Electron transfer calmodulin role

N itric oxide synthases reveal a role for calmodulin in controlling electron transfer, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 90 (1993), p. 10769-10772... 

G. Role for Calmodulin in Controlling Electron Transfer in Nitric Oxide Synthase... 

Role for calmodulin in control of heme reduction in NOS. (A) In the absence of bound calmodulin, electrons derived from NADPH can load into the flavins but cannot be transferred onto the heme iron. (B) On calmodulin binding, electrons transfer from the flavins onto the heme. In the absence of bound L-arginine, heme reduction generates superoxide (C), whereas in the presence of L-arginine, heme reduction can lead to NO synthesis. 

NADPH oxidation and NO synthesis by the enzyme, it supports a role for reduction of the heme iron in catalysis, and may explain why NOS functions only as an NADPH-dependent reductase in the absence of bound calmodulin (Klatt et ai, 1993). The mechanism of calmodulin gating is envisioned to involve a conformational change between the reductase and oxygenase domains of NOS, such that an electron transfer between the terminal flavin and heme iron becomes possible. Calmodulin may also have a distinct role within the NOS reductase domain, in that its binding dramatically increases reductase activity of the enzyme toward cytochrome c (Klatt et al., 1993 Heinzel et al., 1992). However, it is clear that several other NOS functions occur independent of calmodulin, including the binding of L-arginine and NADPH, and transfer of NADPH-derived electrons into the flavins (Abu-Soud and Stuehr, 1993). 

FIGURE I Role for calmodulin (CaM) in triggering interdomain electron transfer to the nitric oxide synthase (NOS) heme iron. Electrons derived from NADPH can transfer only into the flavin centers of CaM-free neuronal NOS (A). CaM binding to NOS occurs in response to elevated Ca concentrations, and this enables electrons to transfer from the flavins to the heme iron. Heme iron reduction is associated with increased NADPH oxidation and results in (B) superoxide (O2) production in the absence of L-arginine or (C) nitric oxide (NO) synthesis in the presence of L-arginine. FAD, Flavin-adenine dinucleotide FMN, flavin mononucleotide. 

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