Evolving the Myoglobin Cytochrome b5 Complex from Dynamic Toward Simple Docking: Charging the Electron-Transfer Reactive Patch

摘要

We describe photo-initiated electron transfer (ET) from a suite of Zn-substituted myoglobin (1Mb) variants to cytochrome b5 (b5). An electrostatic interface redesign strategy has led to the introduction of positive charges in the vicinity of the heme edge through D/E → K charge-reversal mutation combinations at `hotspot' residues (D44, D60, E85), augmented by the elimination of negative charges from Mb or b5 by neutralization of heme propionates. These variations create an unprecedentedly large range in the product of the ET partners' total charges: −5 < −qMbqb5 < 40. The binding affinity (Ka) increases a thousand-fold as −qMbqb5 increases through this range, and exhibits a surprisingly simple, exponential dependence on −qMbqb5. This is explained in terms of electrostatic interactions between a `charged reactive patch' (crp) on each partner's surface, defined as a compact region around the heme edge that (i) contains the total protein charge of each variant, and (ii) encompasses a major fraction of the `reactive region' (Rr) comprising surface atoms with large matrix elements for electron tunneling to the heme. As −qMbqb5 increases, the complex undergoes a transition from fast to slow exchange dynamics on the triplet ET timescale, with a correlated progression in the rate constants for intracomplex (ket) and bimolecular (k2) ET. This progression is analyzed by integrating the crp and Rr descriptions of ET into the textbook steady-state treatment of reversible binding between partners that undergo intracomplex ET, and found to encompass the full range of behaviors predicted by the model. The generality of this approach is demonstrated by applying it to the extensive body of data for the ET complex between the photosynthetic reaction center and cytochrome c2. Deviations from this model also are discussed.