Oxidant-producing enzyme
NADPH oxidase (NOX)
Also searched as NADPH oxidase (NOX).
Distinct from mito-Derived ROS and that Distinction Matters: nox-derived oxidative stress in the testis reduces StAR protein expression and cholesterol transport in Leydig cells. An antioxidant that reaches mitochondria may not reach this source.
In depth
NADPH oxidase — an enzyme whose purpose is to make reactive oxygen species, unlike mitochondrial ROS which are a byproduct.
What drives it
Calms body-wide inflammation increases it.
Inflammatory signaling upregulates NOX isoforms. PMC9113536
What it drives
It increases Oxidative stress.
NOX is distinct from other enzymatic sources because its primary function is to produce ROS; NOX enzymes are considered the main source of ROS production in endothelial cells, and the major sources of superoxide generated in the body are NADPH oxidases. doi 10.2337/db12-0009 · PMC7880919
It reduces Male fertility.
NADPH oxidase-derived oxidative stress in the testis reduces StAR protein expression and cholesterol transport to the mitochondria in Leydig cells. Species: elucidated in a mouse model. PMC9113536
It reduces Blood flow (nitric oxide).
NOX-derived superoxide scavenges nitric oxide - the classic uncoupling mechanism. PMC9113536
It increases Neuronal overexcitation.
NADPH oxidase is the primary source of superoxide generated by NMDA receptor activation - not a general contributor but the named origin. doi 10.1038/nn.2334 · PMC8788129
Blends that modulate it
Each blend page names this pathway and carries the study behind its claim.
See it on the map
Open the causal map to follow this pathway upstream and downstream, arrow by arrow, each with its study.