Rational tuning of the thiolate donor in model complexes of superoxide reductase: direct evidence for a trans influence in Fe(III)-OOR complexes.
Iron peroxide species have been identified as important intermediates in a number of nonheme iron as well as heme-containing enzymes, yet there are only a few examples of such species either synthetic or biological that have been well characterized. We describe the synthesis and structural characterization of a new series of five-coordinate (N4S(thiolate))Fe(II) complexes that react with tert-butyl hydroperoxide ((t)BuOOH) or cumenyl hydroperoxide (CmOOH) to give metastable alkylperoxo-iron(III) species (N4S(thiolate)Fe(III)-OOR) at low temperature. These complexes were designed specifically to mimic the nonheme iron active site of superoxide reductase, which contains a five-coordinate iron(II) center bound by one Cys and four His residues in the active form of the protein. The structures of the Fe(II) complexes are analyzed by X-ray crystallography, and their electrochemical properties are assessed by cyclic voltammetry. For the Fe(III)-OOR species, low-temperature UV-vis spectra reveal intense peaks between 500-550 nm that are typical of peroxide to iron(III) ligand-to-metal charge-transfer (LMCT) transitions, and EPR spectroscopy shows that these alkylperoxo species are all low-spin iron(III) complexes. Identification of the vibrational modes of the Fe(III)-OOR unit comes from resonance Raman (RR) spectroscopy, which shows nu(Fe-O) modes between 600-635 cm(-1) and nu(O-O) bands near 800 cm(-1). These Fe-O stretching frequencies are significantly lower than those found in other low-spin Fe(III)-OOR complexes. Trends in the data conclusively show that this weakening of the Fe-O bond arises from a trans influence of the thiolate donor, and density functional theory (DFT) calculations support these findings. These results suggest a role for the cysteine ligand in SOR, and are discussed in light of the recent assessments of the function of the cysteine ligand in this enzyme.
Department of Chemistry, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland 21218, USA.
Frances
F
Namuswe
Gary D
GD
Kasper
Amy A Narducci
AA
Sarjeant
Takahiro
T
Hayashi
Courtney M
CM
Krest
Michael T
MT
Green
Pierre
P
Moënne-Loccoz
David P
DP
Goldberg
D001555:Benzene Derivatives / Q000737:chemistry*; D003198:Computer Simulation; D018360:Crystallography, X-Ray; D004563:Electrochemistry; D004566:Electrodes; D005290:Ferric Compounds / Q000138:chemical synthesis* / Q000737:chemistry; D005296:Ferrous Compounds / Q000737:chemistry*; D008024:Ligands; D008956:Models, Chemical; D008958:Models, Molecular; D015394:Molecular Structure; D010088:Oxidoreductases / Q000737:chemistry*; D013056:Spectrophotometry, Ultraviolet / Q000379:methods; D013059:Spectrum Analysis, Raman / Q000379:methods; D013438:Sulfhydryl Compounds / Q000737:chemistry*; D020122:tert-Butylhydroperoxide / Q000737:chemistry*
D001555:Benzene Derivatives; D005290:Ferric Compounds; D005296:Ferrous Compounds; D008024:Ligands; D013438:Sulfhydryl Compounds; D020122:tert-Butylhydroperoxide; D010088:Oxidoreductases; C121849:superoxide reductase