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Updated: Jun 28, 2026

Modeling an Enzyme Active Site using Molecular Visualization Freeware
Published on: December 25, 2021
Functional biomimetic models for the active site in the respiratory enzyme cytochrome c oxidase
James P Collman1, Richard A Decréau
1Stanford University, Chemistry Department, Stanford, CA-94305-5080, USA. jpc@stanford.edu
Abstract:
A functional analog of the active site in the respiratory enzyme, cytochrome c oxidase (CcO) reproduces every feature in CcO's active site: a myoglobin-like heme (heme a3), a distal tridentate imidazole copper complex (Cu(B)), a phenol (Tyr244), and a proximal imidazole. When covalently attached to a liquid-crystalline SAM film on an Au electrode, this functional model continuously catalyzes the selective four-electron reduction of dioxygen at physiological potential and pH, under rate-limiting electron flux (as occurs in CcO).
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