The carbon monoxide complex of [NiFe]hydrogenase from
Desulfovibrio vulgaris Miyazaki Fhas been characterized by X-ray crystallography and absorption and resonance Raman spectroscopy.Nine crystal structures of the [NiFe]hydrogenase in the CO-bound and CO-liberated forms were determinedat 1.2-1.4 Å resolution. The exogenously added CO was assigned to be bound to the Ni atom at theNi-Fe active site. The CO was not replaced with H
2 in the dark at 100 K, but was liberated by illuminationwith a strong white light. The Ni-C distances and Ni-C-O angles were about 1.77 Å and 160
, respectively,except for one case (1.72 Å and 135
), in which an additional electron density peak between the CO andS
(Cys546) was recognized. Distinct changes were observed in the electron density distribution of the Niand S
(Cys546) atoms between the CO-bound and CO-liberated structures for all the crystals tested. Thenovel structural features found near the Ni and S
(Cys546) atoms suggest that these two atoms at theNi-Fe active site play a role during the initial H
2-binding process. Anaerobic addition of CO to dithionite-reduced [NiFe]hydrogenase led to a new absorption band at about 470 nm (~3000 M
-1cm
-1). ResonanceRaman spectra (excitation at 476.5 nm) of the CO complex revealed CO-isotope-sensitive bands at 375/393 and 430 cm
-1 (368 and 413 cm
-1 for
13C
18O). The frequencies and relative intensities of the CO-related Raman bands indicated that the exogenous CO is bound to the Ni atom with a bent Ni-C-Ostructure in solution, in agreement with the refined structure determined by X-ray crystallography.