Ferredoxin-nitrate reductase

In enzymology, a ferredoxin---nitrate reductase is an enzyme that catalyzes the chemical reaction


 * nitrite + H2O + 2 oxidized ferredoxin $$\rightleftharpoons$$ nitrate + 2 reduced ferredoxin + 2 H+

The 3 substrates of this enzyme are nitrite, H2O, and oxidized ferredoxin, whereas its 3 products are nitrate, reduced ferredoxin, and H+.

This enzyme belongs to the family of oxidoreductases, specifically those acting on other nitrogenous compounds as donors with an iron-sulfur protein as acceptor. The systematic name of this enzyme class is nitrite:ferredoxin oxidoreductase. Other names in common use include assimilatory nitrate reductase, nitrate (ferredoxin) reductase, and assimilatory ferredoxin-nitrate reductase. This enzyme participates in nitrogen metabolism. It has 4 cofactors: iron, Sulfur, Molybdenum, and Iron-sulfur.

Structural studies
As of late 2007, only one structure has been solved for this class of enzymes, with the PDB accession code.