Midpoint potential, iron-sulfur centers

The 2-eleetron midpoint potential of the FAD in FUM is n55mV (Aekrell et al., 1989). The 1-eleetron potentials for the iron-sulfur centers are -nSOrnV (2Fe-2S), n300 (4Fe-4S) and n70mV (3Fe-4S) (Kowal et al., 1995). The eleetron transfer rates between the individual clusters or from the 2Fe-2S eluster to FAD are not known. 

When PDR is titrated with NADH or dithionite, two stages of reduction are observed. First, the iron-sulfur center and FMN react simultaneously to form a reduced iron—sulfur center and a neutral flavin semiquinone. Further titration reduces the semiquinone to the hydroquinone. During the reduction, a maximum semiquinone concentration of 80% of the total enzyme concentration is reached. The redox potential of the [2Fe-2S] center and that of the oxidized flavin—semiquinone couple are the same, —174 mV. The semiquinone— hydroquinone couple is well resolved from this at —287 mV." These midpoint potentials favor spontaneous electron transfer from NADH to FMN to [2Fe-2S]. 

Note MQ, UQ, PQ menaquinone, ubiquinone, plastoquinone, respectively Pc plastocyanin (FeS) iron-sulfur center I intermediate electron acceptor Other symbols see text. The numbers are redox midpoint potentials Em (versus the normal hydrogen electrode), in mV. 

Electrochemical studies performed in the 7 x Cys-Aspl4 D. afri-canus Fdlll indicate that the reduced [3Fe-4S] center can react rapidly with Fe to form a [4Fe-4S] core that must include noncysteinyl coordination (101). The carboxylate side chain of Asp 14 was proposed as the most likely candidate, since this amino acid occupies the cysteine position in the typical sequence of a 8Fe protein as indicated before. The novel [4Fe-4S] cluster with mixed S and O coordination has a midpoint redox potential of 400 mV (88). This novel coordinated state with an oxygen coordination to the iron-sulfur core is a plausible model for a [4Fe-4S] core showing unusual spin states present in complex proteins (113, 114). 

The following description of the electron transfer-proton transport scheme is illustrated in Figure 7.26. First, an electron is transferred from doubly reduced dihydroplastoquinone (PQFI2) to a high potential electron transfer chain that consists of the Reiske iron-sulfur protein and the cytochrome protein containing heme f. Rappaport,Lavergne and co-workers have reported a midpoint potential at pH 7.0 of +355 mV for heme f. These two centers reside on the electropositive (lumen or p) side of the membrane, exterior to the membrane. As a result, two protons are transferred to the aqueous lumen phase. A second electron is transferred from PQH2 sequentially to heme bp. 

As is apparent in Fig. 3, considerable similarity exists in the arrangement of the electron transfer cofactors in PS I and PS n. The main differences between the two systems are as follows 1) PS I has three Pe4S4 iron-sulfur clusters. Ex, Ea, and Eb, located on the stromal side of the complex 2) In PS I the primary acceptor is a chlorophyll, not pheophytin and 3) the distance between the primary acceptor (Aqa3 ) and phylloquinone (Aia,b) in PS I is significantly shorter than the corresponding distance between PheoA,B and Qa.b in PS II and Type II reaction centers. These structural differences correlate with functional differences between the two types of reaction centers. In PS II, the mobile electron carrier on the stromal side of the complex is Qb, which is a lipid-soluble, two-electron acceptor. In contrast, the mobile electron carrier in PS I is ferredoxin, which is a water-soluble, one-electron acceptor. The three iron-sulfur clusters in PS I provide a chaimel by which electrons are funneled out of the reaction center to ferredoxin. On the donor side of the complex, plastocyanin, the reductant that replenishes electrons removed from P700, is also a water-soluble protein and is a one-electron donor. Thus, each photon absorbed by the PS I complex leads to the transfer of one electron from plastocyanin to ferredoxin. In Fig. 2, it is apparent that the midpoint potentials of the acceptors in PS I are about 500 to 700 mV more negative than those in PS II, and the... 

Zanc-containing ferredoxin is the most abundant ferredoxin in chemohetero-trophically grown Sulfolobus sp. strain and T. acidophilum. The types and spectroscopic properties of the iron-sulfur clusters and the isolated zinc center are very similar in archaeal zinc-containing ferredoxins (Table I). Zinc-containing ferredoxin from Sulfolobus sp. strain 7 (103 amino acids, 7 cysteines) contains one [3Fe-4S] cluster (cluster I) with a midpoint redox potential of —280 mV, one [4Fe-4S] cluster (cluster II) with a midpoint redox potential of —530 mV, and a tetragonal zinc center. j acidophilum zinc-containing ferredoxin... 

As for chloroplast membranes, various compounds in mitochondrial membranes accept and donate electrons. These electrons originate from biochemical cycles in the cytosol as well as in the mitochondrial matrix (see Fig. 1-9) —most come from the tricarboxylic acid (Krebs) cycle, which leads to the oxidation of pyruvate and the reduction of NAD+ within mitochondria. Certain principal components for mitochondrial electron transfer and their midpoint redox potentials are indicated in Figure 6-8, in which the spontaneous electron flow to higher redox potentials is toward the bottom of the figure. As for photosynthetic electron flow, only a few types of compounds are involved in electron transfer in mitochondria—namely, pyridine nucleotides, flavoproteins, quinones, cytochromes, and the water-oxygen couple (plus some iron-plus-sulfur-containing centers or clusters). 

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