/Assembly of Respiratory Enzyme Complexes.     

Molecular cloning, sequencing, and physiological characterization of the qox operon from Bacillus subtilis encoding the aa3-600 quinol oxidase.

Bacillus subtilis contains two aa3-type terminal oxidases (caa3-605 and aa3-600) catalyzing cytochrome c and quinol oxidation, respectively, with the concomitant reduction of O2 to H2O (Lauraeus, M., Haltia, T., Saraste, M., and Wikstr?m, M. (1991) Eur. J. Biochem. 197, 699-705). Previous studies characterized only the structural genes of caa3-605 oxidase. We isolated the genes coding for the four subunits of a B. subtilis terminal oxidase from a genomic DNA library. These genes, named qoxA to qoxD, are organized in an operon. Examination of the deduced amino acid sequence of Qox subunits showed that this oxidase is structurally related to the large family of mitochondrial-type aa3 terminal oxidases. In particular, the amino acid sequences are very similar to those of subunits of Escherichia coli bo quinol oxidase and B. subtilis caa3-605 cytochrome c oxidase. We produced, by in vitro mutagenesis, a mutation in the qox operon. From the phenotype of the mutant strain devoid of Qox protein, the study of expression of the qox operon in different growth conditions, and the analysis of the deduced amino acid sequence of the subunits, we concluded that Qox protein and aa3-600 quinol oxidase are the same protein. Although several terminal oxidases are found in B. subtilis, Qox oxidase (aa3-600) is predominant during the vegetative growth and its absence leads to important alterations of the phenotype of B. subtilis.     

A cytochrome bb'-type quinol oxidase in Bacillus subtilis strain 168.

The aerobic respiratory system of Bacillus subtilis 168 is known to contain three terminal oxidases: cytochrome caa(3), which is a cytochrome c oxidase, and cytochrome aa(3) and bd, which are quinol oxidases. The presence of a possible fourth oxidase in the bacterium was investigated using a constructed mutant, LUH27, that lacks the aa(3) and caa(3) terminal oxidases and is also deficient in succinate:menaquinone oxidoreductase. The cytochrome bd content of LUH27 can be varied by using different growth conditions. LUH27 membranes virtually devoid of cytochrome bd respired with NADH or exogenous quinol as actively as preparations containing 0.4 nmol of cytochrome bd/mg of protein but were more sensitive to cyanide and aurachin D. The reduced minus oxidized difference spectra of the bd-deficient membranes as well as absorption changes induced by CO and cyanide indicated the presence of a "cytochrome o"-like component; however, the membranes did not contain heme O. The results provide strong evidence for the presence of a terminal oxidase of the bb' type in B. subtilis. The enzyme does not pump protons and combines with CO much faster than typical heme-copper oxidases; in these respects, it resembles a cytochrome bd rather than members of the heme-copper oxidase superfamily. The genome sequence of B. subtilis 168 contains gene clusters for four respiratory oxidases. Two of these clusters, cta and qox, are deleted in LUH27. The remaining two, cydAB and ythAB, encode the identified cytochrome bd and a putative second cytochrome bd, respectively. Deletion of ythAB in strain LUH27 or the presence of the yth genes on plasmid did not affect the expression of the bb' oxidase. It is concluded that the novel bb'-type oxidase probably is cytochrome bd encoded by the cyd locus but with heme D being substituted by high spin heme B at the oxygen reactive site, i.e. cytochrome b(558)b(595)b'.     

Recent studies of the cytochrome o terminal oxidase complex of Escherichia coli

The cytochrome o complex is the predominant terminal oxidase in the aerobic respiratory chain of Escherichia coli when the bacteria are grown under conditions of high aeration. The oxidase is a ubiquinol oxidase and reduces molecular oxygen to water. Electron transport through the enzyme is coupled to the generation of a protonmotive force. The purified cytochrome o complex contains four or five subunits, two protoheme IX (heme b) prosthetic groups, plus at least one Cu. The subunits are all encoded by the cyo operon. Sequence comparisons show that the cytochrome o complex is closely related to the aa3-type cytochrome c oxidase family. Gene fusions have been used to define the topology of each of the gene products. Subunits I, II, III and IV are proposed to have 15, 2, 5 and 3 transmembrane spans, respectively. The fifth gene product (cyoE) encodes a protein with 7 membrane spanning segments, and this may also be a subunit of this enzyme. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy has been used to monitor CO bound in the active site where oxygen is reduced. These data provide definitive proof that the cytochrome o complex has a heme-copper binuclear center, similar to that present in the aa3-type cytochrome c oxidases. Site-directed mutagenesis is being utilized to define which amino acids are ligands to the heme iron and copper prosthetic groups.     

Optical and resonance Raman spectroscopy of the heme groups of the quinol-oxidizing cytochrome aa3 of Bacillus subtilis.

The cytochrome aa3-type terminal quinol oxidase of Bacillus subtilis catalyzes the four-electron reduction of dioxygen to water. It resembles the aa3-type cytochrome-c oxidase in using heme A as its active-site chromophores but lacks the CuA center and the cytochrome-c oxidizing activity of the mitochondrial enzyme. We have used optical and resonance Raman spectroscopies to study the B. subtilis oxidase in detail. The alpha-band absorption maximum of the reduced minus oxidized enzyme is shifted by 5-7 nm to the blue relative to most other aa3-type oxidases, and accordingly, we designate the Bacillus enzyme as cytochrome aa3-600. The shifted optical spectrum cannot be ascribed to an alteration in the strength of the hydrogen bond between the formyl group of the low-spin heme and its environment, as the Raman line assigned to this mode in aa3-600 has the same frequency and degree of resonance enhancement as the low-spin heme a formyl mode in most other aa3-type oxidases. Raman modes arise at 194 and 214 cm-1 in aa3-600, whereas a single band at about 214 cm-1 is assigned to the iron-histidine stretch for the other aa3-type oxidases. Possible explanations for the occurrence of these two modes are discussed. Comparison of formyl and vinyl modes and heme skeletal vibrational modes in different oxidation states of aa3-600 and of beef heart cytochrome-c oxidase shows a strong similarity, which suggests conservation of essential features of the heme environments in these oxidases.     

Gene cluster of Rhodothermus marinus high-potential iron-sulfur Protein: oxygen oxidoreductase, a caa(3)-type oxidase belonging to the superfamily of heme-copper oxidases

The respiratory chain of the thermohalophilic bacterium Rhodothermus marinus contains an oxygen reductase, which uses HiPIP (high potential iron-sulfur protein) as an electron donor. The structural genes encoding the four subunits of this HiPIP:oxygen oxidoreductase were cloned and sequenced. The genes for subunits II, I, III, and IV (named rcoxA to rcoxD) are found in this order and seemed to be organized in an operon of at least five genes with a terminator structure a few nucleotides downstream of rcoxD. Examination of the amino acid sequence of the Rcox subunits shows that the subunits of the R. marinus enzyme have homology to the corresponding subunits of oxidases belonging to the superfamily of heme-copper oxidases. RcoxB has the conserved histidines involved in binding the binuclear center and the low-spin heme. All of the residues proposed to be involved in proton transfer channels are conserved, with the exception of the key glutamate residue of the D-channel (E(278), Paracoccus denitrificans numbering). Analysis of the homology-derived structural model of subunit I shows that the phenol group of a tyrosine (Y) residue and the hydroxyl group of the following serine (S) may functionally substitute the glutamate carboxyl in proton transfer. RcoxA has an additional sequence for heme C binding, after the Cu(A) domain, that is characteristic of caa(3) oxidases belonging to the superfamily. Homology modeling of the structure of this cytochrome domain of subunit II shows no marked electrostatic character, especially around the heme edge region, suggesting that the interaction with a redox partner is not of an electrostatic nature. This observation is analyzed in relation to the electron donor for this caa(3) oxidase, the HiPIP. In conclusion, it is shown that an oxidase, which uses an iron-sulfur protein as an electron donor, is structurally related to the caa(3) class of heme-copper cytochrome c oxidases. The data are discussed in the framework of the evolution of oxidases within the superfamily of heme-copper oxidases.     

Structure at 1.3 A resolution of Rhodothermus marinus caa(3) cytochrome c domain

The cytochrome c domain of subunit II from the Rhodothermus marinus caa(3) HiPIP:oxygen oxidoreductase, a member of the superfamily of heme-copper-containing terminal oxidases, was produced in Escherichia coli and characterised. The recombinant protein, which shows the same optical absorption and redox properties as the corresponding domain in the holo enzyme, was crystallized and its structure was determined to a resolution of 1.3 A by the multiwavelength anomalous dispersion (MAD) technique using the anomalous dispersion of the heme iron atom. The model was refined to final R(cryst) and R(free) values of 13.9% and 16.7%, respectively. The structure reveals the insertion of two short antiparallel beta-strands forming a small beta-sheet, an interesting variation of the classical all alpha-helical cytochrome c fold. This modification appears to be common to all known caa(3)-type terminal oxidases, as judged by comparative modelling and by analyses of the available amino acid sequences for these enzymes. This is the first high-resolution crystal structure reported for a cytochrome c domain of a caa(3)-type terminal oxidase. The R.marinus caa(3) uses HiPIP as the redox partner. The calculation of the electrostatic potential at the molecular surface of this extra C-terminal domain provides insights into the binding to its redox partner on one side and its interaction with the remaining subunit II on the other side.     

Kinetics of electron and proton transfer during O(2) reduction in cytochrome aa(3) from A. ambivalens: an enzyme lacking Glu(I-286)

Acidianus ambivalens is a hyperthermoacidophilic archaeon which grows optimally at approximately 80 degrees C and pH 2.5. The terminal oxidase of its respiratory system is a membrane-bound quinol oxidase (cytochrome aa(3)) which belongs to the heme-copper oxidase superfamily. One difference between this quinol oxidase and a majority of the other members of this family is that it lacks the highly-conserved glutamate (Glu(I-286), E. coli ubiquinol oxidase numbering) which has been shown to play a central role in controlling the proton transfer during reaction of reduced oxidases with oxygen. In this study we have investigated the dynamics of the reaction of the reduced A. ambivalens quinol oxidase with O(2). With the purified enzyme, two kinetic phases were observed with rate constants of 1.8&z.ccirf;10(4) s(-1) (at 1 mM O(2), pH 7.8) and 3. 7x10(3) s(-1), respectively. The first phase is attributed to binding of O(2) to heme a(3) and oxidation of both hemes forming the 'peroxy' intermediate. The second phase was associated with proton uptake from solution and it is attributed to formation of the 'oxo-ferryl' state, the final state in the absence of quinol. In the presence of bound caldariella quinol (QH(2)), heme a was re-reduced by QH(2) with a rate of 670 s(-1), followed by transfer of the fourth electron to the binuclear center with a rate of 50 s(-1). Thus, the results indicate that the quinol donates electrons to heme a, followed by intramolecular transfer to the binuclear center. Moreover, the overall electron and proton-transfer kinetics in the A. ambivalens quinol oxidase are the same as those in the E. coli ubiquinol oxidase, which indicates that in the A. ambivalens enzyme a different pathway is used for proton transfer to the binuclear center and/or other protonatable groups in an equivalent pathway are involved. Potential candidates in that pathway are two glutamates at positions (I-80) and (I-83) in the A. ambivalens enzyme (corresponding to Met(I-116) and Val(I-119), respectively, in E. coli cytochrome bo(3)).     

Concerted involvement of cooperative proton-electron linkage and water production in the proton pump of cytochrome c oxidase

In cytochrome c oxidase, oxido-reductions of heme a/Cu(A) and heme a3/Cu(B) are cooperatively linked to proton transfer at acid/base groups in the enzyme. H+/e- cooperative linkage at Fe(a3)/Cu(B) is envisaged to be involved in proton pump mechanisms confined to the binuclear center. Models have also been proposed which involve a role in proton pumping of cooperative H+/e- linkage at heme a (and Cu(A)). Observations will be presented on: (i) proton consumption in the reduction of molecular oxygen to H2O in soluble bovine heart cytochrome c oxidase; (ii) proton release/uptake associated with anaerobic oxidation/reduction of heme a/Cu(A) and heme a3/Cu(B) in the soluble oxidase; (iii) H+ release in the external phase (i.e. H+ pumping) associated with the oxidative (R-->O transition), reductive (O-->R transition) and a full catalytic cycle (R-->O-->R transition) of membrane-reconstituted cytochrome c oxidase. A model is presented in which cooperative H+/e- linkage at heme a/Cu(A) and heme a3/Cu(B) with acid/base clusters, C1 and C2 respectively, and protonmotive steps of the reduction of O2 to water are involved in proton pumping.     

Study of redox potential in cytochrome <Emphasis Type="Italic">c</Emphasis> covalently bound to terminal oxidase of alkaliphilic <Emphasis Type="Italic">Bacillus pseudofirmus</Emphasis> FTU

Spectroelectrochemistry was used to determine the midpoint redox potentials of heme cofactors of the caa3-type cytochrome oxidase from the alkaliphilic bacterium Bacillus pseudofirmus FTU. The apparent midpoint potentials (E(m)(app)) for the most prominent transitions of hemes a and a3 (+193 and +334 mV, respectively) were found to be similar to the values reported for other enzymes with high homology to the caa3-type oxidase. In contrast, the midpoint potential of the covalently bound cytochrome c (+89 mV) was 150-170 mV lower than in cytochromes c, either low molecular weight or covalently bound to the caa3 complex in all known aerobic neutralophilic and thermo-neutralophilic bacteria. Such an unusually low redox potential of the covalently bound cytochrome c of the caa3-type oxidase of alkaliphilic bacteria, together with high redox potentials of hemes a and a3, ensures more than twice higher difference in redox potentials inside the respiratory complex compared to the homologous mitochondrial enzyme. The energy released during this redox transition might be stored in the transmembrane H+ gradient even under low Deltap in the alkaline environment of the bacteria at the expense of a significant increase in DeltaG of the coupled redox reaction.     

Cytochrome c oxidase: charge translocation coupled to single-electron partial steps of the catalytic cycle

The paper presents a survey of time-resolved studies of charge translocation by cytochrome c oxidase coupled to transfer of the 1st, 2nd 3rd and 4th electrons in the catalytic cycle. Single-electron photoreduction experiments carried out with the A-class cytochrome c oxidases of aa(3) type from mitochondria, Rhodobacter sphaeroides and Paracoccus denitrificans as well as with the ba(3)-type oxidase from Thermus thermophilus indicate that the protonmotive mechanisms, although similar, may not be identical for different partial steps in the same enzyme species, as well as for the same single-electron transition in different oxidases. The pattern of charge translocation coupled to transfer of a single electron in the A-class oxidases confirms major predictions of the original model of proton pumping by cytochrome oxidase [Artzatbanov, V. Y., Konstantinov, A. A. and Skulachev, V.P. "Involvement of Intramitochondrial Protons in Redox Reactions of Cytochrome a." FEBS Lett. 87: 180-185]. The intermediates and partial electrogenic steps observed in the single-electron photoreduction experiments may be very different from those observed during oxidation of the fully reduced oxidase by O(2) in the "flow-flash" studies. .     

Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and step-scan time-resolved FTIR spectroscopies reveal a unique active site in cytochrome caa3 oxidase from Thermus thermophilus

Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and step-scan time-resolved FTIR difference spectra are reported for the [carbonmonoxy]cytochrome caa(3) from Thermus thermophilus. A major C-O mode of heme a(3) at 1958 cm(-1) and two minor modes at 1967 and 1975 cm(-1) (7:1:1) have been identified at room temperature and remained unchanged in H(2)O/D(2)O exchange. The observed C-O frequencies are 10 cm(-1) higher than those obtained previously at 21 K (Einarsdóttir, O., Killough, P. M., Fee, J. A., and Woodruff, W. H. (1989) J. Biol. Chem. 264, 2405-2408). The time-resolved FTIR data indicate that the transient Cu(B)(1+)-CO complex is formed at room temperature as revealed by the CO stretching mode at 2062 cm(-1). Therefore, the caa(3) enzyme is the only documented member of the heme-copper superfamily whose binuclear center consists of an a(3)-type heme of a beta-form and a Cu(B) atom of an alpha-form. These results illustrate that the properties of the binuclear center in other oxidases resulting in the alpha-form are not required for enzymatic activity. Dissociation of the transient Cu(B)(1+)-CO complex is biphasic. The rate of decay is 2.3 x 10(4) s(-1) (fast phase, 35%) and 36.3 s(-1) (slow phase, 65%). The observed rate of rebinding to heme a(3) is 34.1 s(-1). The implications of these results with respect to the molecular motions that are general to the photodynamics of the binuclear center in heme-copper oxidases are discussed.     

Bacillus subtilis expresses two kinds of haem-A-containing terminal oxidases

The expression of two different aa3-type cytochrome oxidases is demonstrated in Bacillus subtilis. One of them (denoted caa3-605), was predicted by DNA-sequencing of Bacillus cytochrome oxidase genes, but has not been found previously. It contains covalently bound haem C in subunit II and is very similar to the enzyme previously described in the thermophilic bacterium PS3. The other oxidase (denoted aa3-600) deviates from most known oxidases of aa3 type, and is probably identical with the oxidase described by de Vrij et al. [de Vrij, W., Azzi, A. & Konings, W. N. (1983) Eur. J. Biochem. 131, 97-103]. It shows no immunological cross-reactivity to the PS3 enzyme and differs from this spectroscopically; it contains no CuA and does not oxidise cytochrome c despite of its haem-A chromophores. It catalyses oxidation of quinols, which is proposed to be its physiological function.     

Stabilization of the peroxy intermediate in the oxygen splitting reaction of cytochrome cbb(3)

The proton-pumping cbb(3)-type cytochrome c oxidases catalyze cell respiration in many pathogenic bacteria. For reasons not yet understood, the apparent dioxygen (O(2)) affinity in these enzymes is very high relative to other members of the heme-copper oxidase (HCO) superfamily. Based on density functional theory (DFT) calculations on intermediates of the oxygen scission reaction in active-site models of cbb(3)- and aa(3)-type oxidases, we find that a transient peroxy intermediate (I(P), Fe[III]-OOH(-)) is ~6kcal/mol more stable in the former case, resulting in more efficient kinetic trapping of dioxygen and hence in a higher apparent oxygen affinity. The major molecular basis for this stabilization is a glutamate residue, polarizing the proximal histidine ligand of heme b(3) in the active site.