Electron transfer in nitric-oxide synthase

摘要

Nitric oxide (NO) has many diverse biological functions as an important signaling and cytotoxic molecule in the cardiovascular, nervous, and immune systems. NO is generated from L-Arg via formation of N~G-hydroxyl-L-Arg as an intermediate by a family of enzymes termed nitric-oxide synthases (NOSs). NOS consists of two functional domains: one is an amino-terminal oxygenase domain that has a cytochrome -P450-like heme active site, and the other is a carboxy-terminal reductase domain that is similar to NADPH-cytochrome P450 reductase.