Life without myoglobin

• Published in: Cellular and molecular life sciences : CMLS Vol. 57; no. 6; pp. 896 - 898
• Main Authors: Garry, D. J, Meeson, A, Yan, Z, Williams, R. S
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland Birkhäuser Verlag 01.06.2000; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Animals; Biological Transport; Cardiomyocytes; Eukaryotes; eukaryotic cells; Gene disruption; Gene Expression Regulation; gene targeting; Mice; Mice, Knockout; mitochondria; Molecular biology; Muscle, Skeletal - metabolism; Myocardium - metabolism; myoglobin; Myoglobin - deficiency; Myoglobin - genetics; Myoglobin - metabolism; Myoglobins; oxygen; Oxygen - metabolism; plants (botany); Prokaryotes; prokaryotic cells; Proteins; Skeletal muscle; striated muscle; Structural analysis; Vertebrates
• ISSN: 1420-682X; 1420-9071
• DOI: 10.1007/PL00000732

Hemoproteins are widely distributed among prokaryotes, unicellular eukaryotes, plants and animals . Myoglobin, a cytoplasmic hemoprotein that is restricted to cardiomyocytes and oxidative skeletal myofibers in vertebrates, has been proposed to facilitate oxygen transport to the mitochondria . This cytoplasmic hemoprotein was the first protein to be subjected to definitive structural analysis and has been a subject of long-standing and ongoing interest to biologists . Recently, we utilized gene disruption technology to generate mice that are viable and fertile despite a complete absence of myoglobin . This unexpected result led us to reexamine existing paradigms regarding the function of myoglobin in striated muscle.