Enthalpy-entropy compensation phenomena in the reduction thermodynamic of electron transport metalloproteins

Partition of the enthalpic and entropic contributions to the reduction potential of electron transport metalloproteins, achieved through electrochemical means, is helpful for the understanding of the molecular determinants of this key parameter for protein function. Reduction enthalpy, which typically dominates this species, is mainly controlled by first coordination sphere effects and the electrostatics at the interface between the metal and the protein environment and the solvent. The contributors to the smaller, yet important, entropy changes include solvent reorganization effects and changes in polypeptide chain flexibility. To extent to which solvation effects concur to determine the reduction potential of this species is difficult to measure. However, insight can be gained from analysis of enthalpy-entropy compensation phenomena in the reduction thermodynamics. Following the Grunwald’s approach for the interpretation of H/S compensation for the solution reactions, it is concluded that reduction-induced solvent reorganization effects involving the hydration shell of the molecule dominate the reduction thermodynamics in these species, although they have no net effect on the E°’ values, owing to exact compensation. Thus the reduction potentials of this species are primarily determined by the selective enthalpic stabilization of one of the two oxidation states due to ligand binding interactions and electrostatics at the metal site and by the entropic effects of the reduction-induced changes in protein flexibility