An S=1 Iron(IV) Intermediate Revealed in a Non-Heme Iron Enzyme-Catalyzed Oxidative C-S Bond Formation

Ergothioneine (ESH) and ovothiol A (OSHA) are two natural thiol-histidine derivatives. ESH has been implicated as a longevity vitamin and OSHA inhibits the proliferation of hepatocarcinoma. The key biosynthetic step of ESH and OSHA in the aerobic pathways is the O₂ -dependent C-S bond formation catalyzed by non-heme iron enzymes (e.g., OvoA in ovothiol biosynthesis), but due to the lack of identification of key reactive intermediate the mechanism of this novel reaction is unresolved. In this study, we report the identification and characterization of a kinetically competent S=1 iron(IV) intermediate supported by a four-histidine ligand environment (three from the protein residues and one from the substrate) in enabling C-S bond formation in OvoA from Methyloversatilis thermotoleran, which represents the first experimentally observed intermediate spin iron(IV) species in non-heme iron enzymes. Results reported in this study thus set the stage to further dissect the mechanism of enzymatic oxidative C-S bond formation in the OSHA biosynthesis pathway. They also afford new opportunities to study the structure-function relationship of high-valent iron intermediates supported by a histidine rich ligand environment.