title: Plasticity of proton pathway structure and water coordination in cytochrome c oxidase.
abstract: Cytochrome c oxidase (CytcO) is a redox-driven, membrane-bound proton pump. One of the proton transfer pathways of the enzyme, the D pathway, used for the transfer of both substrate and pumped protons, accommodates a network of hydrogen-bonded water molecules that span the distance between an aspartate (Asp(132)), near the protein surface, and glutamate Glu(286), which is an internal proton donor to the catalytic site. To investigate how changes in the environment around Glu(286) affect the mechanism of proton transfer through the pathway, we introduced a non-hydrogen-bonding (Ala) or an acidic residue (Asp) at position Ser(197) (S197A or S197D), located approximately 7 A from Glu(286). Although Ser(197) is hydrogen-bonded to a water molecule that is part of the D pathway "proton wire," replacement of the Ser by an Ala did not affect the proton transfer rate. In contrast, the S197D mutant CytcO displayed a turnover activity of approximately 35% of that of the wild-type CytcO, and the O(2) reduction reaction was not linked to proton pumping. Instead, a fraction of the substrate protons was taken from the positive ("incorrect") side of the membrane. Furthermore, the pH dependence of the proton transfer rate was altered in the mutant CytcO. The results indicate that there is plasticity in the water coordination of the proton pathway, but alteration of the electrostatic potential within the pathway results in uncoupling of the proton translocation machinery.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, The Arrhenius Laboratories for Natural Sciences, Stockholm University, SE-106 91 Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Namslauer
authors.forename: Håkan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Lepp
authors.forename: Magnus
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Brändén
authors.forename: Audrius
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jasaitis
authors.forename: Michael I
authors.initials: MI
authors.lastname: Verkhovsky
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Brzezinski
mesh_terms: D019943:Amino Acid Substitution; D020134:Catalytic Domain / Q000235:genetics; D003576:Electron Transport Complex IV / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics; D006860:Hydrogen Bonding; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D017136:Ion Transport / Q000235:genetics; D020125:Mutation, Missense; D010084:Oxidation-Reduction; D010100:Oxygen / Q000737:chemistry; D020836:Protein Structure, Quaternary; D011522:Protons; D012242:Rhodobacter sphaeroides / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics; D055672:Static Electricity; D014867:Water / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D011522:Protons; D014867:Water; D003576:Electron Transport Complex IV; D010100:Oxygen