And the winner is...azadithiolate: an amine proton relay in the [FeFe] hydrogenases

Abstract

A victory in the pocket: An international team of chemists and biophysicists have resolved the long-standing question of the structure of the active site of the [FeFe] hydrogenases by assembling the active enzyme with a version of the active site synthesized in vitro (see scheme; HydF is a scaffold protein, HydA1 is a natural hydrogenase). The protein incorporating the diiron complex 2 showed similar activity to that of the natural enzyme.

Keywords: cofactors; enzymology; hydrogen; hydrogenases; iron.