Sulfur metabolism in Thiobacillus denitrificans evidence for the presence of a sulfite reducatase activity.

The relatively high specific sulfite reductase activity of 25 mU/mg protein was found in extracts from Thiobacillus dentrificans. The absorption spectrum of the partially pruified enzyme was similar to the siroheme containing sulfite reductases from other sources. It is suggested that the T. denitrificans sulfite reductase may function during the oxidation of reduced sulfur compounds.     

Siroheme sulfite reductase isolated from Chromatium vinosum. Purification and investigation of some of its molecular and catalytic properties

Cells of the phototrophic bacterium Chromatium vinosum strain D were shown to contain a siroheme sulfite reductase after autotrophic growth in a sulfide/bicarbonate medium. The enzyme could not be detected in cells grown heterotrophically in a malate/sulfate medium. Siroheme sulfite reductase was isolated from autotrophic cells and obtained in an about 80% pure preparation which was used to investigate some molecular and catalytic properties of the enzyme. It was shown to consist of two different types of subunits with molecular weights of 37,000 and 42,000, most probably arranged in an ₄₄-structure. The molecular weight of the native enzyme was determined to 280,000, 51 atoms of iron and 47 atoms of acid-labile sulfur were found per enzyme molecule. The absorption spectrum indicated siroheme as prosthetic group; it had maxima at 280 nm, 392 nm, 595 nm, and 724 nm. The molar extinction coefficients were determined as 302×10³ cm²xmmol^-1 at 392 nm, 98×10³ cm² xmmol^-1 at 595 nm and 22×10³ cm²x-mmol^-1 at 724 nm. With reduced viologen dyes as electron donor the enzyme reduced sulfite to sulfide, thiosulfate, and trithionate. The turnover number with 59 (2 e^-/enzyme moleculexmin) was low. The pH-optimum was at 6.0. C. vinosum sulfite reductase closely resembled the corresponding enzyme from Thiobacillus denitrificans and also desulfoviridin, the dismilatory sulfite reductase from Desulfovibrio species. It is proposed that C. vinosum catalyses anaerobic oxidation of sulfide and/or elemental sulfur to sulfite in the course of dissimilatory oxidation of reduced sulfur compounds to sulfate.Non-common abbreviations APS adenylyl sulfate - SDS sodium dodecyl sulfate     

Characterization of a new type of dissimilatory sulfite reductase present in Thermodesulfobacterium commune

A new type of dissimilatory bisulfite reductase, desulfofuscidin, was isolated from the nonsporeforming thermophilic sulfate-reducing microorganism Thermodesulfobacterium commune. The molecular weight of the enzyme was estimated at 167,000 by sedimentation equilibrium, and the protein was pure by both disc electrophoresis and ultracentrifugation. The bisulfite reductase was a tetramer and had two types of subunits with an α₂β₂ structure and an individual molecular weight of 47,000. The enzyme exhibited absorption maxima at 576, 389, and 279 nm, with a weak band at 693 nm. Upon the addition of dithionite, the absorption maxima at 576 and 693 nm were weakened, and a new band appeared at 605 nm. The protein reacted with CO in the presence of dithionite to give a complex with absorption peaks at 593, 548, and 395 nm. The extinction coefficients of the purified enzyme at 576, 389, and 279 nm were 89,000, 310,000, and 663,000 M⁻¹ cm⁻¹, respectively. Siroheme was detected as the prosthetic group. The protein contains 20 to 21 nonheme iron atoms and 16 to 17 acid-labile sulfur groups per molecule. The data suggest the presence of four sirohemes and probably four (4Fe-4S) centers per molecule by comparison with desulfoviridin, the dissimilatory sulfite reductase from Desulfovibrio species. The protein contains 36 cysteine residues and is high in acidic and aromatic amino acids. The N-terminal amino acids of the α and β subunits were threonine and serine, respectively. With reduced methyl viologen as electron donor, the major product of sulfite reduction was trithionate, and the pH optimum for activity was 6.0. The enzyme was stable to 70°C and denatured rapidly above this temperature. The dependence of T. commune bisulfite reductase activity on temperature was linear between 35 and 65°C, and the Q₁₀ values observed were above 3. The presence of this new type of dissimilatory bisulfite reductase in T. commune is discussed in terms of taxonomic significance.     

Isolation of Assimilatory- and Dissimilatory-Type Sulfite Reductases from Desulfovibrio vulgaris

Bisulfite reductase (desulfoviridin) and an assimilatory sulfite reductase have been purified from extracts of Desulfovibrio vulgaris. The bisulfite reductase has absorption maxima at 628, 580, 408, 390, and 279 nm, and a molecular weight of 226,000 by sedimentation equilibrium, and was judged to be free of other proteins by disk electrophoresis and ultracentrifugation. On gels, purified bisulfite reductase exhibited two green bands which coincided with activity and protein. The enzyme appears to be a tetramer but was shown to have two different types of subunits having molecular weights of 42,000 and 50,000. The chromophore did not form an alkaline ferrohemochromogen, was not reduced with dithionite or borohydride, and did not form a spectrally visible complex with CO. The assimilatory sulfite reductase has absorption maxima at 590, 545, 405 and 275 nm and a molecular weight of 26,800, and appears to consist of a single polypeptide chain as it is not dissociated into subunits by sodium dodecyl sulfate. By disk electrophoresis, purified sulfite reductase exhibited a single greenish-brown band which coincided with activity and protein. The sole product of the reduction was sulfide, and the chromophore was reduced by borohydride in the presence of sulfite. Carbon monoxide reacted with the reduced chromophore but it did not form a typical pyridine ferrohemochromogen. Thiosulfate, trithionate, and tetrathionate were not reduced by either enzyme preparation. In the presence of 8 M urea, the spectrum of bisulfite reductase resembles that of the sulfite reductase, thus suggesting a chemical relationship between the two chromophores.     

Further characterization of trimethylamine N-oxide reductase from Escherichia coli, a molybdoprotein

Escherichia coli trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) reductase I, the major enzyme among inducible TMAO reductases, was purified to homogeneity by an improved method including heat treatment, ammonium sulfate precipitation, and chromatographies on Bio-Gel A-1.5m, DEAE-cellulose, and Reactive blue-agarose. The molecular weight was estimated by gel filtration to be approximately 200,000. A single subunit peptide with a molecular weight of 95,000 was found by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. This enzyme contained 1.96 atoms of molybdenum, 0.96 atoms of iron, 1.52 atoms of zinc, and less than 0.4 atoms of acid-labile sulfur per molecular weight of 200,000. The absorption spectrum of the enzyme showed a peak at 278 nm and a shoulder at 288 nm, but no characteristic absorption was found from 350 to 700 nm. A fluorescent derivative of molybdenum cofactor was found when the enzyme was boiled with iodine in acidic solution; its fluorescence spectra were almost the same as those of the form A derivative of molybdopterin found in sulfite oxidase. The molybdenum cofactor released from heated TMAO reductase I reconstituted nitrate reductase in the extracts of Neurospora crassa mutant strain nit-1 lacking molybdenum cofactor. Thus, TMAO reductase I contains molybdopterin, which is a common constituent of some molybdenum-containing enzymes. Some kinetic properties were also determined.     

Purification and properties of trimethylamine N-oxide reductase from aerobic photosynthetic bacterium Roseobacter denitrificans.

Trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) reductase was purified from an aerobic photosynthetic bacterium Roseobacter denitrificans. The enzyme was purified from cell-free extract by ammonium sulfate fractionation, DEAE ion exchange chromatography, hydrophobic chromatography, and gel filtration. The purified enzyme was composed of two identical subunits with molecular weight of 90,000, as identified by SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, containing heme c and a molybdenum cofactor. The molecular weight of the native enzyme determined by gel filtration was 172,000. The midpoint redox potential of heme c was +200 mV at pH 7.5. Absorption maxima appeared at 418,524, and 554 nm in the reduced state and 410 nm in the oxidized state. The enzyme reduced TMAO, nicotine acid N-oxide, picoline N-oxide, hydroxylamine, and bromate, but not dimethyl sulfoxide, methionine sulfoxide, chlorate, nitrate, or thiosulfate. Cytochrome c2 served as a direct electron donor. It probably catalyzes the electron transfer from cytochrome b-c1 complex to TMAO reductase. Cytochrome c552, another soluble low-molecular-weight cytochrome of this bacterium, also donated electrons directly to TMAO reductase.     

Purification and Properties of Sulfite Reductase from Desulfovibrio vulgaris,Miyazaki F

The sulfite reductase of Desulfovibrio vulgaris, strain Miyazaki F (MF), was purified by ammonium sulfate precipitation and chromatography on DEAE-cellulose, Ultrogel AcA34, and hydroxylapatite. The molecular weight was estimated to be 180,000 by gel filtration. It had a subunit structure of α₂β₂; the molecular weight of the α subunit was 50,000 and that of β, 39,000. The absorption spectrum with characteristic peaks at 629 and 409 nm and the amino acid composition resembled those of the sulfite reductase from D. vulgaris, Miyazaki K. The MF enzyme reduced sulfite to trithionate, thiosulfate, and sulfide by hydrogen when coupled with a hydrogenase-methyl viologen system, like other sulfite reductases from Desulfovibrio.     

Nitric oxide-reductase homologue that contains a copper atom and has cytochrome c-oxidase activity from an aerobic phototrophic bacterium Roseobacter denitrificans

A cytochrome cb-type enzyme with cytochrome c-oxidase activity was purified from an aerobic phototrophic bacterium Roseobacter denitrificans. The enzyme was solubilized with sucrose monodecanoate from the membranes of R. denitrificans grown aerobically under light conditions, and purified to electrophoretic homogeneity. Absorption spectra of the purified enzyme showed peaks at 410 nm and 530 nm in the oxidized state, and peaks at 420, 522, and 551 nm and a shoulder at around 560 nm in the reduced state. The enzyme is composed of two subunits with apparent molecular weights on SDS-PAGE of 37,000 and 18,000, the latter positive to heme staining. The protein contains heme c, heme b, and copper in a 1:2:1 stoichiometry. The spectral properties indicated that the heme c and one heme b are in low-spin states, while the other heme b is in a high-spin state. The base sequences of the genes and the deduced amino acid sequences are similar to those of known NorB and NorC subunits of nitric oxide reductases from other bacterial species. The enzyme is similar to nitric oxide reductase, but differs in that it contains copper. Virtually no nitric oxide reductase activity was detected in the purified enzyme.     

Coupled enzymatic production of sulfite, thiosulfate, and hydrogen sulfide from sulfur: purification and properties of a sulfur oxygenase reductase from the facultatively anaerobic archaebacterium Desulfurolobus ambivalens.

From aerobically grown cells of the extremely thermophilic, facultatively anaerobic chemolithoautotrophic archaebacterium Desulfurolobus ambivalens (DSM 3772), a soluble oxygenase reductase (SOR) was purified which was not detectable in anaerobically grown cells. In the presence of oxygen but not under a hydrogen atmosphere, the enzyme simultaneously produced sulfite, thiosulfate, and hydrogen sulfide from sulfur. Nonenzymatic control experiments showed that thiosulfate was produced mainly in a chemical reaction between sulfite and sulfur. The maximum specific activity of the purified SOR in sulfite production was 10.6 mumol/mg of protein at pH 7.4 and 85 degrees C. The ratio of sulfite to hydrogen sulfide production was 5:4 in the presence of zinc ions. The temperature range of enzyme activity was 50 to 108 degrees C, with a maximum at 85 degrees C. The molecular mass of the native SOR was 550 kilodaltons, determined by gel filtration. It consisted of identical subunits with an apparent molecular mass of 40 kilodaltons in sodium dodecyl sulfate-gel electrophoresis. The particle diameter in electron micrographs was 15 /+- 1.5 nm. The enzyme activity was inhibited by the thiol-binding reagents p-chloromercuribenzoic acid, N-ethyl maleimide, and 2-iodoacetic acid and by flavin adenine dinucleotide, Fe3+, and Fe2+. It was not affected by CN-, N3-, or reduced glutathione.     

Purification and properties of dimethylsulfoxide reductase containing a molybdenum cofactor from a photodenitrifier, Rhodopseudomonas sphaeroides f.s. denitrificans

Dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) reductase was purified to electrophoretic homogeneity from the periplasmic fraction of a photodenitrifier, Rhodopseudomonas sphaeroides f.s. denitrificans. The enzyme had a molecular weight of 82,000 and had no subunit. It contained 1 mol of molybdenum per mol of enzyme, but iron and acid-labile sulfur were not present. The UV-visible spectrum showed only one absorption maximum at 280 nm. Denaturation of the enzyme released a molybdopterin cofactor, the fluorescence spectra of which were almost the same as those of a form B derivative of molybdopterin found in formate dehydrogenase. The Km value for DMSO was 15 microM, which was much lower than that for trimethylamin-N-oxide (TMAO), whereas Vmax with TMAO was larger than that with DMSO.     

Purification and some properties of sulfur:ferric ion oxidoreductase from Thiobacillus ferrooxidans.

A sulfur:ferric ion oxidoreductase that utilizes ferric ion (Fe3+) as an electron acceptor of elemental sulfur was purified from iron-grown Thiobacillus ferrooxidans to an electrophoretically homogeneous state. Under anaerobic conditions in the presence of Fe3+, the enzyme reduced 4 mol of Fe3+ with 1 mol of elemental sulfur to give 4 mol of Fe2+ and 1 mol of sulfite, indicating that it corresponds to a ferric ion-reducing system (T. Sugio, C. Domatsu, O. Munakata, T. Tano, and K. Imai, Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 49:1401-1406, 1985). Under aerobic conditions, sulfite, but not Fe2+, was produced during the oxidation of elemental sulfur by this enzyme because the Fe2+ produced was rapidly reoxidized chemically by molecular oxygen. The possibility that Fe3+ serves as an electron acceptor under aerobic conditions was ascertained by adding o-phenanthroline, which chelates Fe2+, to the reaction mixture. Sulfur:ferric ion oxidoreductase had an apparent molecular weight of 46,000, and it is composed of two identical subunits (Mr = 23,000) as estimated by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Sulfur oxidation by this enzyme was absolutely dependent on the presence of reduced glutathione. The enzyme had an isoelectric point and a pH optimum at pH 4.6 and 6.5, respectively. Almost all the activity of sulfur:ferric ion oxidoreductase was observed in the osmotic shock fluid of the cells, suggesting that it was localized in the periplasmic space of the cells.     

Sulfite-oxido-reductase is involved in the oxidation of sulfite in Desulfocapsa sulfoexigens during disproportionation of thiosulfate and elemental sulfur

The enzymatic pathways of elemental sulfur and thiosulfate disproportionation were investigated using cell-free extract of Desulfocapsa sulfoexigens. Sulfite was observed to be an intermediate in the metabolism of both compounds. Two distinct pathways for the oxidation of sulfite have been identified. One pathway involves APS reductase and ATP sulfurylase and can be described as the reversion of the initial steps of the dissimilatory sulfate reduction pathway. The second pathway is the direct oxidation of sulfite to sulfate by sulfite oxidoreductase. This enzyme has not been reported from sulfate reducers before. Thiosulfate reductase, which cleaves thiosulfate into sulfite and sulfide, was only present in cell-free extract from thiosulfate disproportionating cultures. We propose that this enzyme catalyzes the first step in thiosulfate disproportionation. The initial step in sulfur disproportionation was not identified. Dissimilatory sulfite reductase was present in sulfur and thiosulfate disproportionating cultures. The metabolic function of this enzyme in relation to elemental sulfur or thiosulfate disproportionation was not identified. The presence of the uncouplers HQNO and CCCP in growing cultures had negative effects on both thiosulfate and sulfur disproportionation. CCCP totally inhibited sulfur disproportionation and reduced thiosulfate disproportionation by 80% compared to an unamended control. HQNO reduced thiosulfate disproportionation by 80% and sulfur disproportionation by 90%.     

Thiosulfate Reductase of Desulfovibrio vulgaris

The thiosulfate reductase of Desulfovibrio vulgaris has been purified and some of its properties have been determined. Only one protein component was detected when the purified enzyme was subjected to polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis at pH values of 8.9, 8.0, and 7.6. In the presence of H(2), the enzyme, when coupled to hydrogenase and with methyl viologen as an electron carrier, catalyzed the reduction of thiosulfate to hydogen sulfide. The use of specifically labeled (35)S-thiosulfate revealed that the outer sulfur atom was reduced to sulfide and the inner sulfur atom was released as sulfite. Thus, the enzyme catalyzes the reductive dismutation of thiosulfate to sulfide and sulfite. The molecular weight of the enzyme was determined by sedimentation equilibrium (16,300) and amino acid analysis (15,500). The enzyme sedimented as a single, symmetrical component with a calculated sedimentation coefficient of 2.21S. Amino acid analysis revealed the presence of two half-cystine residues per mole of enzyme and a total of 128 amino acid residues. Carbohydrate and organic phosphorus analyses revealed the presence of 9.2 moles of carbohydrate and 4.8 moles of phosphate per mole of enzyme. The substrate specificity of the enzyme was studied.     

Sulfur metabolism in Thiobacillus denitrificans

The relatively high specific sulfite reductase activity of 25 mU/mg protein was found in extracts from Thiobacillus denitrificans. The absorption spectrum of the partially purified enzyme was similar to the siroheme containing sulfite reductases from other sources. It is suggested that the T. denitrificans sulfite reductase may function during the oxidation of reduced sulfur compounds.     

The respiratory nitrate reductase from Paracoccus denitrificans. Molecular characterisation and kinetic properties

The respiratory nitrate reductase from Paracoccus denitrificans has been purified in the non-ionic detergent Nonidet P-40. The enzyme comprises three polypeptides, alpha, beta and gamma with estimated relative molecular masses of 127 000, 61 000 and 21 000. Duroquinol or reduced-viologen compounds acted as the reducing substrates. The nitrate reductase contained a b-type cytochrome that was reduced by duroquinol and oxidised by nitrate. A preparation of the enzyme that lacked both detectable b-type cytochrome and the gamma subunit was obtained from a trailing peak of nitrate reductase activity collected from a gel filtration column. Absence of the gamma subunit correlated with failure to use duroquinol as reductant; activity with reduced viologens was retained. It is concluded that in the plasma membrane of P. denitrificans the gamma subunit catalyses electron transfer to the alpha and beta subunits of nitrate reductase from ubiquinol which acts as a branch point in the respiratory chain. A new assay was introduced for both nitrate and quinol-nitrate oxidoreductase activity. Diaphorase was used to couple the oxidation of NADH to the production of duroquinol which acted as electron donor to nitrate reductase. Under anaerobic conditions absorbance changes at 340 nm were sensitive to nitrate concentrations in the low micromolar range. This coupled assay was used to determine that the purified enzyme had Km(NO-3) of 13 microM and a Km of 470 microM for ClO-3, an alternative substrate. With viologen substrates Km(NO-3) of 283 microM and Km(ClO-3) of 470 microM were determined; the enzymes possessed a considerably higher Vmax with either NO-3 or ClO-3 than was found when duroquinol was substrate. Azide was a competitive inhibitor of nitrate reduction in either assay system (Ki = 0.55 microM) but 2-n-heptyl-4-hydroxyquinoline N-oxide was effective only with the complete three-subunit enzyme and duroquinol as substrate, consistent with a site of action for this inhibitor on the b-type cytochrome. The low Km for nitrate observed in the duriquinol assay is comparable with the apparent Km(NO-3) recently reported for intact cells of P. denitrificans [Parsonage, D., Greenfield, A. J. & Ferguson, S. J. (1985) Biochim. Biophys. Acta 807, 81-95]. This similarity is discussed in terms of a possible requirement for a nitrate transport system. The nitrate reductase system from P. denitrificans is compared with that from Escherichia coli.     

Purification and properties of thiosulfate reductase from Desulfovibrio gigas.

Thiosulfate reductase of the dissimilatory sulfate-reducing bacterium Desulfovibrio gigas has been purified 415-fold and its properties investigated. The enzyme was unstable during the different steps of purification as well as during storage at - 15 degrees C. The molecular weight of thiosulfate reductase estimated from the chromatographic behaviour of the enzyme on Sephadex G-200 was close to 220000. The absorption spectrum of the purified enzyme exhibited a protein peak at 278 nm without characteristic features in the visible region. Thiosulfate reductase catalyzed the stoichiometric production of hydrogen sulfide and sulfite from thiosulfate, and exhibited tetrathionate reductase activity. It did not show sulfite reductase activity. The optimum pH of thiosulfate reduction occurred between pH 7.4 and 8.0 and its Km value for thiosulfate was calculated to be 5 - 10(-4)M. The sensitivity of thiosulfate reductase to sulfhydryl reagent and the reversal of the inhibition by cysteine indicated that one or more sulfhydryl groups were involved in the catalytic activity. The study of electron transport between hydrogenase and thiosulfate reductase showed that the most efficient coupling was obtained with a system containing cytochromes c3 (Mr = 13000) and c3 (Mr = 26000).     

The partial characterization of purified nitrite reductase and hydroxylamine oxidase from Nitrosomonas europaea

Nitrite reductase has been separated from cell-free extracts of Nitrosomonas and partially purified from hydroxylamine oxidase by polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis. In its oxidized state the enzyme, which did not contain haem, had an extinction maximum at 590nm, which was abolished on reduction. Sodium diethyldithiocarbamate was a potent inhibitor of nitrite reductase. Enzyme activity was stimulated 2.5-fold when remixed with hydroxylamine oxidase, but was unaffected by mammalian cytochrome c. The enzyme also exhibited a low hydroxylamine-dependent nitrite reductase activity. The results suggest that this enzyme is similar to the copper-containing ;denitrifying enzyme' of Pseudomonas denitrificans. A dithionite-reduced, 465nm-absorbing haemoprotein was associated with homogeneous preparations of hydroxylamine oxidase. The band at 465nm maximum was not reduced during the oxidation of hydroxylamine although the extinction was abolished on addition of hydroxylamine, NO(2) (-) or CO. These last-named compounds when added to the oxidized enzyme precluded the appearance of the 465nm-absorption band on addition of dithionite. Several properties of 465nm-absorbing haemoprotein are described.     

Low-spin sulfite reductases: a new homologous group of non-heme iron-siroheme proteins in anaerobic bacteria

Two new low molecular weight proteins with sulfite reductase activity, isolated from Methanosarcina barkeri (DSM 800) and Desulfuromonas acetoxidans (strain 5071), were studied by EPR and optical spectroscopic techniques. Both proteins have visible spectra similar to that of the low-spin sulfite reductase of Desulfovibrio vulgaris strain Hildenborough and no band at 715 nm, characteristic of high-spin Fe3+ complexes in isobacteriochlorins is observed. EPR shows that as isolated the siroheme is in a low-spin ferric state (S = 1/2) with g-values at 2.40, 2.30 and 1.88 for the Methanosarcina barkeri enzyme and g-values at 2.44, 2.33 and 1.81 for the Desulfuromonas acetoxidans enzyme. Chemical analysis shows that both proteins contain one siroheme and one [Fe4S4] center per polypeptidic chain. These results suggest that the low molecular weight, low-spin non-heme iron siroheme proteins represent a new homologous class of sulfite reductases common to anaerobic microorganisms.     

Spectroscopic studies of the molybdenum-containing dimethyl sulfoxide reductase from Rhodobacter sphaeroides f. sp. denitrificans.

Absorption and EPR spectroscopic properties of purified dimethyl sulfoxide (Me2SO) reductase from Rhodobacter sphaeroides f. sp. denitrificans have been examined. The absence of prosthetic groups other than the molybdenum center in the enzyme has made it possible to study its absorption properties. The enzyme displays multiple absorbance peaks in both the oxidized and the dithionite-reduced forms. The oxidized enzyme has absorbance peaks at 280, 350, 470, 550, and 720 nm while the dithionite-reduced enzyme has peaks at 280, 374, and 645 nm with a shoulder at 430 nm. A comparison of the absorbance spectrum of oxidized Me2SO reductase with that of the molybdenum fragment of rat liver sulfite oxidase shows that the 350 and 470 peaks are common to both proteins. EPR studies of the Mo(V) form of Me2SO reductase show a rhombic signal with g1 = 1.988, g2 = 1.977, g3 = 1.961, and g(ave) = 1.975. The signal shows evidence of coupling to an exchangeable proton with A1 = 1.05, A2 = 1.13, A3 = 0.98, and Aave = 1.05 millitesla. These parameters are similar to those of other Mo enzymes, however, the epr signal of this enzyme differs from those of other Mo hydroxylases in showing only a slight sensitivity to pH and no detectable anion effect. EPR potentiometric titrations of Me2SO reductase gave midpoint potentials of +144 mV for the Mo(VI)/Mo(V) couple and +160 mV for the Mo(V)/Mo(IV) couple at room temperature and +141 mV for the Mo(VI)/Mo(V) couple and +200 mV for the Mo(V)/Mo(IV) couple at 173 K.     

Sulfate-reducing pathway in Escherichia coli involving bound intermediates.

Although a sulfate-reducing pathway in Escherichia coli involving free sulfite and sulfide has been suggested, it is shown that, as in Chlorella, a pathway involving bound intermediates is also present. E. coli extracts contained a sulfotransferase that transferred the sulfonyl group from a nucleosidephosphosulfate to an acceptor to form an organic thiosulfate. This enzyme was specific for adenosine 3'-phosphate 5'-phosphosulfate, did not utilize adenine 5'-phosphosulfate, and transferred to a carrier molecule that was identical with thioredoxin in molecular weight and amino acid composition. In the absence of thioredoxin, only very low levels of the transfer of the sulfo group to thiols was observed. As in Chlorella, thiosulfonate reductase activity that reduced glutathione-S-SO3- to bound sulfide could be detected. In E. coli, this enzyme used reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate and Mg2+, but did not require the addition of ferredoxin or ferredoxin nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate reductase. Although in Chlorella the thiosulfonate reductase appears to be a different enzyme from the sulfite reductase, the E. coli thiosulfonate reductase and sulfite reductase may be activities of the same enzyme.