Analysis of the high-affinity iron uptake system at the Chlamydomonas reinhardtii plasma membrane

Multicopper ferroxidases play a vital role in iron metabolism in bacteria, fungi, algae, and mammals. Saccharomyces cerevisiae utilizes a channeling mechanism to couple the ferroxidase activity of Fet3p to Fe³⁺ transport into the cell by Ftr1p. In contrast, the mechanisms by which mammals couple the ferroxidase reaction to iron trafficking is unclear. The human ferroxidases ceruloplasmin and hephaestin are twice the size of Fet3p and interact with proteins that are not expressed in fungi. Chlamydomonas FOX1 is a homolog of the human ferroxidases but likely supports iron uptake in a manner similar to that of yeast, since Chlamydomonas reinhardtii expresses a ferric iron permease homolog, FTR1. The results presented support this hypothesis. We show that FOX1 is trafficked to the plasma membrane and is oriented with its multicopper oxidase/ferroxidase domain in the exocytoplasmic space. Our analysis of FTR1 indicates its topology is similar to that of S. cerevisiae Ftr1p, with a potential exocytoplasmic iron channeling motif and two potential iron permeation motifs in membrane-spanning regions. We demonstrate that high-affinity iron uptake is dependent on FOX1 and the copper status of the cell. Kinetic inhibition of high-affinity iron uptake by a ferric iron chelator does not reflect the strength of the chelator, supporting a ferric iron channeling mechanism for high-affinity iron uptake in Chlamydomonas. Last, recombinant FOX1 (rFOX1) has been isolated in a partially holo form that exhibits the UV-visible absorbance spectrum of a multicopper oxidase and the catalytic activity of a ferroxidase.