Redox-active centers

The [NiFe] hydrogenase from D. gigas has been used as a prototype of the [NiFe] hydrogenases. The enzyme is a heterodimer (62 and 26 kDa subunits) and contains four redox active centers one nickel site, one [3Fe-4S], and two [4Fe-4S] clusters, as proven by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) and Mosshauer spectroscopic studies (174). The enzyme has been isolated with different isotopic enrichments [6 Ni (I = I), = Ni (I = 0), Fe (I = 0), and Fe (I = )] and studied after reaction with H and D. Isotopic substitutions are valuable tools for spectroscopic assignments and catalytic studies (165, 166, 175). 

The protein from D. desulfuricans has been characterized by Mbss-bauer and EPR spectroscopy 224). The enzyme has a molecular mass of approximately 150 kDa (three different subunits 88, 29, and 16 kDa) and contains three different types of redox-active centers four c-type hemes, nonheme iron arranged as two [4Fe-4S] centers, and a molybdopterin site (Mo-bound to two MGD). Selenium was also chemically detected. The enzyme specific activity is 78 units per mg of protein. 

In the first family, the metal is coordinated by one molecule of the pterin cofactor, while in the second, it is coordinated to two pterin molecules (both in the guanine dinucleotide form, with the two dinucleotides extending from the active site in opposite directions). Some enzymes also contain FejSj clusters (one or more), which do not seem to be directly linked to the Mo centers. The molybdenum hydroxylases invariably possess redox-active sites in addition to the molybdenum center and are found with two basic types of polypeptide architecture. The enzymes metabolizing quinoline-related compounds, and derivatives of nicotinic acid form a separate groups, in which each of the redox active centers are found in separate subunits. Those enzymes possessing flavin subunits are organized as a2jS2A2, with a pair of 2Fe-2S centers in the (3 subunit, the flavin in the (3 subunit, and the molybdenum in the y subunit. 

In protein-protein reactions, the donor-acceptor distance is determined by the structure of the reacting proteins, and the way(s) in which they bind and interact. For example, it is generally believed that cytochrome c binds to its reaction partners at or near the exposed heme edge, in order to minimize the reactant distance and thereby maximize the rate. The redox active centers of most proteins are sufficiently buried that the large protein imposed distances provide low intrinsic reactivity for the proteins with respect to exogenous... 

The possibility that there might be long-range electron transfer between redox-active centers in enzymes was first suspected by biochemists working on the mechanism of action of metalloenzymes such as xanthine oxidase which contain more than one metal-based redox center. In these enzymes electron transfer frequently proceeds rapidly but early spectroscopic measurements, notably those by electron paramagnetic resonance, failed to provide any indication that these centers were close to one another. 

Pershad, H. R., Duff, J. L., Heering, H. A., Duin, E. C., Albracht, S. P. and Armstrong, F. A. (1999) Catalytic electron transport in Chromatium vinosum [NiFe]-hydrogenase Application of voltammetry in detecting redox-active centers and establishing that hydrogen oxidation is very fast even at potentials close to the reversible H+/H2 value. Biochemistry, 38, 8992-9. 

In connecting the diethylaniline into the redox-active center of the amine oxidase in the study by Hess et al. [118] the connection is made possible for the connection to be made to the interior of the enzymes because the molecules were rigid. However, for this to occur requires sufficient spacing between the molecular wires on the... 

In this chapter we describe the use of polyelectrolytes carrying redox-active centers on electrode surfaces with particular emphasis on organized layer-by-layer redox polyelectrolyte multilayers (RPEM). In redox-active polyelectrolyte multilayers the polyion-polyion intrinsic charge compensation can be broken by ion exchange driven by the electrochemical oxidation and reduction forming extrinsic polyion-counterion pairing. In this chapter we describe the structure, dynamics and applications of these systems. 

Fig. 1. Depiction of the concept of electrochemical recognition the binding of a guest (G) in close proximity to a redox-active center electrochemically detectable (a) through space interactions and (b) through various bond linkages.

Fig. 22. The binding of an organic guest substrate S in close proximity to a redox-active center.

Redox polymers are electroactive polymers for which the redox centers are localized on pendent, covalently attached redox centers. The electrochemical properties of such materials depend not only on both the loading and the nature of the redox-active center but also on the type of polymer backbone. The electroactive groups are typically metal complexes, which are covalently attached to a polymer... 

In the first step, the precursor, typically a ruthenium or osmium bis(2,2,-bipyridyl) (bpy) complex, reacts with solvent (S) to produce a solvated complex. When solvents such as dry methanol and ethanol are used, only one chloride is exchanged and the species [Ru(bpy)2(PVP) Cl]+ is obtained as the sole product. The nature of the coordination sphere around the metal center can be determined by UV-visible (UV/Vis) spectroscopy (Xmax, 496 nm) and by its redox potential, (about 0.65 V (vs. SCE), depending on the electrolyte being used). By a systematic variation of the ratio of monomer units to redox-active centers, the loading of the polymer backbone ( n) can be varied systematically. (Here, n stands for the number of monomer units in the polymer per redox-active center, e.g. in a PVP-based, n = 10 polymer, there are 10 pyridine units for every redox center. 

Many proteins are exclusively involved in intra-protein electron transfer and typically function in ordered structures such as mitochondria. Under these circumstances, the redox-active centers are generally accessible on the outer surface of the protein. In contrast, the redox reactions catalyzed by oxidoreductases involve small molecules with the reaction involving two redox couples, i.e. the substrate and the co-factor or co-substrate. Because the catalytic center of the enzyme is often located... 

Three processes can control the rate of homogeneous charge transport through a redox-active polymer film, i.e. electron self-exchange between redox-active centers,... 

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