Catalysis of NO production by a molybdoenzyme model

cis-Dioxomolybdenum(VI) complexes of a new ONN chelating thiosemicarbazidato ligand; synthesis, characterization, crystal, molecular structures and antioxidant activities

5-Chloro-4-methyl-2-hydroxybenzophenone S-propyl-4-phenyl-thiosemicarbazone (H2L) and its cis-dioxomolybdenum(VI) complexes, in the general formula [MoO2(L)R-OH)] (R: methyl, 1; ethyl, 2; n-propyl, 3; n-butyl, 4; n-pentyl, 5), were synthesized and characterized by micro analysis, electronic, infrared and (1)H and (13)C NMR spectra. The crystal structures of complexes, 1 and 3, have been solved by direct methods (SIR92) and refined to the residual indexes R1=0.098 and R1=0.052 respectively. Complexes 1 and 3 are crystallized in the triclinic space group P-1 with Z=2. The crystal study of complex 1 showed the first example of intermolecular hydrogen bond for this type of molybdenum-thiosemicarbazone complexes. The hydrogen bond is between the hydroxyl proton of attached alcohol and an oxo oxygen (in MoO2(2+) unit) of another complex molecule, and its bond distance (1.767(1)Å) is shorter than from the σ-coordination bonds in complex 1. Antioxidant activities of the compounds were determined by using 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) method. Ligand showed 23.61% DPPH radical scavenging activity at 250 mg/L concentration. Cupric Reducing Antioxidant Capacity (CUPRAC) was also evaluated and trolox-equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC) values were found for ligand, 1 and 3 as 0.51, 0.33 and 0.30 respectively.

Nitrates and NO release: contemporary aspects in biological and medicinal chemistry

Nitroglycerine has been used clinically in the treatment of angina for 130 years, yet important details on the mechanism of action, biotransformation, and the associated phenomenon of nitrate tolerance remain unanswered. The biological activity of organic nitrates can be said to be nitric oxide mimetic, leading to recent, exciting progress in realizing the therapeutic potential of nitrates. Unequivocally, nitroglycerine and most other organic nitrates, including NO-NSAIDs, do not behave as NO donors in the most fundamental action: in vitro activation of sGC to produce cGMP. The question as to whether the biological activity of nitrates results primarily or exclusively from NO donation will not be satisfactorily answered until the location, the apparatus, and the mechanism of reduction of nitrates to NO are defined. Similarly, the therapeutic potential of nitrates will not be unlocked until this knowledge is attained. Aspects of the therapeutic and biological activity of nitrates are reviewed in the context of the chemistry of nitrates and the elusive efficient 3e- reduction required to generate NO.

Role of mitochondrial aldehyde dehydrogenase in nitrate tolerance

Glyceryl trinitrate (GTN) is used in the treatment of angina pectoris and cardiac failure, but the rapid onset of GTN tolerance limits its clinical utility. Research suggests that a principal cause of tolerance is inhibition of an enzyme responsible for the production of physiologically active concentrations of NO from GTN. This enzyme has not conclusively been identified. However, the mitochondrial aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH2) is inhibited in GTN-tolerant tissues and produces NO2- from GTN, which is proposed to be converted to NO within mitochondria. To investigate the role of this enzyme in GTN tolerance, cumulative GTN concentration-response curves were obtained for both GTN-tolerant and -nontolerant rat aortic rings treated with the ALDH inhibitor cyanamide or the ALDH substrate propionaldehyde. Tolerance to GTN was induced using both in vivo and in vitro protocols. The in vivo protocol resulted in almost complete inhibition of ALDH2 activity and GTN biotransformation in hepatic mitochondria, indicating that long-term GTN exposure results in inactivation of the enzyme. Treatment with cyanamide or propionaldehyde caused a dose-dependent increase in the EC50 value for GTN-induced relaxation of similar magnitude in both tolerant and nontolerant aorta, suggesting that although cyanamide and propionaldehyde inhibit GTN-induced vasodilation, these inhibitors do not affect the enzyme or system involved in tolerance development to GTN. Treatment with cyanamide or propionaldehyde did not significantly inhibit 1,1-diethyl-2-hydroxy-2-nitrosohydrazine-mediated vasodilation in tolerant or nontolerant aorta, indicating that these ALDH inhibitors do not affect the downstream effectors of NO-induced vasodilation. Immunoblot analysis indicated that the majority of vascular ALDH2 is present in the cytoplasm, suggesting that mitochondrial biotransformation of GTN by ALDH2 plays a minor role in the overall vascular biotransformation of GTN by this enzyme.

Structure and function of xanthine oxidoreductase: where are we now?

Xanthine oxidoreductase (XOR) is a complex molybdoflavoenzyme, present in milk and many other tissues, which has been studied for over 100 years. While it is generally recognized as a key enzyme in purine catabolism, its structural complexity and specialized tissue distribution suggest other functions that have never been fully identified. The publication, just over 20 years ago, of a hypothesis implicating XOR in ischemia-reperfusion injury focused research attention on the enzyme and its ability to generate reactive oxygen species (ROS). Since that time a great deal more information has been obtained concerning the tissue distribution, structure, and enzymology of XOR, particularly the human enzyme. XOR is subject to both pre- and post-translational control by a range of mechanisms in response to hormones, cytokines, and oxygen tension. Of special interest has been the finding that XOR can catalyze the reduction of nitrates and nitrites to nitric oxide (NO), acting as a source of both NO and peroxynitrite. The concept of a widely distributed and highly regulated enzyme capable of generating both ROS and NO is intriguing in both physiological and pathological contexts. The details of these recent findings, their pathophysiological implications, and the requirements for future research are addressed in this review.