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A structural and functional perspective on the evolution of the heme–copper oxidases
Author(s) -
Sharma Vivek,
Wikström Mårten
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
febs letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.593
H-Index - 257
eISSN - 1873-3468
pISSN - 0014-5793
DOI - 10.1016/j.febslet.2014.09.020
Subject(s) - chemistry , heme , biochemistry , viewpoints , enzyme , physics , acoustics
The heme–copper oxidases (HCOs) catalyze the reduction of O 2 to water, and couple the free energy to proton pumping across the membrane. HCOs are divided into three sub‐classes, A, B and C, whose order of emergence in evolution has been controversial. Here we have analyzed recent structural and functional data on HCOs and their homologues, the nitric oxide reductases (NORs). We suggest that the C‐type oxidases are ancient enzymes that emerged from the NORs. In contrast, the A‐type oxidases are the most advanced from both structural and functional viewpoints, which we interpret as evidence for having evolved later.