Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Historic Overview of Nitrogenase Research

  • Protocol
  • First Online:
Nitrogen Fixation

Part of the book series: Methods in Molecular Biology ((MIMB,volume 766))

Abstract

The history of nitrogenase research dates all the way back to the 1800s. This chapter provides a brief account of the advances in this particular research area over the past few hundred years, which include such events as the initial discovery of biological nitrogen fixation, the preparation of active cell-free extracts, the purification of nitrogenase enzyme, the proposal of the Thorneley–Lowe model, and the report of x-ray crystallographic structures of the component proteins of nitrogenase.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Protocol
USD 49.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 159.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Hellriegel H, Wilfarth H (1888) Untersuchungen über die Stickstoffnährung der Gramineen und Leguminosen. Beil Z Ver dt ZuchInd, 1–234

    Google Scholar 

  2. Beijerinck MW (1888) Die Bakterien der Papilionaceen-Knölchen. Bot Ztg 46:725–735; 741–750; 757–771; 781–790; 797–804

    Google Scholar 

  3. Winogradsky S (1893) Sur l’assimilation de l’azote gaseux de l’atmosphère par les microbes. C r hedb Séanc Acad Sci Paris 116:1385–1388

    Google Scholar 

  4. Beijerinck MW (1901) Über oligonitrophile Mikroben. ZentBl Bakt ParasitKde 7:561–582

    Google Scholar 

  5. Meyerhof O, Burk D (1928) On the fixation of air nitrogen through Azotobacter. Z Phys Chem 139:117–142

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Bortels H (1930) Molybdän als Katalysator bei der biologischen Stickstoffbindung. Arch Mikrobiol 1:333–342

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Burris H (1942) Distribution of isotopic nitrogen in Azotobacter vinelandii. J Biol Chem 143:509–517

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Carnahan JE, Mortenson LE, Mower HF et al (1960) Nitrogen fixation in cell-free extracts of Clostridium pasteurianum. Biochim Biophys Acta 38:188–189

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Burris RH (1969) Progress in the biochemistry of nitrogen fixation. Proc R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 172:339–354

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Bulen WA, Burns RC, LeComte JR (1964) Nitrogen fixation: cell-free system with extracts of Azotobacter. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 17:265–271

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Bulen WA, Burns RC, Lecomte JR (1965) Nitrogen fixation: hydrogensulfite as electron donor with cell-free preparations of Azotobacter vinelandii and Rhodospirillum rubrum. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 53:532–539

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Bulen WA, LeComte JR (1966) The nitrogenase system from Azotobacter: two-enzyme requirement for N2 reduction, ATP-dependent H2 evolution, and ATP hydrolysis. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 56:979–986

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Mortenson LE, Morris JA, Jeng DY (1967) Purification, metal composition and properties of molybdoferredoxin and azoferredoxin, two of the components of the nitrogen-fixing system of Clostridium pasteurianum. Biochim Biophys Acta 141:516–522

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Thorneley RNF, Lowe DJ (1985) Kinetics and mechanism of the nitrogenase enzyme system. In: Spiro, TG (ed) Molybdenum Enzymes, pp. 221–284. Wiley, New York, NY

    Google Scholar 

  15. Georgiadis MM, Komiya H, Chakrabarti P et al (1992) Crystallographic structure of the nitrogenase iron protein from Azotobacter vinelandii. Science 257:1653–1659

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Kim J, Rees DC (1992) Structural models for the metal centers in the nitrogenase molybdenum-iron protein. Science 257:1677–1682

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Chan MK, Kim J, Rees DC (1993) The nitrogenase FeMo-cofactor and P-cluster pair: 2.2 A resolution structures. Science 260:792–794

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Lee SC, Holm RH (2003) Speculative synthetic chemistry and the nitrogenase problem. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 100:3595–3600

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Lee SC, Holm RH (2004) The clusters of nitrogenase: synthetic methodology in the construction of weak-field clusters. Chem Rev 104:1135–1158

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Groysman S, Holm RH (2009) Biomimetic chemistry of iron, nickel, molybdenum, and tungsten in sulfur-ligated protein sites. Biochemistry 48:2310–2320

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  21. Coucouvanis D (1994) Fe/S and Fe/Mo/S clusters as speculative models for the metal centers in uncommon Fe/S proteins and the Fe/Mo protein of the nitrogenases. Adv Inorg Biochem 9:75–122

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  22. Ohki Y, Sunada Y, Honda M, Katada M, Tatsumi K (2003) Synthesis of the P-cluster inorganic core of nitrogenases. J Am Chem Soc 125:4052–4053

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. Holland PL (2008) Electronic structure and reactivity of three-coordinate iron complexes. Acc Chem Res 41:905–914

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  24. Setubal JC, dos Santos P, Goldman BS, Ertesvåg H, Espin G, Rubio LM, Valla S, Almeida NF, Balasubramanian D, Cromes L, Curatti L, Du Z, Godsy E, Goodner B, Hellner-Burris K, Hernandez JA, Houmiel K, Imperial J, Kennedy C, Larson TJ, Latreille P, Ligon LS, Lu J, Maerk M, Miller NM, Norton S, O’Carroll IP, Paulsen I, Raulfs EC, Roemer R, Rosser J, Segura D, Slater S, Stricklin SL, Studholme DJ, Sun J, Viana CJ, Wallin E, Wang B, Wheeler C, Zhu H, Dean DR, Dixon R, Wood D (2009) Genome sequence of Azotobacter vinelandii, an obligate aerobe specialized to support diverse anaerobic metabolic processes. J Bacteriol 191:4534–4545

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. Seefeldt LC, Hoffman BM, Dean DR (2009) Mechanism of Mo-dependent nitrogenase. Annu Rev Biochem 78:701–722

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  26. Howard JB, Rees DC (2006) How many metals does it take to fix N2? A mechanistic overview of biological nitrogen fixation. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 103:17088–17093

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  27. Burgess BK, Lowe DJ (1996) Mechanism of molybdenum nitrogenase. Chem Rev 96:2983–3012

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  28. Hu Y, Fay AW, Lee CC, Yoshizawa J, Ribbe MW (2008) Assembly of nitrogenase MoFe protein. Biochemistry 47:3973–3981

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  29. Dos Santos PC, Dean DR, Hu Y, Ribbe MW (2004) Formation and insertion of the nitrogenase iron-molybdenum cofactor. Chem Rev 104:1159–1173

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  30. Schwarz G, Mendel RR, Ribbe MW (2009) Molybdenum cofactors, enzymes and pathways. Nature 460:839–847

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The authors are supported by the National Institutes of Health grant GM 67626 (M.W.R.) and Herman Frasch Foundation grant 617-HF07 (M.W.R.).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, University of California, Irvine, CA, 92697, USA

    Yilin Hu & Markus W. Ribbe

Authors
  1. Yilin Hu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Markus W. Ribbe
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Markus W. Ribbe .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. , Dept Molecular Biology & Biochemistry, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, 92697, California, USA

    Markus W. Ribbe

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2011 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC

About this protocol

Cite this protocol

Hu, Y., Ribbe, M.W. (2011). Historic Overview of Nitrogenase Research. In: Ribbe, M. (eds) Nitrogen Fixation. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 766. Humana Press. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-61779-194-9_1

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-61779-194-9_1

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Humana Press

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-61779-193-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-61779-194-9

  • eBook Packages: Springer Protocols

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation