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Superoxide reductases (SORs) are enzymes that detoxify the superoxide anion through its reduction to hydrogen peroxide and exist in both prokaryotes and eukaryotes. The substrate is transformed at an iron catalytic center, pentacoordinated in the ferrous state by four histidines and one cysteine. SORs have a highly conserved motif, (E)(K)HxP-, in which the glutamate is associated with a redox-driven structural change, completing the octahedral coordination of the iron in the ferric state, whereas the lysine may be responsible for stabilization and donation of a proton to catalytic intermediates. We aimed to understand at the structural level the role of these two residues, by determining the X-ray structures of the SORs from the hyperthermophilic archaea Ignicoccus hospitalis and Nanoarchaeum equitans that lack the quasi-conserved lysine and glutamate, respectively, but have catalytic rate constants similar to those of the canonical enzymes, as we previously demonstrated. Furthermore, we have determined the crystal structure of the E23A mutant of I. hospitalis SOR, which mimics several enzymes that lack both residues. The structures revealed distinct structural arrangements of the catalytic center that simulate several catalytic cycle intermediates, namely, the reduced and the oxidized forms, and the glutamate-free and deprotonated ferric forms. Moreover, the structure of the I. hospitalis SOR provides evidence for the presence of an alternative lysine close to the iron center in the reduced state that may be a functional substitute for the "canonical" lysine.

NADP(+) dependent isocitrate dehydrogenase (IDH; EC 1.1.1.42) belongs to a large family of α-hydroxyacid oxidative β-decarboxylases that catalyze similar three-step reactions, with dehydrogenation to an oxaloacid intermediate preceding β-decarboxylation to an enol intermediate followed by tautomerization to the final α-ketone product. A comprehensive view of the induced fit needed for catalysis is revealed on comparing the first "fully closed" crystal structures of a pseudo-Michaelis complex of wild-type Escherichia coli IDH (EcoIDH) and the "fully closed" reaction product complex of the K100M mutant with previously obtained "quasi-closed" and "open" conformations. Conserved catalytic residues, binding the nicotinamide ring of NADP(+) and the metal-bound substrate, move as rigid bodies during domain closure by a hinge motion that spans the central β-sheet in each monomer. Interactions established between Thr105 and Ser113, which flank the "phosphorylation loop", and the nicotinamide mononucleotide moiety of NADP(+) establish productive coenzyme binding. Electrostatic interactions of a Lys100-Leu103-Asn115-Glu336 tetrad play a pivotal role in assembling a catalytically competent active site. As predicted, Lys230* is positioned to deprotonate/reprotonate the α-hydroxyl in both reaction steps and Tyr160 moves into position to protonate C3 following β-decarboxylation. A proton relay from the catalytic triad Tyr160-Asp307-Lys230* connects the α-hydroxyl of isocitrate to the bulk solvent to complete the picture of the catalytic mechanism.

Mannosyl-3-phosphoglycerate phosphatase (MpgP) is a key mediator in the physiological response to thermal and osmotic stresses, catalyzing the hydrolysis of mannosyl-3-phosphoglycerate (MPG) to the final product, α-mannosylglycerate. MpgP is a metal-dependent haloalcanoic acid dehalogenase-like (HAD-like) phosphatase, preserving the catalytic motifs I-IV of the HAD core domain, and classified as a Cof-type MPGP (HAD-IIB-MPGP family; SCOP [117505]) on the basis of its C2B cap insertion module. Herein, the crystallographic structures of Thermus thermophilus HB27 MpgP in its apo form and in complex with substrates, substrate analogues, and inhibitors are reported. Two distinct enzyme conformations, open and closed, are catalytically relevant. Apo-MpgP is primarily found in the open state, while holo-MpgP, in complex with the reaction products, is found in the closed state. Enzyme activation entails a structural rearrangement of motifs I and IV with concomitant binding of the cocatalytic Mg(2+) ion. The closure motion of the C2B domain is subsequently triggered by the anchoring of the phosphoryl group to the cocatalytic metal center, and by Arg167 fixing the mannosyl moiety inside the catalytic pocket. The results led to the proposal that in T. thermophilus HB27 MpgP the phosphoryl transfer employs a concerted D(N)S(N) mechanism with assistance of proton transfer from the general acid Asp8, forming a short-lived PO(3)(-) intermediate that is attacked by a nucleophilic water molecule. These results provide new insights into a possible continuum of phosphoryl transfer mechanisms, ranging between those purely associative and dissociative, as well as a picture of the main mechanistic aspects of phosphoryl monoester transfer catalysis, common to other members of the HAD superfamily.

The accepted view of interprotein electron transport involves molecules diffusing between donor and acceptor redox sites. An emerging alternative hypothesis is that efficient long-range electron transport can be achieved through proteins arranged in supramolecular assemblies. In this study, we have investigated the crystal packing interfaces in three crystal forms of plastocyanin, an integral component of the photosynthetic electron transport chain, and discuss their potential relevance to in vivo supramolecular assemblies. Symmetry-related protein chains within these crystals have Cu-Cu separations of <25 A, a distance that readily supports electron transfer. In one structure, the plastocyanin molecule exists in two forms in which a backbone displacement coupled with side chain rearrangements enables the modulation of protein-protein interfaces.