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Copper (Cu)-only superoxide dismutases (SOD) represent a newly characterized class of extracellular SODs important for virulence of several fungal pathogens. Previous studies of the Cu-only enzyme SOD5 from the opportunistic fungal pathogen Candida albicans have revealed that the active-site structure and Cu binding of SOD5 strongly deviate from those of Cu/Zn-SODs in its animal hosts, making Cu-only SODs a possible target for future antifungal drug design. C. albicans also expresses a Cu-only SOD4 that is highly similar in sequence to SOD5, but is poorly characterized. Here, we compared the biochemical, biophysical, and cell biological properties of C. albicans SOD4 and SOD5. Analyzing the recombinant proteins, we found that, similar to SOD5, Cu-only SOD4 can react with superoxide at rates approaching diffusion limits. Both SODs were monomeric and they exhibited similar binding affinities for their Cu cofactor. In C. albicans cultures, SOD4 and SOD5 were predominantly cell wall proteins. Despite these similarities, the SOD4 and SOD5 genes strongly differed in transcriptional regulation. SOD5 was predominantly induced during hyphal morphogenesis, together with a fungal burst in reactive oxygen species. Conversely, SOD4 expression was specifically up-regulated by iron (Fe) starvation and controlled by the Fe-responsive transcription factor SEF1. Interestingly, Candida tropicalis and the emerging fungal pathogen Candida auris contain a single SOD5-like SOD rather than a pair, and in both fungi, this SOD was induced by Fe starvation. This unexpected link between Fe homeostasis and extracellular Cu-SODs may help many fungi adapt to Fe-limited conditions of their hosts.

The N-terminus of nickel-dependent superoxide dismutase (NiSOD) forms a structural motif known as the "Ni-hook," where the peptide wraps around the metal to bring cysteine-2 and cysteine-6 into spatial proximity, allowing these residues to coordinate in a cis-geometry. A highly conserved proline-5 residue in the Ni-hook adopts a cis-conformation that is widely considered important for its formation. Herein, we investigate this role by point mutation of Pro5 to alanine. The results obtained show that the variant exhibits wild-type-like redox catalysis and features a Ni(III) center very similar to that found in enzyme. Structural analysis using X-ray absorption spectroscopy of the nickel sites in as-isolated P5A-NiSOD reveals changes in the variant and are consistent with a six-coordinate Ni site with (N/O)

Copper (Cu)-only superoxide dismutases (SOD) represent a newly characterized class of extracellular SODs important for virulence of several fungal pathogens. Previous studies of the Cu-only enzyme SOD5 from the opportunistic fungal pathogen Candida albicans have revealed that the active-site structure and Cu binding of SOD5 strongly deviate from those of Cu/Zn-SODs in its animal hosts, making Cu-only SODs a possible target for future antifungal drug design. C. albicans also expresses a Cu-only SOD4 that is highly similar in sequence to SOD5, but is poorly characterized. Here, we compared the biochemical, biophysical, and cell biological properties of C. albicans SOD4 and SOD5. Analyzing the recombinant proteins, we found that, similar to SOD5, Cu-only SOD4 can react with superoxide at rates approaching diffusion limits. Both SODs were monomeric and they exhibited similar binding affinities for their Cu cofactor. In C. albicans cultures, SOD4 and SOD5 were predominantly cell wall proteins. Despite these similarities, the SOD4 and SOD5 genes strongly differed in transcriptional regulation. SOD5 was predominantly induced during hyphal morphogenesis, together with a fungal burst in reactive oxygen species. Conversely, SOD4 expression was specifically up-regulated by iron (Fe) starvation and controlled by the Fe-responsive transcription factor SEF1. Interestingly, Candida tropicalis and the emerging fungal pathogen Candida auris contain a single SOD5-like SOD rather than a pair, and in both fungi, this SOD was induced by Fe starvation. This unexpected link between Fe homeostasis and extracellular Cu-SODs may help many fungi adapt to Fe-limited conditions of their hosts.

Superoxide dismutase mimics can help regulate the levels of O2•− in the body, but typically rely on redox-active metals that are toxic in their free form. Now, a complex featuring a redox-active quinol moiety complexed to a redox-inactive zinc centre has been shown to catalyse O2•− dismutation.

Superoxide dismutases (SODs) utilize a ping-pong mechanism in which a redox-active metal cycles between oxidized and reduced forms that differ by one electron to catalyze the disproportionation of superoxide to dioxygen and hydrogen peroxide. Nickel-dependent SOD (NiSOD) is a unique biological solution for controlling superoxide levels. This enzyme relies on the use of cysteinate ligands to bring the Ni(III/II) redox couple into the range required for catalysis (∼300 mV vs. NHE). The use of cysteine thiolates, which are not found in any other SOD, is a curious choice because of their well-known oxidation by peroxide and dioxygen. The NiSOD active site cysteinate ligands are resistant to oxidation, and prior studies of synthetic and computational models point to the backbone N-donors in the active site (the N-terminal amine and the amide N atom of Cys2) as being involved in stabilizing the cysteines to oxidation. To test the role of the backbone N-donors, we have constructed a variant of NiSOD wherein an alanine residue was added to the N-terminus (Ala0-NiSOD), effectively altering the amine ligand to an amide. X-ray absorption, electronic absorption, and magnetic circular dichroism (MCD) spectroscopic analyses of as-isolated Ala0-NiSOD coupled with density functional theory (DFT) geometry optimized models that were evaluated on the basis of the spectroscopic data within the framework of DFT and time-dependent DFT computations are consistent with a diamagnetic Ni(II) site with two cysteinate, one His1 amide, and one Cys2 amidate ligands. The variant protein is catalytically inactive, has an altered electronic absorption spectrum associated with the nickel site, and is sensitive to oxidation. Mass spectrometric analysis of the protein exposed to air shows the presence of a mixture of oxidation products, the principal ones being a disulfide, a bis-sulfenate, and a bis-sulfinate derived from the active site cysteine ligands. Details of the electronic structure of the Ni(III) site available from the DFT calculations point to subtle changes in the unpaired spin density on the S-donors as being responsible for the altered sensitivity of Ala0-NiSOD to O

In eukaryotes the bimetallic Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase (SOD) enzymes play important roles in the biology of reactive oxygen species by disproportionating superoxide anion. Recently, we reported that the fungal pathogen Candida albicans expresses a novel copper-only SOD, known as SOD5, that lacks the zinc cofactor and electrostatic loop (ESL) domain of Cu/Zn-SODs for substrate guidance. Despite these abnormalities, C. albicans SOD5 can disproportionate superoxide at rates limited only by diffusion. Here we demonstrate that this curious copper-only SOD occurs throughout the fungal kingdom as well as in phylogenetically distant oomycetes or "pseudofungi" species. It is the only form of extracellular SOD in fungi and oomycetes, in stark contrast to the extracellular Cu/Zn-SODs of plants and animals. Through structural biology and biochemical approaches we demonstrate that these copper-only SODs have evolved with a specialized active site consisting of two highly conserved residues equivalent to SOD5 Glu-110 and Asp-113. The equivalent positions are zinc binding ligands in Cu/Zn-SODs and have evolved in copper-only SODs to control catalysis and copper binding in lieu of zinc and the ESL. Similar to the zinc ion in Cu/Zn-SODs, SOD5 Glu-110 helps orient a key copper-coordinating histidine and extends the pH range of enzyme catalysis. SOD5 Asp-113 connects to the active site in a manner similar to that of the ESL in Cu/Zn-SODs and assists in copper cofactor binding. Copper-only SODs are virulence factors for certain fungal pathogens; thus this unique active site may be a target for future anti-fungal strategies.

C. elegans MnSOD-3 has been implicated in the longevity pathway and its mechanism of catalysis is relevant to the aging process and carcinogenesis. The structures of MnSOD-3 provide unique crystallographic evidence of a dynamic region of the tetrameric interface (residues 41-54). We have determined the structure of the MnSOD-3-azide complex to 1.77-A resolution. Analysis of this complex shows that the substrate analog, azide, binds end-on to the manganese center as a sixth ligand and that it ligates directly to a third and new solvent molecule also positioned within interacting distance to the His30 and Tyr34 residues of the substrate access funnel. This is the first structure of a eukaryotic MnSOD-azide complex that demonstrates the extended, uninterrupted hydrogen-bonded network that forms a proton relay incorporating three outer sphere solvent molecules, the substrate analog, the gateway residues, Gln142, and the solvent ligand. This configuration supports the formation and release of the hydrogen peroxide product in agreement with the 5-6-5 catalytic mechanism for MnSOD. The high product dissociation constant k4 of MnSOD-3 reflects low product inhibition making this enzyme efficient even at high levels of superoxide.

Computational investigations have implicated the amidate ligand in nickel superoxide dismutase (NiSOD) in stabilizing Ni-centered redox catalysis and in preventing cysteine thiolate ligand oxidation. To test these predictions, we have used an experimental approach utilizing a semisynthetic scheme that employs native chemical ligation of a pentapeptide (HCDLP) to recombinant S. coelicolor NiSOD lacking these N-terminal residues, NΔ5-NiSOD. Wild-type enzyme produced in this manner exhibits the characteristic spectral properties of recombinant WT-NiSOD and is as catalytically active. The semisynthetic scheme was also employed to construct a variant where the amidate ligand was converted to a secondary amine, H1*-NiSOD, a novel strategy that retains a backbone N-donor atom. The H1*-NiSOD variant was found to have only ∼1% of the catalytic activity of the recombinant wild-type enzyme, and had altered spectroscopic properties. X-ray absorption spectroscopy reveals a four-coordinate planar site with N2S2-donor ligands, consistent with electronic absorption spectroscopic results indicating that the Ni center in H1*-NiSOD is mostly reduced in the as-isolated sample, as opposed to 50:50 Ni(II)/Ni(III) mixture that is typical for the recombinant wild-type enzyme. The EPR spectrum of as-isolated H1*-NiSOD accounts for ∼11% of the Ni in the sample and is similar to WT-NiSOD, but more axial, with gzgx,y. (14)N-hyperfine is observed on gz, confirming the addition of the apical histidine ligand in the Ni(III) complex. The altered electronic properties and implications for redox catalysis are discussed in light of predictions based on synthetic and computational models.

The reactions of the carbonate radical anion (CO3 (.) (-) ) with vitamin B12 derivatives were studied by pulse radiolysis. The carbonate radical anion directly oxidizes the metal center of cob(II)alamin quantitively to give hydroxycobalamin, with a bimolecular rate constant of 2.0×10(9) M(-1) s(-1) . The reaction of CO3 (.) (-) with hydroxycobalamin proceeds in two steps. The second-order rate constant for the first reaction is 4.3×10(8) M(-1) s(-1) . The rate of the second reaction is independent of the hydroxycobalamin concentration and is approximately 3.0×10(3) s(-1) . Evidence for formation of corrinoid complexes differing from cobalamin by the abstraction of two or four hydrogen atoms from the corrin macrocycle and lactone ring formation has been obtained by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography/high-resolution mass spectrometry (UHPLC/HRMS). A mechanism is proposed in which abstraction of a hydrogen atom by CO3 (.) (-) from a carbon atom not involved in the π conjugation system of the corrin occurs in the first step, resulting in formation of a Co(III) C-centered radical that undergoes rapid intramolecular electron transfer to form the corresponding Co(II) carbocation complex for about 50 % of these complexes. Subsequent competing pathways lead to formation of corrinoid complexes with two fewer hydrogen atoms and lactone derivatives of B12 . Our results demonstrate the potential of UHPLC combined with HRMS in the separation and identification of tetrapyrrole macrocycles with minor modifications from their parent molecule.

Crystal structures of nickel-dependent superoxide dismutases (NiSODs) reveal the presence of a H-bonding network formed between the NH group of the apical imidazole ligand from His1 and the Glu17 carboxylate from a neighboring subunit in the hexameric enzyme. This interaction is supported by another intrasubunit H-bond between Glu17 and Arg47. In this study, four mutant NiSOD proteins were produced to experimentally evaluate the roles of this H-bonding network and compare the results with prior predictions from density functional theory calculations. The X-ray crystal structure of H1A-NiSOD, which lacks the apical ligand entirely, reveals that in the absence of the Glu17-His1 H-bond, the active site is disordered. Characterization of this variant using X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) shows that Ni(II) is bound in the expected N2S2 planar coordination site. Despite these structural perturbations, the H1A-NiSOD variant retains 4% of wild-type (WT) NiSOD activity. Three other mutations were designed to preserve the apical imidazole ligand but perturb the H-bonding network: R47A-NiSOD, which lacks the intramolecular H-bonding interaction; E17R/R47A-NiSOD, which retains the intramolecular H-bond but lacks the intermolecular Glu17-His1 H-bond; and E17A/R47A-NiSOD, which lacks both H-bonding interactions. These variants were characterized by a combination of techniques, including XAS to probe the nickel site structure, kinetic studies employing pulse-radiolytic production of superoxide, and electron paramagnetic resonance to assess the Ni redox activity. The results indicate that in addition to the roles in redox tuning suggested on the basis of previous computational studies, the Glu17-His1 H-bond plays an important structural role in the proper folding of the "Ni-hook" motif that is a critical feature of the active site.

Although now recognized to be an important reactive nitrogen species in biological systems that modifies the structures of proteins, DNA and lipids, there are few studies on the reactivity of NO2, including the reactions between NO2 and transition metal complexes. We report kinetic studies on the reactions of NO2 with two forms of vitamin B12 - cob(II)alamin and nitrocobalamin. UV-visible spectroscopy and HPLC analysis of the product solution show that NO2 cleanly oxidizes the metal center of cob(II)alamin to form nitrocobalamin, with a second-order rate constant of (3.5±0.3)×10(8)M(-1)s(-1) (pH7.0 and 9.0, room temperature, I=0.20M). The stoichiometry of the reaction is 1:1. No reaction is detected by UV-visible spectroscopy and HPLC analysis of the product solution when nitrocobalamin is exposed to up to 2.0molequiv. NO2.

Superoxide reductases (SORs) are the most recently identified superoxide detoxification systems, being found in microorganisms from the three domains of life. These enzymes are characterized by a catalytic mononuclear iron site, with one cysteine and four histidine ligands of the ferrous active form. A lysine residue in the -EKHVP- motif, located close to the active site, has been considered to be essential for the enzyme function, by contributing to the positive surface patch that attracts the superoxide anion and by controlling the chemistry of the catalytic mechanism through a hydrogen bond network. However, we show here that this residue is substituted by non-equivalent amino acids in several putative SORs from Archaea and unicellular Eukarya. In this work, we focus on mechanistic and spectroscopic studies of one of these less common enzymes, the SOR from the hyperthermophilic Crenarchaeon Ignicoccus hospitalis. We employ pulse radiolysis fast kinetics and spectroscopic approaches to study the wild-type enzyme (-E23T24HVP-), and two mutants, T24K and E23A, the later mimicking enzymes lacking both the lysine and glutamate (a ferric ion ligand) of the motif. The efficiency of the wild-type protein and mutants in reducing superoxide is comparable to other SORs, revealing the robustness of these enzymes to single mutations.

The human fungal pathogens Candida albicans and Histoplasma capsulatum have been reported to protect against the oxidative burst of host innate immune cells using a family of extracellular proteins with similarity to Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1). We report here that these molecules are widespread throughout fungi and deviate from canonical SOD1 at the primary, tertiary, and quaternary levels. The structure of C. albicans SOD5 reveals that although the β-barrel of Cu/Zn SODs is largely preserved, SOD5 is a monomeric copper protein that lacks a zinc-binding site and is missing the electrostatic loop element proposed to promote catalysis through superoxide guidance. Without an electrostatic loop, the copper site of SOD5 is not recessed and is readily accessible to bulk solvent. Despite these structural deviations, SOD5 has the capacity to disproportionate superoxide with kinetics that approach diffusion limits, similar to those of canonical SOD1. In cultures of C. albicans, SOD5 is secreted in a disulfide-oxidized form and apo-pools of secreted SOD5 can readily capture extracellular copper for rapid induction of enzyme activity. We suggest that the unusual attributes of SOD5-like fungal proteins, including the absence of zinc and an open active site that readily captures extracellular copper, make these SODs well suited to meet challenges in zinc and copper availability at the host-pathogen interface.

Superoxide, O2•–, is formed in all living organisms that come in contact with air, and, depending upon its biological context, it may act as a signaling agent, a toxic species, or a harmless intermediate that decomposes spontaneously. Its levels are limited in vivo by two different types of enzymes, superoxide reductase (SOR) and superoxide dismutase (SOD). Although superoxide has long been an important factor in evolution, it was not so when life first emerged on Earth at least 3.5 billion years ago. At that time, the early biosphere was highly reducing and lacking in any significant concentrations of dioxygen (O2), very different from what it is today. Consequently, there was little or no O2•– and therefore no reason for SOR or SOD enzymes to evolve. Instead, the history of biological O2•– probably commences somewhere around 2.4 billion years ago, when the biosphere started to experience what has been termed the “Great Oxidation Event”, a transformation driven by the increase in O2 levels, formed by cyanobacteria as a product of oxygenic photosynthesis.1 The rise of O2 on Earth caused a reshaping of existing metabolic pathways, and it triggered the development of new ones.2 Its appearance led to the formation of the so-called “reactive oxygen species” (ROS), for example, superoxide, hydrogen peroxide, and hydroxyl radical, and to a need for antioxidant enzymes and other antioxidant systems to protect against the growing levels of oxidative damage to living systems. Dioxygen is a powerful four-electron oxidizing agent, and the product of this reduction is water. 1 When O2 is reduced in four sequential one-electron steps, the intermediates formed are the three major ROS, that is, O2•–, H2O2, and HO•. 2 3 4 5 Each of these intermediates is a potent oxidizing agent. The consequences of their presence to early life must have been an enormous evolutionary challenge. In the case of superoxide, we find the SOD and SOR enzymes to be widely distributed throughout current living organisms, both aerobic and anaerobic, suggesting that, from the start of the rise of O2 on Earth, the chemistry of superoxide has been an important factor during evolution. The SORs and three very different types of SOD enzymes are redox-active metalloenzymes that have evolved entirely independently from one another for the purpose of lowering superoxide concentrations. SORs catalyze the one-electron reduction of O2•– to give H2O2, a reaction requiring two protons per superoxide reacted as well as an external reductant to provide the electron (eq 6). SODs catalyze the disproportionation of superoxide to give O2 and H2O2, a reaction requiring one proton per superoxide reacted, but no external reductant (eq 7). 6 7 All of the SOR enzymes contain only iron, while the three types of SODs are the nickel-containing SODs (NiSOD), the iron- or manganese-containing SODs (FeSOD and MnSOD), and the copper- and zinc-containing SODs (CuZnSOD). Although the structures and other properties of these four types of metalloenzymes are quite different, they all share several characteristics, including the ability to react rapidly and selectively with the small anionic substrate O2•–. Consequently, there are some striking similarities between these otherwise dissimilar enzymes, many of which can be explained by considering the nature of the chemical reactivity of O2•– (see below). Numerous valuable reviews describing the SOD and SOR enzymes have appeared over the years, but few have covered and compared all four classes of these enzymes, as we attempt to do here. Thus, the purpose of this Review is to describe, compare, and contrast the properties of the SOR and the four SOD enzymes; to summarize what is known about their evolutionary pathways; and to analyze the properties of these enzymes in light of what is known of the inherent chemical reactivity of superoxide.

Superoxide dismutases (SODs) are metalloenzymes that likely evolved to remove superoxide (O2.−) from cells. These enzymes span a range of three uniquely different protein structures and four different metals to enable a similar overall chemistry, the catalytic and accelerated conversion of superoxide to oxygen and hydrogen peroxide. Superoxide dismutases have the attractive feature that the substrate (O2.−) for the catalytic reaction is easily generated using radiation chemistry, allowing the ability to follow catalysis on a fast time scale under a wide variety of conditions. This review will show how the utility of radiation chemistry was realized and enabled mechanistic understanding immediately upon discovery of these enzymes. It will then highlight some applications of pulse radiolysis, carried out in this laboratory, that illustrate mechanistic details of the enzyme function for a variety of wild-type and mutant superoxide dismutases.

Our lab recently characterized a new class of Cu-only SODs in fungi. Members of this class are the only extracellular SODs found in this kingdom. Unlike the well-characterized Cu/Zn SODs, they lack the zinc site and have an unusually open copper site. Interestingly, Candida albicans encodes three extracellular SOD enzymes: SOD4, 5, and 6. SOD5 has been previously characterized and shown to combat the ROS produced by the host immune system as well as react with superoxide produced by the fungi itself. Like SOD5, SOD4 is also a highly active Cu-only SOD, but the two SODs diverge at the expression and functional levels. SOD5 is predominantly expressed during hyphal morphogenesis of C. albicans. Conversely, SOD4 is specifically upregulated during iron starvation by an iron-responsive transcription factor. p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica} Both proteins were detected in the cell wall of cells grown in Fe-deficient media during hyphal morphogenesis and a small fraction of both were secreted into the extracellular environment. SOD4 did not affect the ability of C. albicans to uptake various iron sources in vivo and we hypothesize that its upregulation is a response to a host environment. We also examined the extracellular SODs in three closely related Candida spp. including the emerging fungal pathogen Candida auris. We find that all three have Fe-regulated EC-SODs like SOD4, but only fungi that undergo morphogenesis have an EC-SOD induced during hyphal formation, as is the case with SOD5 in C. albicans.

Reduction of superoxide ( ) by manganese-containing superoxide dismutase occurs through either a “prompt protonation” pathway, or an “inner-sphere” pathway, with the latter leading to formation of an observable Mn-peroxo complex. We recently reported that wild-type (WT) manganese superoxide dismutases (MnSODs) from Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Candida albicans are more gated toward the “prompt protonation” pathway than human and bacterial MnSODs and suggested that this could result from small structural changes in the second coordination sphere of manganese. We report here that substitution of a second-sphere residue, Tyr34, by phenylalanine (Y34F) causes the MnSOD from S. cerevisiae to react exclusively through the “inner-sphere” pathway. At neutral pH, we have a surprising observation that protonation of the Mn-peroxo complex in the mutant yeast enzyme occurs through a fast pathway, leading to a putative six-coordinate Mn 3+ species, which actively oxidizes in the catalytic cycle. Upon increasing pH, the fast pathway is gradually replaced by a slow proton-transfer pathway, leading to the well-characterized five-coordinate Mn 3+ . We here propose and compare two hypothetical mechanisms for the mutant yeast enzyme, differing in the structure of the Mn-peroxo complex yet both involving formation of the active six-coordinate Mn 3+ and proton transfer from a second-sphere water molecule, which has substituted for the ─OH of Tyr34, to the Mn-peroxo complex. Because WT and the mutant yeast MnSOD both rest in the 2+ state and become six-coordinate when oxidized up from Mn 2+ , six-coordinate Mn 3+ species could also actively function in the mechanism of WT yeast MnSODs.

Unlike superoxide dismutases (SODs), superoxide reductases (SORs) eliminate superoxide anion (O(2)(*-)) not through its dismutation, but via reduction to hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)) in the presence of an electron donor. The microaerobic protist Giardia intestinalis, responsible for a common intestinal disease in humans, though lacking SOD and other canonical reactive oxygen species-detoxifying systems, is among the very few eukaryotes encoding a SOR yet identified. In this study, the recombinant SOR from Giardia (SOR(Gi)) was purified and characterized by pulse radiolysis and stopped-flow spectrophotometry. The protein, isolated in the reduced state, after oxidation by superoxide or hexachloroiridate(IV), yields a resting species (T(final)) with Fe(3+) ligated to glutamate or hydroxide depending on pH (apparent pK(a)=8.7). Although showing negligible SOD activity, reduced SOR(Gi) reacts with O(2)(*-) with a pH-independent second-order rate constant k(1)=1.0×10(9) M(-1) s(-1) and yields the ferric-(hydro)peroxo intermediate T(1); this in turn rapidly decays to the T(final) state with pH-dependent rates, without populating other detectable intermediates. Immunoblotting assays show that SOR(Gi) is expressed in the disease-causing trophozoite of Giardia. We propose that the superoxide-scavenging activity of SOR in Giardia may promote the survival of this air-sensitive parasite in the fairly aerobic proximal human small intestine during infection.

The pH-dependent mechanism of the reduction of the nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) model complex [Ru(bpy)(2)(5)](2+) (5 = 3-(pyrid-2'-yl)-4-azaacridine) was compared to the mechanism of the previously studied geometric isomer [Ru(bpy)(2)(pbn)](2+) (pbn = 2-(pyrid-2'-yl)-1-azaacridine, previously referred to as 2-(pyrid-2'-yl)-benzo[b]-1,5-naphthyridine) in aqueous media. The exposure of [Ru(bpy)(2)(5)](2+) to CO(2)(*-) leads to the formation of the one-electron reduced species (k = 4.4 x 10(9) M(-1) s(-1)). At pH11.2, the one-electron reduced species can be protonated, k = 2.6 x 10(4) s(-1) in D(2)O. Formation of a C-C bonded dimer is observed across the pH range of 5-13 (k = 4.5 x 10(8) M(-1) s(-1)). At pH11, two protonated radical species react to form a stable C-C bonded dimer. At pH11, dimerization of two one-electron reduced species is followed by disproportionation to one equivalent starting complex [Ru(bpy)(2)(5)](2+) and one equivalent [Ru(bpy)(2)(5HH)](2+). The structural difference between [Ru(bpy)(2)(pbn)](2+) and [Ru(bpy)(2)(5)](2+) dictates the mechanism and product formation in aqueous medium. The exchange of the nitrogen and carbon atoms on the azaacridine ligands alters the accessibility of the dimerization reactive site, thereby changing the mechanism and the product formation for the reduction of the [Ru(bpy)(2)(5)](2+) compound.

Nickel superoxide dismutase (NiSOD) is unique among the family of SOD enzymes in that it coordinates cysteine residues (Cys2 and Cys6) to the redox-active metal center and exhibits a hexameric quaternary structure. To assess the role of the Cys residues with respect to the activity of NiSOD, mutations of Cys2 and Cys6 to serine (C2S-, C6S-, and C2S/C6S-NiSOD) were carried out. The resulting mutants do not catalyze the disproportionation of superoxide, but retain the hexameric structure found for wild-type (WT) NiSOD and bind Ni(II) ions in a 1:1 stoichiometry. X-ray absorption spectroscopic (XAS) studies of the Cys mutants reveal that the nickel active-site structure for each mutant resembles that of C2S/C6S-NiSOD and demonstrate that mutation of either Cys2 or Cys6 inhibits coordination of the remaining Cys residue. Mutation of one or both Cys residue(s) in NiSOD induces the conversion of the low-spin Ni(II) site in the native enzyme to a high-spin Ni(II) center in the mutants. This result that indicates that coordination of both Cys residues is required to generate the native low-spin configurations and maintain catalytic activity. Analysis of the quaternary structure of the cysteine mutants by differential scanning calorimetry, mass spectrometry, and size-exclusion chromatography reveal that the cysteine ligands, particularly Cys2, are also important for stabilizing the hexameric quaternary structure of the native enzyme.

Superoxide dismutases are enzymes that function to catalytically convert superoxide radical to oxygen and hydrogen peroxide. These enzymes carry out catalysis at near diffusion controlled rate constants via a general mechanism that involves the sequential reduction and oxidation of the metal center, with the concomitant oxidation and reduction of superoxide radicals. That the catalytically active metal can be copper, iron, manganese or, recently, nickel is one of the fascinating features of this class of enzymes. In this review, we describe these enzymes in terms of the details of their catalytic properties, with an emphasis on the mechanistic differences between the enzymes. The focus here will be concentrated mainly on two of these enzymes, copper, zinc superoxide dismutase and manganese superoxide dismutase, and some relatively subtle variations in the mechanisms by which they function.

Superoxide dismutases (SODs) are metal containing enzymes that catalyze the disproportionation of superoxide radicals to hydrogen peroxide and molecular oxygen. Extracellular Cu-only SODs are a new class of SODs found in fungi. Unlike the common Cu/Zn SODs, they lack the zinc site and have an unusually open access copper site. Interestingly, the human fungal pathogen Candida albicans encodes three of these enzymes, SOD4, 5, 6. The evolutionary advantage for the multiplicity of Cu-only SOD enzymes and their potentially divergent roles was unknown. Our recent studies have focused on a comparison of the highly homologous SOD4 and SOD5 of C. albicans. Using pulse radiolysis we find that SOD4 has similar enzyme kinetics to SOD5 and can react with superoxide at rates that are limited by diffusion. SOD4 and SOD5 appear virtually identical at the biochemical level, other than some possible differences in surface charges. However, these proteins strongly diverge at the expression level in C. albicans. SOD5 is predominantly expressed during morphogenesis of C. albicans from a budding state to an invasive filamentous form. Conversely, SOD4 is specifically upregulated during iron starvation, suggesting it may have a role in iron acquisition within the host where reactive oxygen species are present. We have also identified another Cu-only SOD in the emerging fungal pathogen Candida auris that is upregulated during iron restriction, suggesting this link to Fe homeostasis is conserved. The potential role for extracellular Cu-only SODs in protecting fungal pathogens in the iron starved environment of the host will be discussed.

The reduction of oxyiron(V), Fe(V)O(4)(3-) by inorganic oxysulfur species (SO(3)(2-) and S2O(3)(2-)) has been studied anaerobically in alkaline medium by using a premix pulse radiolysis technique. Studies on the reactions of Fe(VI)O(4)(2-) with the two sulfur radicals were also carried out. The spectroscopic results demonstrated that sulfur radicals reduced Fe(VI)O(4)(2-) to Fe(V)O(4)(3-) which is subsequently reduced by oxysulfur species by a two-electron reduction step to Fe(III). The rate constants for reduction of Fe(VI)O(4)(2-) to Fe(V)O(4)(3-) by sulfite and thiosulfate radicals (*SO3- and S4O(6)(*3-)) were found to be (1.9 +/- 0.3) x 10(8) and (7.5 +/- 0.8) x 10(7) M(-1) s(-1), respectively. However, the reactions of Fe(V)O(4)(3-) with the SO(3)(2-) and S2O(3)(2-) ions were separated by an order of magnitude, with SO(3)(2-) reacting at (3.9 +/- 0.3) x 10(4) M(-1) s(-1) while S2O(3)(2-) reacted with Fe(V) at (2.1 +/- 0.1) x 10(3) M(-1) s(-1) at pH 11.4.

Cyanide (CN−), thiocyanate (SCN−), and copper(I) cyanide (Cu(CN)43−) are common constituents in the wastes of many industrial processes such as metal finishing and gold mining, and their treatment is required before the safe discharge of effluent. The oxidation of CN−, SCN−, and Cu(CN)43− by ferrate(VI) (FeVIO42−; Fe(VI)) and ferrate(V) (FeVO43−; Fe(V)) has been studied using stopped-flow and premix pulse radiolysis techniques. The rate laws for the oxidation of cyanides were found to be first-order with respect to each reactant. The second-order rate constants decreased with increasing pH because the deprotonated species, FeO42−, is less reactive than the protonated Fe(VI) species, HFeO4−. Cyanides react 103–105 times faster with Fe(V) than with Fe(VI). The Fe(V) reaction with CN− proceeds by sequential one-electron reductions from Fe(V) to Fe(IV) to Fe(III). However, a two-electron transfer process from Fe(V) to Fe(III) occurs in the reaction of Fe(V) with SCN− and Cu(CN)43−. The toxic CN− species of cyanide wastes is converted into relatively non-toxic cyanate (NCO−). Results indicate that Fe(VI) is highly efficient in removing cyanides from electroplating rinse water and gold mill effluent.

The function in the structure, stability, and catalysis of the interfaces between subunits in manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD) is currently under scrutiny. Glu162 in homotetrameric human MnSOD spans a dimeric interface and forms a hydrogen bond with His163 of an adjacent subunit which is a direct ligand of the manganese. We have examined the properties of two site-specific mutants of human MnSOD in which Glu162 is replaced with Asp (E162D) and Ala (E162A). The X-ray crystal structures of E162D and E162A MnSOD reveal no significant structural changes compared with the wild type other than the removal of the hydrogen bond interaction with His163 in E162A MnSOD. In the case of E162D MnSOD, an intervening solvent molecule fills the void created by the mutation to conserve the hydrogen bond interaction between His163 and residue 162. These mutants retain their tetrameric structure and their specificity for manganese over iron. Each has catalytic activity in the disproportionation of superoxide that is typically 5-25% of that of the wild-type enzyme and a level of product inhibition greater by approximately 2-fold. Differential scanning calorimetry indicates that the hydrogen bond between Glu162 and His163 contributes to the stability of MnSOD, with the major unfolding transition occurring at 81 degrees C for E162A compared to 90 degrees C for wild-type MnSOD. These results suggest that Glu162 at the tetrameric interface in human MnSOD supports stability and efficient catalysis and has a significant role in regulating product inhibition.

A premix pulse radiolysis technique was used to study the reaction between Fe(V) and APCs. Fe(V) reactions with glycine, IDA, NTA, EDTA and DTPA were measured at pH 12.5. Spectral results showed that Fe(V) is reduced to Fe(III); therefore, the reaction of Fe(V) with APCs proceeds via a concerted two-electron oxidation, which converts Fe(V) to Fe(III). The rate law for the oxidation of these APCs by Fe(V) is first-order with respect to each reactant at this pH. Fe(V) reactivity with APCs at pH 12.5 was found to increase in the order of tertiary

Deinococcus radiodurans (Drad), a bacterium with an extraordinary capacity to tolerate high levels of ionizing radiation, produces only a manganese-containing superoxide dismutase (MnSOD). As MnSOD has been shown to remove superoxide radical with varying efficiency depending upon its cellular origin, a comparison of the Drad MnSOD efficiency with that of both human and Escherichia coli MnSODs was undertaken. Pulse radiolysis studies demonstrate that, under identical ratios of enzyme to superoxide radical, the dismutation efficiencies scaled as Drad MnSOD > E. coli MnSOD > human MnSOD. Further, Drad MnSOD is most effective at high superoxide fluxes found under conditions of high radioactivity. A mechanism is postulated to account for the differences in the activities of the MnSODs that considers the release of peroxide as not always an optimal process.

C. elegans MnSOD-3 has been implicated in the longevity pathway and its mechanism of catalysis is relevant to the aging process and carcinogenesis. The structures of MnSOD-3 provide unique crystallographic evidence of a dynamic region of the tetrameric interface (residues 41–54). We have determined the structure of the MnSOD-3-azide complex to 1.77-Å resolution. Analysis of this complex shows that the substrate analog, azide, binds end-on to the manganese center as a sixth ligand and that it ligates directly to a third and new solvent molecule also positioned within interacting distance to the His30 and Tyr34 residues of the substrate access funnel. This is the first structure of a eukaryotic MnSOD-azide complex that demonstrates the extended, uninterrupted hydrogen-bonded network that forms a proton relay incorporating three outer sphere solvent molecules, the substrate analog, the gateway residues, Gln142, and the solvent ligand. This configuration supports the formation and release of the hydrogen peroxide product in agreement with the 5-6-5 catalytic mechanism for MnSOD. The high product dissociation constant k4 of MnSOD-3 reflects low product inhibition making this enzyme efficient even at high levels of superoxide.

Bacterial pathogens Neisseria meningitidis and Brucella abortus pose threats to human and animal health worldwide, causing meningococcal disease and brucellosis, respectively. Mortality from acute N. meningitidis infections remains high despite antibiotics, and brucellosis presents alimentary and health consequences. Superoxide dismutases are master regulators of reactive oxygen and general pathogenicity factors and are therefore therapeutic targets. Cu,Zn superoxide dismutases (SODs) localized to the periplasm promote survival by detoxifying superoxide radicals generated by major host antimicrobial immune responses. We discovered that passive immunization with an antibody directed at N. meningitidis SOD (NmSOD) was protective in a mouse infection model. To define the relevant atomic details and solution assembly states of this important virulence factor, we report high-resolution and X-ray scattering analyses of NmSOD and of SOD from B. abortus (BaSOD). The NmSOD structures revealed an auxiliary tetrahedral Cu-binding site bridging the dimer interface; mutational analyses suggested that this metal site contributes to protein stability, with implications for bacterial defense mechanisms. Biochemical and structural analyses informed us about electrostatic substrate guidance, dimer assembly, and an exposed C-terminal epitope in the NmSOD dimer. In contrast, the monomeric BaSOD structure provided insights for extending immunogenic peptide epitopes derived from the protein. These collective results reveal unique contributions of SOD to pathogenic virulence, refine predictive motifs for distinguishing SOD classes, and suggest general targets for antibacterial immune responses. The identified functional contributions, motifs, and targets distinguishing bacterial and eukaryotic SOD assemblies presented here provide a foundation for efforts to develop SOD-specific inhibitors of or vaccines against these harmful pathogens. IMPORTANCE By protecting microbes against reactive oxygen insults, SODs aid survival of many bacteria within their hosts. Despite the ubiquity and conservation of these key enzymes, notable species-specific differences relevant to pathogenesis remain undefined. To probe mechanisms that govern the functioning of Neisseria meningitidis and Brucella abortus SODs, we used X-ray structures, enzymology, modeling, and murine infection experiments. We identified virulence determinants common to the two homologs, assembly differences, and a unique metal reservoir within meningococcal SOD that stabilizes the enzyme and may provide a safeguard against copper toxicity. The insights reported here provide a rationale and a basis for SOD-specific drug design and an extension of immunogen design to target two important pathogens that continue to pose global health threats.

Superoxide reductases (SORs) are non-heme iron-containing enzymes that remove superoxide by reducing it to hydrogen peroxide. The active center of SORs consists of a ferrous ion coordinated by four histidines and one cysteine in a square-pyramidal geometry. In the 2Fe-SOR, a distinct family of SORs, there is an additional desulforedoxin-like site that does not appear to be involved in SOR activity. Our previous studies on recombinant Archaeoglobus fulgidus neelaredoxin (1Fe-SOR) have shown that the reaction with superoxide involves the formation of a transient ferric form that, upon protonation, decays to yield an Fe(3+)-OH species, followed by binding of glutamate to the ferric ion via replacement of hydroxide (Rodrigues et al. in Biochemistry 45:9266-9278, 2006). Here, we report the characterization of recombinant desulfoferrodoxin from the same organism, which is a member of the 2Fe-SOR family, and show that the steps involved in the superoxide reduction are similar in both families of SOR. The electron donation to the SOR from its redox partner, rubredoxin, is also presented here.

Superoxide reductases (SORs), iron-centered enzymes responsible for reducing superoxide (O2(-)) to hydrogen peroxide, are found in many anaerobic and microaerophilic prokaryotes. The rapid reaction with an exogenous electron donor renders the reductase activity catalytic. Here, we demonstrate using pulse radiolysis that the initial reaction between O2(-) and Archaeoglobus fulgidus neelaredoxin, a one-iron SOR, leads to a short-lived transient that immediately disappears to yield a solvent-bound ferric species in acid-base equilibrium. Through comparison of wild-type neelaredoxin with mutants lacking the ferric ion coordinating glutamate, we demonstrate that the remaining step is related to the final coordination of this ligand to the oxidized metal center and kinetically characterize it for the first time, by pulse radiolysis and stopped-flow kinetics. The way exogenous phosphate perturbs the kinetics of superoxide reduction by neelaredoxin and mutant proteins was also investigated.

Incorporation of 3-fluorotyrosine and site-specific mutagenesis have been used with stopped-flow spectrophotometry and pulse radiolysis to investigate the catalytic properties of human manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD). All of the nine tyrosine residues in each of the four subunits of the homotetramer of human MnSOD were replaced with 3-fluorotyrosine. Previous studies showed that the crystal structures of the unfluorinated and fluorinated human MnSOD are nearly superimposable with the root-mean-square deviation for 198 α-carbon atoms at 0.3 A. However, the catalytic activity k cat / K m of the fluorinated MnSOD at 30 μM −1 s −1 was less than unfluorinated wild type at 800 μM −1 s −1 . Comparison of the values of k cat / K m for fluorinated and unfluorinated wild-type andY34F MnSOD showed that this decrease for the fluorinated enzyme was in significant part due to 3-fluorotyrosine residues distant (>7 A) from the active-site metal, not to 3-fluorotyrosine at position 34 close (∼5 A) to the metal. Although many rate constants for the catalysis are decreased by this fluorination, the rate of dissociation of the product-inhibited complex appears unchanged by the presence of fluorinated tyrosines. These results suggest that Tyr34 is not a proton donor in the release of the product-inhibited complex, which involves protonation of a peroxo complex of the metal with release of hydrogen peroxide.

The functional and structural significance of the intrasubunit disulfide bond in copper-zinc superoxide dismutase (SOD1) was studied by characterizing mutant forms of human SOD1 (hSOD) and yeast SOD1 lacking the disulfide bond. We determined x-ray crystal structures of metal-bound and metal-deficient hC57S SOD1. C57S hSOD1 isolated from yeast contained four zinc ions per protein dimer and was structurally very similar to wild type. The addition of copper to this four-zinc protein gave properly reconstituted 2Cu,2Zn C57S hSOD, and its spectroscopic properties indicated that the coordination geometry of the copper was remarkably similar to that of holo wild type hSOD1. In contrast, the addition of copper and zinc ions to apo C57S human SOD1 failed to give proper reconstitution. Using pulse radiolysis, we determined SOD activities of yeast and human SOD1s lacking disulfide bonds and found that they were enzymatically active at ∼10% of the wild type rate. These results are contrary to earlier reports that the intrasubunit disulfide bonds in SOD1 are essential for SOD activity. Kinetic studies revealed further that the yeast mutant SOD1 had less ionic attraction for superoxide, possibly explaining the lower rates. Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells lacking the sod1 gene do not grow aerobically in the absence of lysine, but expression of C57S SOD1 increased growth to 30-50% of the growth of cells expressing wild type SOD1, supporting that C57S SOD1 retained a significant amount of activity.

Density-functional calculations indicate that the second sphere of coordination around the metal centers of manganese and iron superoxide dismutases (MnSODs and FeSODs) plays an important role in the binding of O2(-). In these systems, O2(-) prefers to bind to Mn or Fe in end-on configurations. For human and E. coli MnSODs, the bound O2(-) forms hydrogen bonds with the tyrosine and glutamine amino acid residues in the second sphere of coordination. In the cases of E. coli and T. elongates FeSODs, hydrogen bonding occurs between the bound O2(-) and the tyrosine amino acid only because the glutamine is too far away for an effective bonding interaction. The manner in which the O2(-) binds to the metal center in MnSODs and FeSODs can affect the rate of subsequent protonation and determine the mechanism for the formation of H2O2. Both Mn- and Fe-containing superoxide dismutases contain a metal-bound solvent molecule that has been suggested to be involved in the uptake of a H+ upon reduction of the metal center [Bull, C.; Fee, J. A. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1985, 107, 3295; Miller, A.-F.; Padmakumar, K.; Sorkin, D. L.; Karapetian, A.; Vance, C. K. J. Inorg. Biochem. 2003, 93, 71]. Using density-functional theory, we confirm this suggestion and show the involvement of the second sphere of coordination in the process. We show that the oxidation of superoxide by Mn- or Fe-containing superoxide dismutases is facilitated by a cooperative effect between superoxide binding, protonation of the OH- bound to the metal, and electron transfer from the superoxide molecule to the oxidized metal. In particular, proton transfer through tyrosine-34 on the absence of a bound superoxide is uphill while, once superoxide is bound, the energetic barrier is lowered. It is this barrier that likely keeps the resting state (Mn(III)SOD) of the enzyme with a bound hydroxide, instead of a water. This work provides a model for the mechanism of reaction of superoxide with the oxidized form of the metal within Mn- and FeSODs.

Reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (ROS/RNS) including hydroxyl radicals, nitric oxide, hydrogen peroxide, peroxynitrite and superoxide, are important signaling molecules and are also generated at high concentrations as part of the innate immune response to pathogens.[1] However, elevated levels of reactive species can lead to oxidative stress, resulting in irreversible damage to biomolecules.[1] Oxidative stress has been implicated in numerous diseases including cardiovascular disease, cancer, neurological diseases and aging in general.[1-2] This has led to considerable interest in the development of therapeutics that scavenge ROS/RNS, including porphyrin-based complexes.[3] The structurally related vitamin B12derivatives cobalamins (Cbls; X = Me or Ado, Scheme 1), are cofactors for two enzyme reactions in humans – cytosolic methionine synthase (MS), and mitochondrial L-methylmalonyl-CoA mutase (MM-CoA mutase).[4] Cbl supplementation has been shown to be beneficial for treating chronic inflammatory diseases including chronic fatigue syndrome, sepsis, asthma, rheumatoid arthritis, neurological diseases including Alzheimer’s disease, and viral based diseases including AIDS.[5] Recently Scalabrino et al demonstrated that Cbl attenuates the pro-inflammatory immune response in a rat model for chronic Cbl deficiency by modulating levels of cytokines and growth factors including TNF-α, nerve growth factor, epidermal growth factor and IL-6.[6] Scheme 1 Structure of vitamin B12derivatives (cobalamins). X = CH3, Ado, H2O/OH, NO, etc. The important ROS superoxide, O2·−, is produced as a byproduct of cellular metabolism by mitochondrial and reticular membrane electron transport systems and by enzymes such as NADPH oxidase and xanthine oxidase.[7] O2·− is a precursor of two of the most potent ROS/RNS, peroxynitrite and the hydroxyl radical.[8] Superoxide dismutases, enzymes that catalyze the destruction of O2·− by converting it to O2 and H2O2, are upregulated in oxidative stress - associated diseases.[1] In vitro cell studies using human aortic endothelial cells show that vitamin B12prevents O2·− - induced oxidative stress at physiologically relevant (~10−9M) concentrations.[9] With supplementation intracellular Cbl levels can reach 0.7 μM.[10] Upon entering cells vitamin B12derivatives (cob(III)alamins) are reduced by the cblC protein to cob(II)alamin, Cbl(II).[11] We have previously shown that O2·− generated by the xanthine oxidase/acetaldehyde system reacts rapidly with the radical complex Cbl(II) by an indirect competition method.[9b] Given the importance of this reaction in human health, we now report the direct determination of rate constants for the reaction between Cbl(II) and O2·− using pulse radiolysis to generate O2·−. Figure 1 gives a plot of absorbance at 530 nm versus time for the reaction between Cbl(II) (7.3 × 10−5M) and O2·− (9.0 × 10−6M) at pH 7.42. Irradiating aqueous solutions generates ·OH, eaq− and ·H,[12] and in O2-saturated aqueous solutions containing ethanol or formate, these primary radicals are rapidly converted to O2·−.[12] An anaerobic Cbl(II) solution was rapidly mixed with an O2- saturated aqueous ethanol solution using a stopped-flow mixing device. The resulting mixture was subsequently exposed to an intense ionizing pulse (30 – 300 ns) and data collected. The time between mixing and pulsing was typically

The oxidation of thiocyanate by iron(V) (Fe(V)) was studied as a function of pH in alkaline solutions by a premix pulse radiolysis technique. The rates decrease with an increase in pH. The rate law for the oxidation of SCN− by Fe(V) was obtained as −d[Fe(V)]/dt = k10{[H+]2/([H+]2 + K2[H+] + K2K3)}[Fe(V)][SCN−], where k10 = 5.72 ± 0.19 × 106 M−1 s−1, pK2 = 7.2, and pK3 = 10.1. The reaction precedes via a two-electron oxidation, which converts Fe(V) to Fe(III). Thiocyanate reacts approximately 103× faster with iron(V) than does with iron(VI).

Hydrogen peroxide can interact with the active site of copper-zinc superoxide dismutase (SOD1) to generate a powerful oxidant. This oxidant can either damage amino acid residues at the active site, inactivating the enzyme (the self-oxidative pathway), or oxidize substrates exogenous to the active site, preventing inactivation (the external oxidative pathway). It is well established that the presence of bicarbonate anion dramatically enhances the rate of oxidation of exogenous substrates. Here, we show that bicarbonate also substantially enhances the rate of self-inactivation of human wild type SOD1. Together, these observations suggest that the strong oxidant formed by hydrogen peroxide and SOD1 in the presence of bicarbonate arises from a pathway mechanistically distinct from that producing the oxidant in its absence. Self-inactivation rates are further enhanced in a mutant SOD1 protein (L38V) linked to the fatal neurodegenerative disorder, familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. The 1.4 A resolution crystal structure of pathogenic SOD1 mutant D125H reveals the mode of oxyanion binding in the active site channel and implies that phosphate anion attenuates the bicarbonate effect by competing for binding to this site. The orientation of the enzyme-associated oxyanion suggests that both the self-oxidative and external oxidative pathways can proceed through an enzyme-associated peroxycarbonate intermediate.

Superoxide reductases (SORs) contain a characteristic square-pyramidal [Fe(NHis) 4 (SCys)] active site that catalyzes reduction of superoxide to hydrogen peroxide in several anaerobic bacteria and archaea. Some SORs, referred to as two-iron SORs (2Fe-SORs), also contain a lower-potential [Fe(SCys) 4 ] site that is presumed to have an electron transfer function. However, the intra- and inter-subunit distances between [Fe(SCys) 4 ] and [Fe(NHis) 4 (SCys)] iron centers within the 2Fe-SOR homodimer seem too long for efficient electron transfer between these sites. The possible role of the [Fe(SCys) 4 ] site in 2Fe-SORs was addressed in this work by examination of an engineered Desulfovibrio vulgaris 2Fe-SOR variant, C13S, in which one ligand residue of the [Fe(SCys) 4 ] site, cysteine 13, was changed to serine. This single amino acid residue change destroyed the native [Fe(SCys) 4 ] site with complete loss of its iron, but left the [Fe(NHis) 4 (SCys)] site and the protein homodimer intact. The spectroscopic, redox and superoxide reactivity properties of the [Fe(NHis) 4 (SCys)] site in the C13S variant were nearly indistinguishable from those of the wild-type 2Fe-SOR. Aerobic growth complementation of a superoxide dismutase (SOD)-deficient Escherichia coli strain showed that the presence of the [Fe(NHis) 4 (SCys)] site in C13S 2Fe-SOR was apparently sufficient to catalyze reduction of the intracellular superoxide to nonlethal levels. As is the case for the wild-type protein, C13S 2Fe-SOR did not show any detectable SOD activity, i.e., destruction of the [Fe(SCys) 4 ] site did not unmask latent SOD activity of the [Fe(NHis) 4 (SCys)] site. Possible alternative roles for the [Fe(SCys) 4 ] site in 2Fe-SORs are considered.

Catalysis of the disproportionation of superoxide by human manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD) is characterized by an initial burst of catalysis followed by a much slower region that is zero order in superoxide and due to a product inhibition by peroxide anion. We have prepared site-specific mutants with replacements at His30, the side chain of which lies along the substrate access channel and is about 5.8 A from the metal. Using pulse radiolysis to generate superoxide, we have determined that kcat/K(m) was decreased and product inhibition increased for H30V MnSOD, both by 1-2 orders of magnitude, compared with wild type, H30N, and H30Q MnSOD. These effects are not attributed to the redox potentials, which are similar for all of these variants. An investigation of the crystal structure of H30V Mn(III)SOD compared with wild type, H30Q, and H30N Mn(III)SOD showed the positions of two gamma carbons of Val30 in the active site; Cgamma1 overlaps Cgamma of His30 in wild type, and Cgamma2 extends into the substrate access channel and occupies the approximate position of a water molecule in the wild type. The data suggest that Cgamma2 of the Val side chain has significantly interrupted catalysis by this overlap into the access channel with possible overlap with the substrate-product binding site. This is supported by comparison of the crystal structure of H30V MnSOD with that of azide bound to Mn(III)SOD from Thermus thermophilus and by visible absorption spectra showing that azide binding to the metal in H30V Mn(III)SOD is abolished. Moreover, the presence of Val30 caused a 100-fold decrease in the rate constant for dissociation of the product-inhibited complex compared with wild type.

The reduction of Fe(V) by cyanide has been studied anaerobically in alkaline media (pH 10.55−12.10) by using a premix pulse radiolysis technique. The results demonstrated for the first time the spectroscopic evidence for sequential one-electron reductions of Fe(V) to Fe(IV) to Fe(III) in aqueous media. Rates for reductions decrease with an increase in pH and appeared to be related to deprotonation of Fe(V) and Fe(IV) species. The reactivity of the three ferrates (Fe(VI), Fe(V), and Fe(IV)) with cyanide showed that Fe(V) and Fe(IV) are approximately four- and two-orders of magnitude more reactive than Fe(VI), respectively. These rates suggest that Fe(VI) oxidations of compounds may be accelerated if reactions are performed in the presence of one-electron or two-electron reducing substrates.

Neelaredoxin is a mononuclear iron protein widespread among prokaryotic anaerobes and facultative aerobes, including human pathogens. It has superoxide scavenging activity, but the exact mechanism by which this process occurs has been controversial. In this report, we present the study of the reaction of superoxide with the reduced form of neelaredoxin from the hyperthermophilic archaeon Archaeoglobus fulgidus by pulse radiolysis. This protein reduces superoxide very efficiently (k = 1.5 x 10(9) m(-1)s(-1)), and the dismutation activity is rate-limited, in steady-state conditions, by the much slower superoxide oxidation step. These data show unambiguously that the superfamily of neelaredoxin-like proteins (including desulfoferrodoxin) presents a novel type of reactivity toward superoxide, a result of particular relevance for the understanding of both oxygen stress response mechanisms and, in particular, how pathogens may respond to the oxidative burst produced by the defense cells in eukaryotes. The actual in vivo functioning of these enzymes will depend strongly on the cell redox status. Further insight on the catalytic mechanism was obtained by the detection of a transient intermediate ferric species upon oxidation of neelaredoxin by superoxide, detectable by visible spectroscopy with an absorption maximum at 610 nm, blue-shifted approximately 50 nm from the absorption of the resting ferric state. The role of the iron sixth ligand, glutamate-12, in the reactivity of neelaredoxin toward superoxide was assessed by studying two site-directed mutants: E12Q and E12V.

Manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD) cycles between the Mn(II) and Mn(III) states during the catalyzed disproportionation of O(2)(*-), a catalysis that is limited at micromolar levels of superoxide by a peroxide-inhibited complex with the metal. We have investigated the role in catalysis and inhibition of the conserved residue Trp161 which forms a hydrophobic side of the active site cavity of MnSOD. Crystal structures of mutants of human MnSOD in which Trp161 was replaced with Ala or Phe showed significant conformational changes on adjacent residues near the active site, particularly Gln143 and Tyr34 which in wild-type MnSOD participate in a hydrogen bond network believed to support proton transfer during catalysis. Using pulse radiolysis and observing the UV absorbance of superoxide, we have determined rate constants for the catalytic dismutation of superoxide. In addition, the rates of formation and dissociation of the product-inhibited complex of these mutants were determined by direct observation of the characteristic visible absorption of the oxidized and inhibited states. Catalysis by W161A and W161F MnSOD was associated with a decrease of at least 100-fold in the catalytic rate of reduction of superoxide, which then promotes a competing pathway leading to product inhibition. The structural changes caused by the mutations at position 161 led to small changes, at most a 6-fold decrease, in the rate constant for formation of the inhibited complex. Solvent hydrogen isotope effects support a mechanism in which formation of this complex, presumably the peroxide dianion bound to the manganese, involves no rate-contributing proton transfer; however, the dissociation of the complex requires proton transfer to generate HO(2)(-) or H2O2.

It has been reported in the literature that the endogenous estrogen metabolite 2-methoxyestradiol (2-ME) inhibits both manganese and copper,zinc superoxide dismutases (Mn and Cu,Zn SODs) and that this mechanism is responsible for 2-ME's ability to kill cancer cells. In fact, as demonstrated using several SOD assays including pulse radiolysis, 2-ME does not inhibit SOD but rather interferes with the SOD assay originally used. Nevertheless, as confirmed by aconitase inactivation measurements and lactate dehydrogenase release in human leukemia HL-60 cells, 2-ME does increase superoxide production in these cells and is more toxic than its non-O-methylated precursor 2-hydroxyestradiol. Other mechanisms previously suggested in the literature may explain 2-ME's ability to increase intracellular superoxide levels in tumor cells.

The reactivity of the previously (Organometallics 2000, 19, 824−833) prepared hydride complexes (C5H4CO2H)L(CO)2WH (L = CO, PMe3) and the corresponding metal−metal dimers [(C5H4CO2H)L(CO)2W]2 in pulse radiolysis studies in aqueous solution is reported. The disappearance of eaq- was monitored to determine the rate constants for one-electron reduction. The smallest reduction rate constant was obtained for the dianion (C5H4CO2)(CO)3W2- (4.3 × 109 M-1 s-1), and the largest value (1.2 × 1010 M-1 s-1) was observed for its conjugate acid (C5H4CO2)(CO)3WH-. For the PMe3-substituted complexes, the dimer reduction rate constant was about twice as large as that for the hydride (k = 8.4 × 109 M-1 s-1). Rate constants for reaction with CO2-, 3.2 × 108 (pH 5) and 3.0 × 107 (pH 9.7) M-1 s-1, were determined for (C5H4CO2)(CO)3WH- and (C5H4CO2)(PMe3)(CO)2WH-, respectively. Rate constants for the reactions of the hydride complexes with the carbon-centered radical from tert-butyl alcohol and the α-hydroxy radicals from etha...

Manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD) from different species differs in its efficiency in removing high concentrations of superoxide (O(2)(-)), due to different levels of product inhibition. Human MnSOD exhibits a substantially higher level of product inhibition than the MnSODs from bacteria. In order to investigate the mechanism of product inhibition and whether it is a feature common to eukaryotic MnSODs, we purified MnSOD from Saccharomyces cerevisiae (ScMnSOD). It was a tetramer with 0.6 equiv of Mn per monomer. The catalytic activity of ScMnSOD was investigated by pulse radiolysis and compared with human and two bacterial (Escherichia coli and Deinococcus radiodurans) MnSODs. To our surprise, ScMnSOD most efficiently facilitates removal of high concentrations of O(2)(-) among these MnSODs. The gating value k(2)/k(3) that characterizes the level of product inhibition scales as ScMnSOD > D. radiodurans MnSOD > E. coli MnSOD > human MnSOD. While most MnSODs rest as the oxidized form, ScMnSOD was isolated in the Mn(2+) oxidation state as revealed by its optical and electron paramagnetic resonance spectra. This finding poses the possibility of elucidating the origin of product inhibition by comparing human MnSOD with ScMnSOD.

The presence of the copper ion at the active site of human wild type copper-zinc superoxide dismutase (CuZnSOD) is essential to its ability to catalyze the disproportionation of superoxide into dioxygen and hydrogen peroxide. Wild type CuZnSOD and several of the mutants associated with familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (FALS) (Ala4 → Val, Gly93 → Ala, and Leu38 → Val) were expressed inSaccharomyces cerevisiae. Purified metal-free (apoproteins) and various remetallated derivatives were analyzed by metal titrations monitored by UV-visible spectroscopy, histidine modification studies using diethylpyrocarbonate, and enzymatic activity measurements using pulse radiolysis. From these studies it was concluded that the FALS mutant CuZnSOD apoproteins, in direct contrast to the human wild type apoprotein, have lost their ability to partition and bind copper and zinc ions in their proper locations in vitro. Similar studies of the wild type and FALS mutant CuZnSOD holoenzymes in the “as isolated” metallation state showed abnormally low copper-to-zinc ratios, although all of the copper acquired was located at the native copper binding sites. Thus, the copper ions are properly directed to their native binding sites in vivo, presumably as a result of the action of the yeast copper chaperone Lys7p (yeast CCS). The loss of metal ion binding specificity of FALS mutant CuZnSODsin vitro may be related to their role in ALS.

Tryptophan 161 is a highly conserved residue that forms a hydrophobic side of the active site cavity of manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD), with its indole ring adjacent to and about 5 A from the manganese. We have made a mutant containing the conservative replacement Trp 161 --> Phe in human MnSOD (W161F MnSOD), determined its crystal structure, and measured the catalysis of the resulting mutant using pulse radiolysis to produce O(2)(*)(-). In the structure of W161F MnSOD the phenyl side chain of Phe 161 superimposes on the indole ring of Trp 161 in the wild type. However, in the mutant, the hydroxyl side chain of Tyr 34 is 3.9 A from the manganese, closer by 1.2 A than in the wild type. The tryptophan in MnSOD is not essential for the half-cycle of catalytic activity involving reduction of the manganese; the mutant W161F MnSOD had k(cat)/K(m) at 2.5 x 10(8) M(-)(1) s(-)(1), reduced only 3-fold compared with wild type. However, this mutant exhibited a strong product inhibition with a zero-order region of superoxide decay slower by 10-fold compared with wild type. The visible absorption spectrum of W161F MnSOD in the inhibited state was very similar to that observed for the inhibited wild-type enzyme. The appearance of the inhibited form required reaction of 2 molar equiv of O(2)(*)(-) with W161F Mn(III)SOD, one to form the reduced state of the metal and the second to form the inhibited complex, confirming that the inhibited complex requires reaction of O(2)(*)(-) with the reduced form of the enzyme. This work suggests that a significant role of Trp 161 in the active site is to promote the dissociation of product peroxide, perhaps in part through its effect on the orientation of Tyr 34.

A substantial body of evidence indicates that high intracellular concentrations of inorganic manganous ions render some cells resistant to ionizing radiation and provide substantial antioxidant protection to aerobic cells lacking superoxide dismutase (SOD) enzymes. We found that manganous phosphate is unique among those manganous salts studied in its ability to remove superoxide rapidly and catalytically from aqueous solution via a disproportionation mechanism that is entirely different from those of the SOD enzymes.