Author(s):
Dell’Acqua, Simone 
; Pauleta, Sofia R. ; Moura, Isabel ; Moura, José J. G.
Date: 2011
Persistent ID: http://hdl.handle.net/10362/8620
Origin: Repositório Institucional da UNL
Subject(s): Copper proteins; CuZ center; Nitrous oxide reductase; Denitrification
Description
J Biol Inorg Chem (2011) 16:183–194
DOI 10.1007/s00775-011-0753-3 This review focuses on the novel CuZ center of nitrous oxide reductase, an important enzyme owing to the environmental significance of the reaction it catalyzes,
reduction of nitrous oxide, and the unusual nature of its catalytic center, named CuZ. The structure of the CuZ center, the unique tetranuclear copper center found in this
enzyme, opened a novel area of research in metallobiochemistry.
In the last decade, there has been progress in defining the structure of the CuZ center, characterizing the mechanism of nitrous oxide reduction, and identifying
intermediates of this reaction. In addition, the determination of the structure of the CuZ center allowed a structural interpretation of the spectroscopic data, which was supported by theoretical calculations. The current knowledge of the structure, function, and spectroscopic characterization of the CuZ center is described here. We would like to stress that although many questions have been answered,
the CuZ center remains a scientific challenge, with many hypotheses still being formed.
