O2 Activation and Enzymatic C-H Bond Activation Mediated by a Dimanganese Cofactor

J Am Chem Soc. 2025 Jan 15;147(2):2148-2157. doi: 10.1021/jacs.4c16271. Epub 2025 Jan 1.

Abstract

Dioxygen (O2) is a potent oxidant used by aerobic organisms for energy transduction and critical biosynthetic processes. Numerous metalloenzymes harness O2 to mediate C-H bond hydroxylation reactions, but most commonly feature iron or copper ions in their active site cofactors. In contrast, many manganese-activated enzymes─such as glutamine synthetase and isocitrate lyase─perform redox neutral chemical transformations and very few are known to activate O2 or C-H bonds. Here, we report that the dimanganese-metalated form of the cambialistic monooxygenase SfbO (Mn2-SfbO) can efficiently mediate enzymatic C-H bond hydroxylation. The activity of the dimanganese form of SfbO toward substrate hydroxylation is comparable to that of its heterobimetallic Mn/Fe form but exhibits distinct kinetic profiles. Kinetic, spectroscopic, and structural studies invoke a mixed-valent dimanganese cofactor (MnIIMnIII) in O2 activation and evidence a stoichiometric role for superoxide in maturing an O2-inert MnII2 cofactor. Computational studies support a hypothesis wherein superoxide addition to the MnII2 cofactor installs a critical bridging hydroxide ligand that stabilizes higher-valent manganese oxidation states. These findings establish the viability of proteinaceous dimanganese cofactors in mediating complex, multistep redox transformations.

MeSH terms

  • Coenzymes / chemistry
  • Coenzymes / metabolism
  • Hydroxylation
  • Kinetics
  • Manganese* / chemistry
  • Manganese* / metabolism
  • Mixed Function Oxygenases / chemistry
  • Mixed Function Oxygenases / metabolism
  • Models, Molecular
  • Oxidation-Reduction
  • Oxygen* / chemistry
  • Oxygen* / metabolism

Substances

  • Oxygen
  • Manganese
  • Mixed Function Oxygenases
  • Coenzymes