mesoheme

Mesoheme is a synthetic or modified form of heme (iron protoporphyrin IX), which is the color-furnishing portion of hemoglobin and an essential prosthetic group in many hemeproteins. It consists of an iron ion coordinated to a porphyrin ring structure. Mesoheme differs from native heme by having ethyl groups in place of vinyl groups at specific positions on the porphyrin ring. This modification makes mesoheme useful as a biochemical probe for studying the structure and function of heme proteins because it can be incorporated into proteins in place of natural heme without significantly altering their overall structure or function[1][6][8][10]. The primary mechanism involves serving as a prosthetic group that enables electron transfer and oxygen binding/transport within various biological systems.

Other names

mesohemeMHMferrohemeheme bprotoferrohemeprotohaemprotoheme IXiron protoporphyrin IX