Electron paramagnetic resonance observations on the cytochrome c-containing nitrous oxide reductase from Wolinella succinogenes.

Nitrous oxide reductase from Wolinella succinogenes, an enzyme containing one heme c and four Cu atoms/subunit of Mr = 88,000, was studied by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) at 9.2 GHz from 6 to 80 K. In the oxidized state, low spin ferric cytochrome c was observed with gz = 3.10 and an axial Cu resonance was observed with g parallel = 2.17 and g perpendicular = 2.035. No signals were detected at g values greater than 3.10. For the Cu resonance, six hyperfine lines each were observed in the g parallel and g perpendicular regions with average separations of 45.2 and 26.2 gauss, respectively. The hyperfine components are attributed to Cu(I)-Cu(II) S = 1/2 (half-met) centers. Reduction of the enzyme with dithionite caused signals attributable to heme c and Cu to disappear; exposure of that sample to N2O for a few min caused the reappearance of the g = 3.10 component and a new Cu signal with g parallel = 2.17 and g perpendicular = 2.055 that lacked the simple hyperfine components attributed to a single species of half-met center. The enzyme lost no activity as the result of this cycle of reduction and reoxidation. EPR provided no evidence for a Cu-heme interaction. The EPR detectable Cu in the oxidized and reoxidized forms of the enzyme comprised about 23 and 20% of the total Cu, respectively, or about one spin/subunit. The enzyme offers the first example of a nitrous oxide reductase which can have two states of high activity that present very different EPR spectra of Cu. These two states may represent enzyme in two different stages of the catalytic cycle.