Ammonia (NH 3 )-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) emit substantial amounts of nitric oxide (NO) and nitrous oxide (N 2 O), both of which contribute to the harmful environmental side effects of large-scale agriculture. The currently accepted model for AOB metabolism involves NH 3 oxidation to nitrite (NO 2 -) via a single obligate intermediate, hydroxylamine (NH 2 OH). Within this model, the multiheme enzyme hydroxylamine oxidoreductase (HAO) catalyzes the four-electron oxidation of NH 2 OH to NO 2 -. We provide evidence that HAO oxidizes NH 2 OH by only three electrons to NO under both anaerobic and aerobic conditions. NO 2 -observed in HAO activity assays is a nonenzymatic product resulting from the oxidation of NO by O 2 under aerobic conditions. Our present study implies that aerobic NH 3 oxidation by AOB occurs via two obligate intermediates, NH 2 OH and NO, necessitating a mediator of the third enzymatic step.nitrification | nitric oxide | enzymology | bioinorganic chemistry S ynthetic nitrogenous fertilizers are necessary in agriculture to sustain the growing human population, but their use causes significant imbalance in the biogeochemical nitrogen cycle (1). The application of ammonia (NH 3 )-based fertilizers increases concentrations of nitrite (NO 2 -) and nitrate (NO 3 -) in the water table. These species pollute drinking water and drive the eutrophication of lakes and estuaries. Moreover, elevated NH 3 concentrations in soil have been linked to nitrous oxide (N 2 O) and nitric oxide (NO) emissions. N 2 O is an ozone-depleting greenhouse gas with a global warming potential ∼300× greater than that of carbon dioxide (2), and NO contributes to the production of ground-level ozone and acid rain (3, 4). Balancing human needs with environmental impact requires an intimate understanding of the biological pathways that produce these pollutants (5).Biological sources of NO and N 2 O include NH 3 -oxidizing bacteria (AOB), which mediate the oxidation of NH 3 to NO 2 -. The prevailing view of NH 3 oxidation, based largely on studies of the model AOB Nitrosomonas europaea, is that it occurs via a two-step enzymatic process (6):An integral membrane metalloenzyme, NH 3 monooxygenase (AMO), catalyzes the dioxygen (O 2 )-dependent hydroxylation of NH 3 to hydroxylamine (NH 2 OH; Eq. 1). Two electrons are required to turn over AMO. NH 2 OH is then oxidized by four electrons to NO 2 -(Eq. 2) by a multiheme enzyme, hydroxylamine oxidoreductase (HAO). Two of these electrons return to AMO, leaving two net electrons to enter the respiratory electron transport chain using O 2 as the terminal electron acceptor. Under anaerobic conditions, AOB carry out nitrifier denitrification, in which O 2 is substituted by NO 2 -as the terminal electron acceptor and is reduced to N 2 O or dinitrogen (7). The obligate intermediates of nitrifier denitrification are NO and N 2 O, both of which can escape from cells and into the atmosphere. Emissions of NO and N 2 O have also been linked to aerobic NH 3 oxidation (4, 8), which suggests that alternate ...

The unique active site of flavo-diiron proteins (FDPs) consists of a nonheme diiron-carboxylate site proximal to a flavin mononucleotide (FMN) cofactor. FDPs serve as the terminal components for reductive scavenging of dioxygen or nitric oxide to combat oxidative or nitrosative stress in bacteria, archaea, and some protozoan parasites. Nitric oxide is reduced to nitrous oxide by the four-electron reduced (FMNH2–FeIIFeII) active site. In order to clarify the nitric oxide reductase mechanism, we undertook a multispectroscopic presteady-state investigation, including the first Mössbauer spectroscopic characterization of diiron redox intermediates in FDPs. A new transient intermediate was detected and determined to be an antiferromagnetically coupled diferrous-dinitrosyl (S = 0, [{FeNO}7]2) species. This species has an exchange energy, J ≥ 40 cm–1 (JS1 ° S2), which is consistent with a hydroxo or oxo bridge between the two irons. The results show that the nitric oxide reductase reaction proceeds through successive formation of diferrous-mononitrosyl (S = 1/2, FeII{FeNO}7) and the S = 0 diferrous-dinitrosyl species. In the rate-determining process, the diferrous-dinitrosyl converts to diferric (FeIIIFeIII) and by inference N2O. The proximal FMNH2 then rapidly rereduces the diferric site to diferrous (FeIIFeII), which can undergo a second 2NO → N2O turnover. This pathway is consistent with previous results on the same deflavinated and flavinated FDP, which detected N2O as a product (HayashiHayashi20669924Biochemistry2010497040). Our results do not support other proposed mechanisms, which proceed either via “super-reduction” of [{FeNO}7]2 by FMNH2 or through FeII{FeNO}7 directly to a diferric-hyponitrite intermediate. The results indicate that an S = 0 [{FeNO}7}]2 complex is a proximal precursor to N–N bond formation and N–O bond cleavage to give N2O and that this conversion can occur without redox participation of the FMN cofactor.

Ammonia oxidizing bacteria (AOB) are major contributors to the emission of nitrous oxide (N 2 O). It has been proposed that N 2 O is produced by reduction of NO. Here, we report that the enzyme cytochrome (cyt) P460 from the AOB Nitrosomonas europaea converts hydroxylamine (NH 2 OH) quantitatively to N 2 O under anaerobic conditions. Previous literature reported that this enzyme oxidizes NH 2 OH to nitrite (NO − 2 ) under aerobic conditions. Although we observe NO − 2 formation under aerobic conditions, its concentration is not stoichiometric with the NH 2 OH concentration. By contrast, under anaerobic conditions, the enzyme uses 4 oxidizing equivalents (eq) to convert 2 eq of NH 2 OH to N 2 O. Enzyme kinetics coupled to UV/visible absorption and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopies support a mechanism in which an Fe III -NH 2 OH adduct of cyt P460 is oxidized to an {FeNO} 6 unit. This species subsequently undergoes nucleophilic attack by a second equivalent of NH 2 OH, forming the N-N bond of N 2 O during a bimolecular, rate-determining step. We propose that NO − 2 results when nitric oxide (NO) dissociates from the {FeNO} 6 intermediate and reacts with dioxygen. Thus, NO − 2 is not a direct product of cyt P460 activity. We hypothesize that the cyt P460 oxidation of NH 2 OH contributes to NO and N 2 O emissions from nitrifying microorganisms. possesses a global warming potential nearly 300-fold greater than carbon dioxide (1). Atmospheric N 2 O concentrations have increased ∼120% since the preindustrial era, largely due to the widespread use of fertilizers required to produce sustenance for humans and livestock. N 2 O is a byproduct of the microbial metabolism of fertilizer components, including ammonia (NH 3 ) and nitrate (NO − 3 ); consequently, agricultural soils account for an estimated 60-75% of global N 2 O emissions. The metabolic pathway by which microorganisms oxidize NH 3 , nitrification, occurs in two phases, both of which are mediated by autotrophic microorganisms. In the first, NH 3 -oxidizing bacteria (AOB) or archaea (AOA) oxidize NH 3 to nitrite (NO − 2 ). In the second, NO − 2 is subsequently oxidized to NO − 3 by NO − 2 -oxidizing bacteria. NH 3 -oxidizing microbes contribute substantially to global N 2 O emissions, whereas NO − 2 -oxidizing bacteria produce negligible N 2 O (2, 3). AOB are proposed to emit N 2 O either as a byproduct of the nitrification pathway or as a product of the nitrifier denitrification pathway (i.e., the reduction of NO − 2 ) (4-6). Nitrification of NH 3 to NO − 2 occurs in two steps (7,8). The first step is catalyzed by NH 3 monooxygenase, which uses copper (Cu) and dioxygen (O 2 ) to hydroxylate NH 3 to hydroxylamine (NH 2 OH) (9). In AOB, the second step is thought to be the four-electron oxidation of NH 2 OH to NO − 2 by NH 2 OH oxidoreductase (HAO). HAO is a multiheme enzyme with eight c-type hemes per subunit: seven are electron transfer cofactors, and the eighth is the so-called P460 active site that contains a unique tyrosine cross-link to the ...

Flavodiiron proteins (FDPs) catalyze reductive scavenging of dioxygen and nitric oxide in air sensitive microorganisms. FDPs contain a distinctive non-heme diiron/flavin mononucleotide (FMN) active site. Alternative mechanisms for the nitric oxide reductase (NOR) activity have been proposed consisting of either protonation of a diiron-bridging hyponitrite or “super-reduction” of a diferrous-dinitrosyl by the proximal FMNH2 in the rate-determining step. In order to test these alternative mechanisms, we examined a deflavinated FDP (deflavo-FDP) from Thermotoga maritima. The deflavo-FDP retains an intact diiron site but does not show multi-turnover NOR or O2 reductase (O2R) activity. Reactions of the reduced (diferrous) deflavo-FDP with nitric oxide were examined by UV-vis absorption, EPR, resonance Raman, and FTIR spectroscopies. Anaerobic addition of nitric oxide up to 1 NO:diferrous deflavo-FDP results in formation of a diiron-mononitrosyl complex characterized by a broad S = 1/2 EPR signal arising from antiferromagnetic coupling of an S = 3/2 {FeNO}7 with an S = 2 Fe(II). Further addition of NO results in two reaction pathways, one of which produces N2O and the diferric site and the other of which produces a stable diiron-dinitrosyl complex. Both NO-treated and as-isolated deflavo-FDPs regain full NOR and O2R activities upon simple addition of FMN. The production of N2O upon addition of NO to the mononitrosyl deflavo-FDP supports the hyponitrite mechanism, but the concomitant formation of a stable diiron-dinitrosyl complex in the deflavo-FDP is consistent with a super-reduction pathway in the flavinated enzyme. We conclude that a diiron-mononitrosyl complex is an intermediate in the NOR catalytic cycle of FDPs.

Biological ammonia (NH 3) oxidation to nitrate (NO 3-)-nitrification-is a critical pathway of the biogeochemical nitrogen cycle. Additional products and by-products of this pathway include nitrite (NO 2-), nitric oxide (NO), nitrous oxide (N 2 O), and nitrogen dioxide (NO 2), several of which are pollutants. How these species are generated during nitrification is not entirely clear, but pathways toward their generation have drawn substantial research effort. The cumulative evidence shows several parallel biological pathways comprising the net nitrification process. Bacteria were long thought to mediate all nitrification transformations; however, archaeal nitrifiers are now recognized. Furthermore, nitrification was thought to require two distinct microbial classes: NH 3 oxidizers to oxidize NH 3 to NO 2-, and NO 2 oxidizers that oxidize NO 2 to NO 3-. Comammox bacteria, which effect complete oxidation of NH 3 to NO 3-, were recently discovered. This Perspective summarizes the current understanding of nitrification biochemistry and highlights exciting opportunities for future research.