Hole hopping through tryptophan and tyrosine chains in proteins

Jay Winkler and I have found that most iron oxygenases have Trp/Tyr chains very near their active sites. We have suggested that an uncoupled high-valent iron-oxo enzyme intermediate would be reduced by hole transfer to the nearby residue in one of these chains. Electron transfer to the terminal residue in the chain could then protect the enzyme from oxidative degrdn.