The steady-state cleavage of catechols by 2,3-dihydroxybiphenyl 1,2-dioxygenase (DHBD), the extradiol dioxygenase of the biphenyl biodegradation pathway, was investigated using a highly active, anaerobically purified preparation of enzyme. The kinetic data obtained using 2,3-dihydroxybiphenyl (DHB) fit a compulsory order ternary complex mechanism in which substrate inhibition occurs. The K m for dioxygen was 1280 ؎ 70 M, which is at least 2 orders of magnitude higher than that reported for catechol 2,3-dioxygenases. K m and K d for DHB were 22 ؎ 2 and 8 ؎ 1 M, respectively. DHBD was subject to reversible substrate inhibition and mechanism-based inactivation. In air-saturated buffer, the partition ratios of catecholic substrates substituted at C-3 were inversely related to their apparent specificity constants. Small organic molecules that stabilized DHBD most effectively also inhibited the cleavage reaction most strongly. The steady-state kinetic data and crystallographic results suggest that the stabilization and inhibition are due to specific interactions between the organic molecule and the active site of the enzyme. t-Butanol stabilized the enzyme and inhibited the cleavage of DHB in a mixed fashion, consistent with the distinct binding sites occupied by t-butanol in the crystal structures of the substrate-free form of the enzyme and the enzyme-DHB complex. In contrast, crystal structures of complexes with catechol and 3-methylcatechol revealed relationships between the binding of these smaller substrates and t-butanol that are consistent with the observed competitive inhibition.The microbial degradation of aromatic compounds constitutes an essential link in the global carbon cycle. The aerobic degradation of aromatic compounds such as toluene, naphthalene, and biphenyl generally proceeds via a catecholic catabolite with hydroxyl substituents on two adjacent carbon atoms. This catecholic compound is cleaved by a dioxygenase from one of two very different classes. Intradiol dioxygenases utilize non-heme ferric iron to cleave the aromatic nucleus ortho to (between) the hydroxyl substituents whereas extradiol dioxygenases utilize non-heme ferrous iron to cleave the aromatic nucleus meta (adjacent) to the hydroxyl substituents. The mechanism of intradiol dioxygenases is better understood due to their greater stability, favorable properties for spectroscopic examination, and the accessibility of catalytic intermediates (1, 2). Interest in extradiol dioxygenases is nonetheless considerable, not only because of their general metabolic significance and catalytic properties, but also because of the potential exploitation of these enzymes in the degradation of environmental pollutants such as polychlorinated biphenyls.2,3-Dihydroxybiphenyl 1,2-dioxygenase (DHBD) 1 is a component of the aerobic biphenyl degradation pathway of a number of microorganisms and cleaves 2,3-dihydroxybiphenyl (DHB) in an extradiol fashion as shown in Scheme 1. Crystallographic studies of DHBD from Burkholderia cepacia LB400 (3) and Pseudomonas...