The reduction of dinitrogen to ammonia catalyzed by nitrogenase involves long-range conformational changes within the enzyme complex, however, direct biophysical evidence of communication between the Fe protein and the MoFe protein is lacking. Here, the authors combine millisecond time-resolved hydrogen-deuterium exchange mass spectrometry and normal mode analysis, revealing molecular-level insights into how the Fe protein alters the stability and dynamics of the MoFe protein near the active site in a nucleotide-dependent manner.
- Monika Tokmina-Lukaszewska
- Qi Huang
- Brian Bothner