Sulfite oxidation by the quinone-reducing molybdenum sulfite dehydrogenase SoeABC from the bacterium Aquifex aeolicus

The microaerophilic bacterium Aquifex aeolicus is a chemolitoautotroph that uses sulfur compounds as electron sources. The model of oxidation of the energetic sulfur compounds in this bacterium predicts that sulfite would probably be a metabolic intermediate released in the cytoplasm. In this work, we purified and characterized a membrane-bound sulfite dehydrogenase, identified as an SoeABC enzyme, that was previously described as a sulfur reductase. It is a member of the DMSO-reductase family of molybdenum enzymes. This type of enzyme was identified a few years ago but never purified, and biochemical data and kinetic properties were completely lacking. An enzyme catalyzing sulfite oxidation using Nitro-blue tetrazolium as artificial electron acceptor was extracted from the membrane fraction of Aquifex aeolicus. The purified enzyme is a dimer of trimer (αβγ)2 of about 390 kDa. The KM for sulfite and kcat values were 34 μM and 567 s−1 respectively, at pH 8.3 and 55 °C. We furthermore showed that SoeABC reduces a UQ10 analogue, the decyl-ubiquinone, as well, with a KM of 2.6 μM and a kcat of 52.9 s−1. It seems to specifically oxidize sulfite but can work in the reverse direction, reduction of sulfur or tetrathionate, using reduced methyl viologen as electron donor. The close phylogenetic relationship of Soe with sulfur and tetrathionate reductases that we established, perfectly explains this enzymatic ability, although its bidirectionality in vivo still needs to be clarified. Oxygen-consumption measurements confirmed that electrons generated by sulfite oxidation in the cytoplasm enter the respiratory chain at the level of quinones. [Display omitted] •The membrane-bound sulfite dehydrogenase SoeABC is purified for the first time.•This large cytoplasmic enzyme is a member of the DMSO reductases family of Mo-enzymes.•It shows a high affinity for sulfite and quinone.•It is bidirectional in vitro and phylogenetically related to Sre and Ttr reductases.•Electrons generated by Soe fuel the quinones pool where O2 reductase(s) draw on.