Tags: Inorganic Seminar


Discovery of A New Subclass of Class I Ribonucleotide Reductase

Ribonucleotide reductases (RNRs) catalyze de novo biosynthesis of deoxynucleotides in almost all organisms that use DNA as their genetic material. They are current drug targets for both cancer and infectious diseases. All RNRs share a common catalytic mechanism initiated by a cysteinyl radical, while the radical generation varies greatly and provides the biochemical basis dividing the RNRs into the three major classes and several subclasses. All…


Methanobactin: An Intriguing Copper-Chelating Peptide with a Unique Biosynthesis

Methanotrophs produce methanobactin (Mbn), a copper-chelating peptide, when copper levels in the environment are low.1,2 These methanotrophs utilize the copper-dependent enzyme methane monooxygenase to oxidize methane, which is the methanotrophs only carbon source. Mbn has a high affinity for copper and chelates Cu(I) directly, or indirectly utilizes Cu(II) by conversion to Cu(I) through an unknown reductive process.2,3 Mbn is an example of…


Facile Synthesis of Two-Dimensional (2D) Materials to Discover New Compounds and Stabilize Metastable Modifications

Two-dimensional materials remain one of the hottest research fields for a few decades due to their emerging physical properties existing in a single atomic layer or a few atomic layers. After intensive research efforts, 2D materials started to find their applications in our daily life, such as in batteries, electronics, or even bulletproof vests. To turn on the functionalities of 2D materials, controlled synthesis of 2D materials is…


Mechanism of Controlling the Formation and Reactivities of Radicals in GTP 3’,8-cyclase in Molybdenum Cofactor Biosynthesis

Radical S-adenosyl-L-methionine (SAM) enzymes form a large superfamily with >700,000 unique gene sequences. These enzymes catalyze reductive cleavage of SAM to generate a highly reactive 5′-deoxyladenosyl radical and catalyze otherwise chemically challenging radical reactions. While a large number of reactions have been reported to be catalyzed by these enzymes, the molecular details of the mechanisms by which these enzymes control the…


Studies of Non-Heme Iron Enzyme Catalyzed C-C and C-N Bond Forming Reactions

Members belonging to non-heme iron and 2-oxoglutarate (Fe/2OG) dependent enzymes are characterized by a cupin-fold structural feature and the use of a potent iron-oxo species to initiate the reaction. Fe/2OG enzymes are known to catalyze a wide variety of oxidative transformations including hydroxylation, halogenation, etc.  To date, an overwhelming number of genes (> 160,000) present in sequenced genomes are annotated as Fe/2OG enzymes…


Design Principles for Metalloprotein Chemistry

Metalloproteins catalyze some of Nature’s most amazing and difficult chemical transformations. One such transformation, of interest to our laboratory, is the use of a high valent Fe-based oxidant to facilitate the functionalization of a traditionally inert C–H bond. Since this chemistry is vital to a variety of biochemical pathways, metalloproteins are recognized for their potential to build natural products with medical, environmental, and…


Inorganic Chemistry of F-Elements in Oxo-Systems: from Normal to Extreme Conditions

Actinide elements show a great diversity in their chemistry due to the complex structure of 5f electron shells and delocalization of 5f-electrons within the early actinide family. One of the most remarkable properties of the early actinides is a multi-valence accompanied by a great coordination diversity. For example, uranium demonstrates oxidation states from +2 to +6 in the solid state, where +4 and +6 are the most common and stable. In this…


A Nonoxidative Approach to Methane Functionalization: Efforts Towards Realizing the Methanol Economy

Methane, CH4, is considered a pillar of the petrochemical industry. It is a major component of fossil fuels, a byproduct of waste decomposition, and a potent greenhouse gas. The potential of methane as a fuel source is greatly limited by the means in which this flammable gas may be transported. In this regard, functionalization of CH4 to yield products that are liquids under ambient conditions holds great promise. We have made efforts towards…


Mechanistic Investigation Towards Catalytic NO2– Reduction by Nonheme Fe(II)-Nitro Complexes

Nitrite (NO2–) reduction to gaseous nitric oxide (NO) is a 2H+/1e– transfer process that can be catalyzed by heme enzyme nitrite reductase (NiR). It is critical in maintaining the balance of the global nitrogen cycle because it is the first committed step in the denitrification process. In addition, despite the lack of an NiR, the high artery and veinous NO2– concentration (~ 500 nM) in mammals is proposed to generate NO as a gaseous vasodilator…


Defining the Roles of Metals in Mediating Structural Changes and Protein-Protein Interactions

Metals are ubiquitous in nature. In fact, more than 30% of all proteins require a metal for proper folding or function. In this talk, I will focus on how my lab uses a range of spectroscopic characterization tools to define the role of metals on protein structure and formation of dynamic protein-protein complexes. In the first part of the talk, I will discuss the progesterone receptor membrane component 1 (PGRMC1) protein, which binds heme and…
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