Novel molecular insights into ATP synthesis in oxidative phosphorylation based on the principle of least action

Field guide to Nath's research work on ATP synthesis and hydrolysis

Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is the universal biological energy source that participates in the most prevalent chemical reactions in all cell life through the vital processes of oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) and photosynthesis. Its synthesis and utilisation is an area of basic research that has seen significant progress over the last three decades. A series of Nath's publications in the 1990s culminated in a detailed description of the molecular mechanism of ATP synthesis in the FO and F1 portions of FOF1-ATP synthase in which energy from transmembrane ion gradients in FO are converted into chemical energy of ATP in F1. Subsequent papers provided a thorough theoretical basis and exploration of the validity of the new theory-named by other authors as Nath's torsional mechanism of energy transduction and ATP synthesis and Nath's two-ion theory of energy coupling. Violation of several physical laws by previous theories have been dealt with in considerable detail. In particular he has reevaluated the extensive literature on ATP hydrolysis and provides a rigorously argued tri-site molecular mechanism involving the three filled β-catalytic sites during hydrolysis by FO F1/F1-ATPase. Numerous applications have been proposed throughout his work that has resulted in four substantial publications dealing with re-interpretation of the Warburg Effect in cancer cells and a trilogy of papers dealing with biological thermodynamics of ATP synthesis applied to problems in comparative physiology, biochemistry and ecology. Finally strict mathematical methods have opened up new approaches to validate mechanistic events in ATP synthesis/hydrolysis. Here we provide a field guide for easy access to the different aspects of this body of work.

Coupling and biological free-energy transduction processes as a bridge between physics and life: Molecular-level instantiation of Ervin Bauer's pioneering concepts in biological thermodynamics

The nonequilibrium coupled processes of oxidation and ATP synthesis in the biological process of oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) are fundamental to all life on our planet. These steady-state energy transduction processes ‒ coupled by proton and anion/counter-cation concentration gradients in the OXPHOS pathway ‒ generate ∼95 % of the ATP requirement of aerobic systems for cellular function. The rapid energy cycling and homeostasis of metabolites involved in this coupling are shown to be responsible for maintenance and regulation of stable nonequilibrium states, the latter first postulated in pioneering biothermodynamics work by Ervin Bauer between 1920 and 1935. How exactly does this occur? This is shown to be answered by molecular considerations arising from Nath's torsional mechanism of ATP synthesis and two-ion theory of energy coupling developed in 25 years of research work on the subject. A fresh analysis of the biological thermodynamics of coupling that goes beyond the previous work of Stucki and others and shows how the system functions at the molecular level has been carried out. Thermodynamic parameters, such as the overall degree of coupling, q of the coupled system are evaluated for the state 4 to state 3 transition in animal mitochondria with succinate as substrate. The actual or operative P to O ratio, the efficiency of the coupled reactions, η, and the Gibbs energy dissipation, Φ have been calculated and shown to be in good agreement with experimental data. Novel mechanistic insights arising from the above have been discussed. A fourth law/principle of thermodynamics is formulated for a sub-class of physical and biological systems. The critical importance of constraints and time-varying boundary conditions for function and regulation is discussed in detail. Dynamic internal structural changes essential for torsional energy storage within the γ-subunit in a single molecule of the FOF1-ATP synthase and its transduction have been highlighted. These results provide a molecular-level instantiation of Ervin Bauer's pioneering concepts in biological thermodynamics.

Beyond binding change: the molecular mechanism of ATP hydrolysis by F1-ATPase and its biochemical consequences

F1-ATPase is a universal multisubunit enzyme and the smallest-known motor that, fueled by the process of ATP hydrolysis, rotates in 120o steps. A central question is how the elementary chemical steps occurring in the three catalytic sites are coupled to the mechanical rotation. Here, we performed cold chase promotion experiments and measured the rates and extents of hydrolysis of preloaded bound ATP and promoter ATP bound in the catalytic sites. We found that rotation was caused by the electrostatic free energy change associated with the ATP cleavage reaction followed by Pi release. The combination of these two processes occurs sequentially in two different catalytic sites on the enzyme, thereby driving the two rotational sub-steps of the 120o rotation. The mechanistic implications of this finding are discussed based on the overall energy balance of the system. General principles of free energy transduction are formulated, and their important physical and biochemical consequences are analyzed. In particular, how exactly ATP performs useful external work in biomolecular systems is discussed. A molecular mechanism of steady-state, trisite ATP hydrolysis by F1-ATPase, consistent with physical laws and principles and the consolidated body of available biochemical information, is developed. Taken together with previous results, this mechanism essentially completes the coupling scheme. Discrete snapshots seen in high-resolution X-ray structures are assigned to specific intermediate stages in the 120o hydrolysis cycle, and reasons for the necessity of these conformations are readily understood. The major roles played by the "minor" subunits of ATP synthase in enabling physiological energy coupling and catalysis, first predicted by Nath's torsional mechanism of energy transduction and ATP synthesis 25 years ago, are now revealed with great clarity. The working of nine-stepped (bMF1, hMF1), six-stepped (TF1, EF1), and three-stepped (PdF1) F1 motors and of the α3β3γ subcomplex of F1 is explained by the same unified mechanism without invoking additional assumptions or postulating different mechanochemical coupling schemes. Some novel predictions of the unified theory on the mode of action of F1 inhibitors, such as sodium azide, of great pharmaceutical importance, and on more exotic artificial or hybrid/chimera F1 motors have been made and analyzed mathematically. The detailed ATP hydrolysis cycle for the enzyme as a whole is shown to provide a biochemical basis for a theory of "unisite" and steady-state multisite catalysis by F1-ATPase that had remained elusive for a very long time. The theory is supported by a probability-based calculation of enzyme species distributions and analysis of catalytic site occupancies by Mg-nucleotides and the activity of F1-ATPase. A new concept of energy coupling in ATP synthesis/hydrolysis based on fundamental ligand substitution chemistry has been advanced, which offers a deeper understanding, elucidates enzyme activation and catalysis in a better way, and provides a unified molecular explanation of elementary chemical events occurring at enzyme catalytic sites. As such, these developments take us beyond binding change mechanisms of ATP synthesis/hydrolysis proposed for oxidative phosphorylation and photophosphorylation in bioenergetics.

The Need for Consistency with Physical Laws and Logic in Choosing Between Competing Molecular Mechanisms in Biological Processes: A Case Study in Modeling ATP Synthesis

Traditionally, proposed molecular mechanisms of fundamental biological processes have been tested against experiment. However, owing to a plethora of reasons-difficulty in designing, carrying out, and interpreting key experiments, use of different experimental models and systems, conduct of studies under widely varying experimental conditions, fineness in distinctions between competing mechanisms, complexity of the scientific issues, and the resistance of some scientists to discoveries that are contrary to popularly held beliefs-this has not solved the problem despite decades of work in the field/s. The author would like to prescribe an alternative way: that of testing competing models/mechanisms for their adherence to scientific laws and principles, and checking for errors in logic. Such tests are fairly commonly carried out in the mathematics, physics, and engineering literature. Further, reported experimental measurements should not be smaller than minimum detectable values for the measurement technique employed and should truly reflect function of the actual system without inapplicable extrapolation. Progress in the biological fields would be greatly accelerated, and considerable scientific acrimony avoided by adopting this approach. Some examples from the fundamental field of ATP synthesis in oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) have been reviewed that also serve to illustrate the approach. The approach has never let the author down in his 35-yr-long experience on biological mechanisms. This change in thinking should lead to a considerable saving of both time and resources, help channel research efforts toward solution of the right problems, and hopefully provide new vistas to a younger generation of open-minded biological scientists.

Supercomplex supercomplexes: Raison d’etre and functional significance of supramolecular organization in oxidative phosphorylation

Following structural determination by recent advances in electron cryomicroscopy, it is now well established that the respiratory Complexes I–IV in oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) are organized into supercomplexes in the respirasome. Nonetheless, the reason for the existence of the OXPHOS supercomplexes and their functional role remains an enigma. Several hypotheses have been proposed for the existence of these supercomplex supercomplexes. A commonly-held view asserts that they enhance catalysis by substrate channeling. However, this – and other views – has been challenged based on structural and biophysical information. Hence, new ideas, concepts, and frameworks are needed. Here, a new model of energy transfer in OXPHOS is developed on the basis of biochemical data on the pure competitive inhibition of anionic substrates like succinate by the classical anionic uncouplers of OXPHOS (2,4-dinitrophenol, carbonyl cyanide 4-(trifluoromethoxy)phenylhydrazone, and dicoumarol), and pharmacological data on the unique site-selective, energy-linked inhibition of energy conservation pathways in mitochondria induced by the guanidine derivatives. It is further found that uncouplers themselves are site-specific and exhibit differential selectivity and efficacy in reversing the inhibition caused by the Site 1/Complex I or Site 2/Complexes II–III-selective guanidine derivatives. These results lead to new vistas and sufficient complexity in the network of energy conservation pathways in the mitochondrial respiratory chain that necessitate discrete points of interaction with two classes of guanidine derivatives and uncoupling agents and thereby separate and distinct energy transfer pathways between Site 1 and Site 2 and the intermediate that energizes adenosine triphosphate (ATP) synthesis by Complex V. Interpretation based on Mitchell’s single-ion chemiosmotic theory that postulates only a single energy pool is inadequate to rationalize the data and account for the required complexity. The above results and available information are shown to be explained by Nath’s two-ion theory of energy coupling and ATP synthesis, involving coupled movement of succinate anions and protons, along with the requirement postulated by the theory for maintenance of homeostasis and ion translocation across the energy-transducing membrane of both succinate monoanions and succinate dianions by Complexes I–V in the OXPHOS supercomplexes. The new model of energy transfer in mitochondria is mapped onto the solved structures of the supercomplexes and integrated into a consistent model with the three-dimensional electron microscope computer tomography visualization of the internal structure of the cristae membranes in mammalian mitochondria. The model also offers valuable insights into diseased states induced in type 2 diabetes and especially in Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases that involve mitochondrial dysfunction.