text: Molybdenum (Mo) is the most abundant transition element in solution in the sea (mostly as dianionic molybdate ion) and in living organisms, its abundance in the Earth's crust is quite low. Therefore, the use of Mo by living organisms seems surprising at first glance. Archaea, bacteria, fungi, plants, and animals, including humans, require molybdenum. It is also found in over 50 different enzymes. Its hydrolysis to water-soluble oxo-anionic species makes Mo readily accessible. Mo is found in the active sites of metalloenzymes that perform key transformations in the metabolism of carbon, nitrogen, arsenic, selenium, sulfur,  and chlorine compounds.
  The mononuclear Mo enzymes are widely distributed in the biosphere; they catalyze many significant reactions in the metabolism of nitrogen and sulfur-containing compounds as well as various carbonyl compounds (e.g., aldehydes, CO, and CO). Nitrate reductases enzymes are important for the nitrogen cycle. They belong to a class of enzymes with a mononuclear Mo center and they catalyze the metabolism reaction of C,  N, S, etc., in bacteria, plants, animals, and humans. Due to the oxidation of sulfides, The first considerable development was that of aerobic bacteria which could now utilize Mo. As oxygen began to accumulate in the atmosphere and oceans, the reaction of MoS to MoO also increased. This reaction made the highly soluble molybdate ion available for incorporation into critical metalloenzymes, and may have thus allowed life to thrive. It allowed organisms to occupy new ecological niches. Mo plays an important role in the reduction of dinitrogen to ammonia, which occurs in one type of nitrogenases. These enzymes are used by bacteria that usually live in a symbiotic relationship with plants; their role is nitrogen fixation, which is vital for sustaining life on earth. Mo enzymes also play important roles in sulfur metabolism of organisms ranging from bacteria to humans.