Correlating kinetic and structural data on ubiquinone binding and reduction by respiratory complex I

Respiratory complex I (NADH:ubiquinone oxidoreductase), one of the largest membrane-bound enzymes in mammalian cells, powers ATP synthesis by using the energy from electron transfer from NADH to ubiquinone-10 to drive protons across the energy-transducing mitochondrial inner membrane. Ubiquinone-10 is extremely hydrophobic, but in complex I the binding site for its redox-active quinone headgroup is ~20 Å above the membrane surface. Structural data suggest it accesses the site by a narrow channel long enough to accommodate almost all its ~50 Å isoprenoid chain. However, how ubiquinone/ol exchange occurs on catalytically-relevant timescales, and whether binding/dissociation events are involved in coupling electron transfer to proton translocation, are unknown. Here, we use proteoliposomes containing complex I, together with a quinol oxidase, to determine the kinetics of complex I catalysis with ubiquinones of varying isoprenoid chain length, from 1 to 10 units. We interpret our results using structural data, which show the hydrophobic channel is interrupted by a highly-charged region at isoprenoids 4 to 7. We demonstrate that ubiquinol-10 dissociation is not rate determining, and deduce that ubiquinone-10 has both the highest binding affinity and the fastest binding rate. We propose that the charged region and chain directionality assist product dissociation, and that isoprenoid stepping ensures short transit times. These properties of the channel do not benefit the exhange of short-chain quinones, for which product dissociation may become rate limiting. Thus, we discuss how the long channel does not hinder catalysis under physiological conditions, and the possible roles of ubiquinone/ubiquinol binding/dissociation in energy conversion.We thank C. Humphreys & Sons Abattoir (Chelmsford) for providing bovine hearts and Sotiria Tavoulari for help with the amido black assay. Computing time was provided by the SuperMuc at The Leibniz Rechenzentrum (Grant pr48de). This work was supported by the Medical Research Council (Grant U105663141 to J.H.) and by the German Research Foundation (V.R.I.K.)

Bicarbonate-controlled reduction of oxygen by the QA semiquinone in Photosystem II in membranes

Photosystem II (PSII), the water/plastoquinone photo-oxidoreductase, plays a key energy input role in the biosphere. Q∙−A, the reduced semiquinone form of the nonexchangeable quinone, is often considered capable of a side reaction with O2, forming superoxide, but this reaction has not yet been demonstrated experimentally. Here, using chlorophyll fluorescence in plant PSII membranes, we show that O2 does oxidize Q∙−A at physiological O2 concentrations with a t1/2 of 10 s. Superoxide is formed stoichiometrically, and the reaction kinetics are controlled by the accessibility of O2 to a binding site near Q∙−A, with an apparent dissociation constant of 70 ± 20 µM. Unexpectedly, Q∙−A could only reduce O2 when bicarbonate was absent from its binding site on the nonheme iron (Fe2+) and the addition of bicarbonate or formate blocked the O2-dependant decay of Q∙−A. These results, together with molecular dynamics simulations and hybrid quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics calculations, indicate that electron transfer from Q∙−A to O2 occurs when the O2 is bound to the empty bicarbonate site on Fe2+. A protective role for bicarbonate in PSII was recently reported, involving long-lived Q∙−A triggering bicarbonate dissociation from Fe2+ [Brinkert et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 113, 12144–12149 (2016)]. The present findings extend this mechanism by showing that bicarbonate release allows O2 to bind to Fe2+ and to oxidize Q∙−A. This could be beneficial by oxidizing Q∙−A and by producing superoxide, a chemical signal for the overreduced state of the electron transfer chain

Cryo-EM structures of complex I from mouse heart mitochondria in two biochemically defined states.

Complex I (NADH:ubiquinone oxidoreductase) uses the reducing potential of NADH to drive protons across the energy-transducing inner membrane and power oxidative phosphorylation in mammalian mitochondria. Recent cryo-EM analyses have produced near-complete models of all 45 subunits in the bovine, ovine and porcine complexes and have identified two states relevant to complex I in ischemia-reperfusion injury. Here, we describe the 3.3-Å structure of complex I from mouse heart mitochondria, a biomedically relevant model system, in the 'active' state. We reveal a nucleotide bound in subunit NDUFA10, a nucleoside kinase homolog, and define mechanistically critical elements in the mammalian enzyme. By comparisons with a 3.9-Å structure of the 'deactive' state and with known bacterial structures, we identify differences in helical geometry in the membrane domain that occur upon activation or that alter the positions of catalytically important charged residues. Our results demonstrate the capability of cryo-EM analyses to challenge and develop mechanistic models for mammalian complex I

The low spin - high spin equilibrium in the S2-state of the water oxidizing enzyme

In Photosystem II (PSII), the Mn4CaO5-cluster of the active site advances through five sequential oxidation states (S0to S4) before water is oxidized and O2is generated. Here, we have studied the transition between the low spin (LS) and high spin (HS) configurations of S2using EPR spectroscopy, quantum chemical calculations using Density Functional Theory (DFT), and time-resolved UV-visible absorption spectroscopy. The EPR experiments show that the equilibrium between S2LSand S2HSis pH dependent, with a pKa ≈ 8.3 (n ≈ 4) for the native Mn4CaO5and pKa ≈ 7.5 (n ≈ 1) for Mn4SrO5. The DFT results suggest that exchanging Ca with Sr modifies the electronic structure of several titratable groups within the active site, including groups that are not direct ligands to Ca/Sr, e.g., W1/W2, Asp61, His332 and His337. This is consistent with the complex modification of the pKaupon the Ca/Sr exchange. EPR also showed that NH3addition reversed the effect of high pH, NH3-S2LSbeing present at all pH values studied. Absorption spectroscopy indicates that NH3is no longer bound in the S3TyrZstate, consistent with EPR data showing minor or no NH3-induced modification of S3and S0. In both Ca-PSII and Sr-PSII, S2HSwas capable of advancing to S3at low temperature (198 K). This is an experimental demonstration that the S2LSis formed first and advances to S3via the S2HSstate without detectable intermediates. We discuss the nature of the changes occurring in the S2LSto S2HStransition which allow the S2HSto S3transition to occur below 200 K. This work also provides a protocol for generating S3in concentrated samples without the need for saturating flashes