Species Human Entrez 4842 | Human Mouse Ensembl ENSG00000089250 | |
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Aliases NOS1, IHPS1, N-NOS, NC-NOS, NOS, bNOS, nNOS, nitric oxide synthase 1 External IDs MGI: 97360 HomoloGene: 37327 GeneCards: NOS1 | ||
Nitric oxide synthase 1 (neuronal), also known as NOS1, is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the NOS1 gene.
Contents
Function
Nitric oxide (NO) is a messenger molecule with diverse functions throughout the body. In the brain and peripheral nervous system, NO displays many properties of a neurotransmitter and may be involved in long term potentiation. It is implicated in neurotoxicity associated with stroke and neurodegenerative diseases, neural regulation of smooth muscle, including peristalsis, and penile erection. NO is also responsible for endothelium-derived relaxing factor activity regulating blood pressure. In macrophages, NO mediates tumoricidal and bactericidal actions, as indicated by the fact that inhibitors of NO synthase (NOS) block these effects. Neuronal NOS and macrophage NOS are distinct isoforms. Both the neuronal and the macrophage forms are unusual among oxidative enzymes in requiring several electron donors: flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD), flavin mononucleotide (FMN), NADPH, and tetrahydrobiopterin.
Clinical significance
It has been implicated in asthma, schizophrenia and restless leg syndrome. It has also been investigated with respect to bipolar disorder and air pollution exposure.
Interactions
NOS1 has been shown to interact with DLG4 and NOS1AP.