title: Differential inhibition of the yeast bc1 complex by phenanthrolines and ferroin. Implications for structure and catalytic mechanism.
abstract: o-Phenanthroline and m-phenanthroline both inhibit the electron transfer activity of lauryl maltoside-solubilized yeast bc1 complex progressively with time. Pre-steady-state kinetics indicate that these compounds bind to the complex on the intermembrane space side, thereby blocking reduction of cytochrome b via the ubiquinol oxidation site. o-Phenanthroline is additionally capable of chelating an iron atom derived from the Rieske Fe-S cluster, thereby distorting the structure of the Rieske protein. EPR analysis shows that the secondary effect of o-phenanthroline occurs after initial inactivation and that m-phenanthroline, which lacks chelating activity, does not affect the Rieske Fe-S cluster. Spectral analysis shows that the b and c1 cytochromes are still dithionite-reducible after inactivation by o-phenanthroline, indicating that they remain intact. Inactivation by o-phenanthroline can be prevented by the addition of Fe2+. Surprisingly, ferroin, the o-phenanthroline-ferrous sulfate complex, also inhibits the bc1 complex activity. In contrast to o-phenanthroline, this effect is instantaneous. The two types of inhibition are clearly distinguishable by pre-steady-state reduction kinetics. Interestingly, ferroin can only inhibit electron transfer activity by about 50%. This behavior is discussed in relation to the dimeric structure of the bc1 complex, and we conclude that ferroin binds to only one of the two protomers. The rate of inactivation by o-phenanthroline is dependent on the incubation temperature and can be quantitated in terms of the half-life for a certain temperature, the time at which the bc1 activity is reduced to 50%. In contrast to the solubilized form, the bc1 complex in intact mitochondria is insensitive to o-phenanthroline, suggesting that the inactivation rate by o-phenanthroline is dependent on accessibility of the complex to the agent. Reaction with o-phenanthroline is thus a useful technique for study of structural stability of the bc1 complex under different conditions and should provide a sensitive tool for determination of the relative stability of mutant enzymes.
authors.affiliation: E. C. Slater Institute, Department of Molecular Cell Biology, BioCentrum, University of Amsterdam, 1018 TV Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Boumans
authors.forename: M C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: van Gaalen
authors.forename: L A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Grivell
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Berden
mesh_terms: D002614:Chelating Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D003573:Cytochrome b Group / Q000378:metabolism; D019281:Dimerization; D004578:Electron Spin Resonance Spectroscopy; D014450:Electron Transport Complex III / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors*; D004795:Enzyme Stability; D005296:Ferrous Compounds / Q000494:pharmacology; D007364:Intercalating Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D007506:Iron-Sulfur Proteins / Q000494:pharmacology; D008958:Models, Molecular; D010618:Phenanthrolines / Q000494:pharmacology*; D011487:Protein Conformation; D012441:Saccharomyces cerevisiae
chemical_list: D002614:Chelating Agents; D003573:Cytochrome b Group; D005296:Ferrous Compounds; D007364:Intercalating Agents; D007506:Iron-Sulfur Proteins; D010618:Phenanthrolines; C037989:Rieske iron-sulfur protein; C001635:ferroin; C053487:4,7-phenanthroline; C053486:1,7-phenanthroline; C020748:ferrous sulfate; D014450:Electron Transport Complex III; C025205:1,10-phenanthroline