Structure-function relationships in the growing hexa-coordinate hemoglobin sub-family

Daniele de Sanctis1, Alessandra Pesce, Marco Nardini

  • 1Department of Physics-INFM, Center for Excellence in Biomedical Research, University of Genova, Via Dodecaneso 33, I-16146 Genova, Italy.

IUBMB Life
|April 22, 2005
PubMed

Hemoglobin and related heme proteins, generally referred to as 'globins', reversibly bind gaseous diatomic ligands (O2, NO, and CO) to a penta-coordinate heme iron atom, the ligand filling the sixth coordination site. Over the last decade, several new globins have been reported to display a functionally-relevant hexa-coordinate heme iron atom, whose sixth coordination site is taken by an endogenous protein ligand. The reversible intramolecular hexa- to penta-coordination process at the heme-Fe atom modulates exogenous ligand binding properties of hexa-coordinate globins. Here, we review current knowledge on hexa-coordinate globins in terms of their structural and functional properties.

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