Role of the CarH photoreceptor protein environment in the modulation of cobalamin photochemistry

The photochemistry of cobalamins has recently been found to have biological importance, with the discovery of bacterial photoreceptor proteins, such as CarH and AerR. CarH and AerR, are involved in the light regulation of carotenoid biosynthesis and bacteriochlorophyll biosynthesis, respectively, in bacteria. Experimental transient absorption spectroscopic studies have indicated unusual photochemical behavior of 5′-deoxy-5′-adenosylcobalamin (AdoCbl) in CarH, with excited-state charge separation between cobalt and adenosyl and possible heterolytic cleavage of the Co-adenosyl bond, as opposed to the homolytic cleavage observed in aqueous solution and in many AdoCbl-based enzymes. We employ molecular dynamics and hybrid quantum mechanical/molecular mechanical calculations to obtain a microscopic understanding of the modulation of the excited electronic states of AdoCbl by the CarH protein environment, in contrast to aqueous solution and AdoCbl-based enzymes. Our results indicate a progressive stabilization of the electronic states involving charge transfer (CT) from cobalt/corrin to adenine on changing the environment from gas phase to water to solvated CarH. The solvent exposure of the adenosyl ligand in CarH, the π-stacking interaction between a tryptophan and the adenine moiety, and the hydrogen-bonding interaction between a glutamate and the lower axial ligand of cobalt are found to contribute to the stabilization of the states involving CT to adenine. The combination of these three factors, the latter two of which can be experimentally tested via mutagenesis studies, is absent in an aqueous solvent environment and in AdoCbl-based enzymes. The favored CT from metal and/or corrin to adenine in CarH may promote heterolytic cleavage of the cobalt-adenosyl bond proposed by experimental studies. Overall, this work provides novel, to our knowledge, physical insights into the mechanism of CarH function and directions for future experimental investigations. The fundamental understanding of the mechanism of CarH functioning will serve the development of optogenetic tools based on the new class of B12-dependent photoreceptors.