Collaborative Research: The Membrane Associated Methane Monooxygenase from Methylococcus capsulatus Bath: Metal Centers and Mechanism of Substrate Hydroxylation

Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh PA

Investigators

Abstract

This award in the Chemistry of Life Processes (CLP) program in the Division of Chemistry at NSF supports a collaborative project between Professor Alan A. DiSpirito at Iowa State University and Professor Eckard Munck at Carnegie Mellon University to carry out fundamental studies aimed at elucidating the structure of the active site and the reactivity of the so-called particulate form of methane monooxygenase (pMMO). This is a ubiquitous bacterial enzyme that mediates the conversion of methane to methanol and thus plays a key role in the global carbon cycle. The selective oxidation of methane to methanol using mild reaction conditions is one of the most important industrial processes pursued by organometallic chemists and could be a direct application of the structural elucidation of pMMO's active site. The project includes the extensive use of Mössbauer spectroscopy to characterize the purported diiron center in pMMO, the identification of catalytic and electron transfer centers using Electron Paramagnetic Resonance (EPR) spectroscopy, and a mechanistic investigation of methane oxidation. This is an eminently interdisciplinary project at the interface of biochemistry, microbial physiology, and biophysical chemistry and will expose undergraduate and graduate students to a variety of techniques, ranging from protein purification to EPR spectroscopy. The broader impacts of the proposal are focused on the training of students, including members from underrepresented groups and undergraduate students from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, a Predominantly Undergraduate Institution.