Cytochrome c nitrite reductase catalyzes the six-electron reduction of nitrite to ammonia without the release of potential reaction intermediates, such as NO or hydroxylamine. On the basis of the crystallographic observation of reaction intermediates and of density functional calculations, we present a working hypothesis for the reaction mechanism of this multiheme enzyme which carries a novel lysine-coordinated heme group (Fe-Lys). It is proposed that nitrite reduction starts with a heterolytic cleavage of the N-O bond which is facilitated by a pronounced back-bonding interaction of nitrite coordinated through nitrogen to the reduced (Fe(II)) but not the oxidized (Fe(III)) active site iron. This step leads to the formation of an [FeNO](6) species and a water molecule and is further facilitated by a hydrogen bonding network that induces an electronic asymmetry in the nitrite molecule that weakens one N-O bond and strengthens the other. Subsequently, two rapid one-electron reductions lead to an [FeNO](8) form and, by protonation, to an Fe(II)-HNO adduct. Hereafter, hydroxylamine will be formed by a consecutive two-electron two-proton step which is dehydrated in the final two-electron reduction step to give ammonia and an additional water molecule. A single electron reduction of the active site closes the catalytic cycle.

Brown algae of the Laminariales (kelps) are the strongest accumulators of iodine among living organisms. They represent a major pump in the global biogeochemical cycle of iodine and, in particular, the major source of iodocarbons in the coastal atmosphere. Nevertheless, the chemical state and biological significance of accumulated iodine have remained unknown to this date. Using x-ray absorption spectroscopy, we show that the accumulated form is iodide, which readily scavenges a variety of reactive oxygen species (ROS). We propose here that its biological role is that of an inorganic antioxidant, the first to be described in a living system. Upon oxidative stress, iodide is effluxed. On the thallus surface and in the apoplast, iodide detoxifies both aqueous oxidants and ozone, the latter resulting in the release of high levels of molecular iodine and the consequent formation of hygroscopic iodine oxides leading to particles, which are precursors to cloud condensation nuclei. In a complementary set of experiments using a heterologous system, iodide was found to effectively scavenge ROS in human blood cells.algae ͉ Laminaria ͉ x-ray absorption spectroscopy ͉ cathodic stripping square wave voltammetry

The enzyme cytochrome c nitrite reductase catalyses the six-electron reduction of nitrite to ammonia as one of the key steps in the biological nitrogen cycle, where it participates in the anaerobic energy metabolism of dissimilatory nitrate ammonification. Here we report on the crystal structure of this enzyme from the microorganism Sulfurospirillum deleyianum, which we solved by multiwavelength anomalous dispersion methods. We propose a reaction scheme for the transformation of nitrite based on structural and spectroscopic information. Cytochrome c nitrite reductase is a functional dimer, with 10 close-packed haem groups of type c and an unusual lysine-coordinated high-spin haem at the active site. By comparing the haem arrangement of this nitrite reductase with that of other multihaem cytochromes, we have been able to identify a family of proteins in which the orientation of haem groups is conserved whereas structure and function are not.

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