title: The chemical biology of S-nitrosothiols.
abstract: CONCLUSIONS
  S-nitrosothiol formation and protein S-nitrosation is an important nitric oxide (NO)-dependent signaling paradigm that is relevant to almost all aspects of cell biology, from proliferation, to homeostasis, to programmed cell death. However, the mechanisms by which S-nitrosothiols are formed are still largely unknown, and there are gaps of understanding between the known chemical biology of S-nitrosothiols and their reported functions.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  This review attempts to describe the biological chemistry of S-nitrosation and to point out where the challenges lie in matching the known chemical biology of these compounds with their reported functions. The review will detail new discoveries concerning the mechanisms of the formation of S-nitrosothiols in biological systems.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Although S-nitrosothiols may be formed with some degree of specificity on particular protein thiols, through un-catalyzed chemistry, and mechanisms for their degradation and redistribution are present, these processes are not sufficient to explain the vast array of specific and targeted responses of NO that have been attributed to S-nitrosation. Elements of catalysis have been discovered in the formation, distribution, and metabolism of S-nitrosothiols, but it is less clear whether these represent a specific network for targeted NO-dependent signaling.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Much recent work has uncovered new targets for S-nitrosation through either targeted or proteome-wide approaches There is a need to understand which of these modifications represent concerted and targeted signaling processes and which is an inevitable consequence of living with NO. There is still much to be learned about how NO transduces signals in cells and the role played by protein S-nitrosation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biophysics and Redox Biology Program, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, 53226, USA.
authors.forename: Katarzyna A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Broniowska
authors.forename: Neil
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Hogg
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D006801:Humans; D009569:Nitric Oxide / Q000378:metabolism; D015538:Nitrosation / Q000502:physiology; D026403:S-Nitrosothiols / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D026403:S-Nitrosothiols; D009569:Nitric Oxide