“…P450s) to oxidatively convert l -arginine to citrulline and NO. − The NO produced in this way in neurons and the endothelium is then sensed by the enzyme soluble guanylate cyclase (sGC), which uses a heme as the primary NO-sensor unit. − Similar sensor domains, termed H-NOX, are also found in bacteria as gas sensors (primarily for O 2 and NO). − In bacteria, NO is produced by bacterial NOS, and the NO generated in this way is then involved in quorum sensing and potentially biosynthesis . In humans, NO is further degraded in blood by reaction with oxy-hemoglobin (by oxidation to nitrate), to avoid accumulation of this toxic molecule. − Other important heme proteins involved in the biological functions of NO are nitrophorins (NO transporters in the saliva of blood-sucking insects), , and heme-based nitrite and NO reductases (NIRs and NORs), responsible for the production and detoxification of NO in denitrification. − Heme-NO adducts are further important intermediates in a number of key reactions in the nitrogen cycle. − Correspondingly, much research has been directed toward the interaction of NO with hemes, in proteins and model systems, and the study of the geometric and electronic structures as well as the reactivity of these species in different oxidation states. ,− Initially, studies focused on ferrous heme-nitrosyls, or {FeNO} 7 complexes in the Enemark–Feltham notation, as models for the corresponding O 2 adducts of heme proteins. − Later, these {FeNO} 7 complexes turned out to be the relevant species involved in NO-based signaling. , In the Enemark–Feltham notation, the exponent “7” corresponds to the number of valence electrons of the complex, which is the sum of Fe(d) and NO(π*) electrons (here: 6 for Fe(II) plus 1 for NO = 7). This notation is useful, because NO is a “noninnocent” or redox-active ligand, , and hence, it is a priori not clear what the electron distribution in a given transition metal-NO complex is.…”