Computational Study of Gas Diffusion Pathways in [FeFe]-Hydrogenase

Finding gas diffusion pathways in proteins: application to O2 and H2 transport in CpI [FeFe]-hydrogenase and the role of packing defects.

We report on a computational investigation of the passive transport of H2 and O2 between the external solution and the hydrogen-producing active site of CpI [FeFe]-hydrogenase from Clostridium pasteurianum. Two distinct methodologies for studying gas access are discussed and applied: (1) temperature-controlled locally enhanced sampling, and (2) volumetric solvent accessibility maps, providing c...

Synthetic [FeFe] Hydrogenase Active Site Model Complexes

Experimental approaches to kinetics of gas diffusion in hydrogenase.

Hydrogenases, which catalyze H(2) to H(+) conversion as part of the bioenergetic metabolism of many microorganisms, are among the metalloenzymes for which a gas-substrate tunnel has been described by using crystallography and molecular dynamics. However, the correlation between protein structure and gas-diffusion kinetics is unexplored. Here, we introduce two quantitative methods for probing th...

Computational Investigation of [FeFe]-Hydrogenase Models: Characterization of Singly and Doubly Protonated Intermediates and Mechanistic Insights

The [FeFe]-hydrogenase enzymes catalyze hydrogen oxidation and production efficiently with binuclear Fe metal centers. Recently the bioinspired H2-producing model system Fe2(adt)(CO)2(dppv)2 (adt=azadithiolate and dppv=diphosphine) was synthesized and studied experimentally. In this system, the azadithiolate bridge facilitates the formation of a doubly protonated ammonium-hydride species throug...

Muonium Chemistry at Diiron Subsite Analogues of [FeFe]‐Hydrogenase

The chemistry of metal hydrides is implicated in a range of catalytic processes at metal centers. Gaining insight into the formation of such sites by protonation and/or electronation is therefore of significant value in fully exploiting the potential of such systems. Here, we show that the muonium radical (Mu. ), used as a low isotopic mass analogue of hydrogen, can be exploited to probe the ea...