Reaction
The following chemical reactions are catalyzed by xanthine oxidase:
- hypoxanthine + H2O + O2 xanthine + H2O2
- xanthine + H2O + O2 uric acid + H2O2
- Xanthine oxidase can also act on certain other purines, pterins, and aldehydes. For example, it efficiently converts 1-methylxanthine (a metabolite of caffeine) to 1-methyluric acid, but has little activity on 3-methylxanthine.
- Under some circumstances it can produce superoxide ion RH + H2O + 2 O2 ROH + 2 O2− + 2 H+.
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hypoxanthine (one oxygen atom)
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xanthine (two oxygens)
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uric acid (three oxygens)
Read more about this topic: Xanthine Oxidase
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—Plato (c. 427–347 B.C.)
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