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New Iron–Sulfur Clusters Help Hydrogenases Tolerate Oxygen
Author(s) -
Grubel Katarzyna,
Holland Patrick L.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
angewandte chemie international edition
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.831
H-Index - 550
eISSN - 1521-3773
pISSN - 1433-7851
DOI - 10.1002/anie.201108761
Subject(s) - sulfur , cluster (spacecraft) , oxygen , iron–sulfur cluster , chemistry , electron transfer , sulfide , crystallography , hydrogenase , oxygen atom , photochemistry , enzyme , molecule , biochemistry , organic chemistry , computer science , programming language
One S less : Recent crystallographic studies have revealed a new, oxygen‐tolerant kind of iron–sulfide cluster [4Fe‐3S], which contains only three rather than four sulfur atoms in its cage (see picture; yellow=S, red=Fe, blue=N, green=cysteine). It is proposed that the cluster's ability to transfer multiple electrons increases the oxygen tolerance by enabling the enzyme to reduce O 2 rapidly, converting the dioxygen into harmless water before it can damage the protein.