Crystallographic studies on endothelial nitric oxide synthase complexed with nitric oxide and mechanism-based inhibitors.
Li, H., Raman, C.S., Martasek, P., Masters, B.S., Poulos, T.L.(2001) Biochemistry 40: 5399-5406
- PubMed: 11331003 
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/bi002658v
- Primary Citation of Related Structures:  
1ED6, 1FOI, 1FOL, 1FOO, 1FOP - PubMed Abstract: 
The crystal structure of the endothelial nitric oxide synthase (NOS) heme domain complexed with NO reveals close hydrogen bonding interactions between NO and the terminal guanidino nitrogen of the substrate, L-arginine. Dioxygen is expected to bind in a similar mode which will facilitate proton abstraction from L-Arg to dioxygen, a required step for O-O bond cleavage. Structures of mechanism-based NOS inhibitors, N(5)-(1-iminoethyl)-L-ornithine and N-(3-(aminomethyl)benzyl)acetamidine, provide clues on how this class of compounds operate as suicide substrate inhibitors leading to heme oxidation.
Organizational Affiliation: 
Departments of Molecular Biology & Biochemistry and Physiology & Biophysics and Program in Macromolecular Structure, University of California, Irvine 92697-3900, USA.