Mechanisms of oxidation of inorganic electron donors in autotrophic bacteria

Abstract

The enzymatic reactions involved in the oxidation of sulfide, sulfite, thiosulfate, ferrous ions, ammonia, and nitrite are reviewed for Chlorobium limicola f. thiosulfatophilum, Thiobacillus novellus, Thiobacillus ferrooxidans, Nitrosomonas europaea, and Nitrobacter winogradskyi. The properties of the purified redox enzymes and of proteins that participate in the oxidation of the inorganic compounds in these autotrophic bacteria are summarized, and the mechanisms of the oxidation of the inorganic compounds are discussed on the basis of the interactions between the redox enzymes and carriers.