catechol-O-methyltransferase

Symbol

COMT (may also be known as: None)

Organism

Human

Description

Catechol-O-methyltransferase catalyzes the transfer of a methyl group from S-adenosylmethionine to catecholamines, including the neurotransmitters dopamine, epinephrine, and norepinephrine. This O-methylation results in one of the major degradative pathways of the catecholamine transmitters. In addition to its role in the metabolism of endogenous substances, COMT is important in the metabolism of catechol drugs used in the treatment of hypertension, asthma, and Parkinson disease. COMT is found in two forms in tissues, a soluble form (S-COMT) and a membrane-bound form (MB-COMT). The differences between S-COMT and MB-COMT reside within the N-termini. Several transcript variants are formed through the use of alternative translation initiation sites and promoters. [provided by RefSeq, Sep 2008]

Orthologs

SymbolSpecies
comtb Danio rerio
Comt Mus musculus
Comt Rattus norvegicus
SPBC119.03 Schizosaccharomyces pombe

Links to external resources

Changes associated with this gene

Identifier Name Type Tissues Organism Gene Data Actions
DAA3070 Gene expression of COMT decreases with age Molecular skin Human COMT —

GO Terms

GO IDGO TermGO Category
GO:0006584 catecholamine metabolic process biological_process
GO:0006805 xenobiotic metabolic process biological_process
GO:0007268 synaptic transmission biological_process
GO:0007565 female pregnancy biological_process
GO:0007612 learning biological_process
GO:0008210 estrogen metabolic process biological_process
GO:0014070 response to organic cyclic compound biological_process
GO:0032259 methylation biological_process
GO:0032496 response to lipopolysaccharide biological_process
GO:0042135 neurotransmitter catabolic process biological_process
GO:0042136 neurotransmitter biosynthetic process biological_process
GO:0042420 dopamine catabolic process biological_process
GO:0042493 response to drug biological_process
GO:0044281 small molecule metabolic process biological_process
GO:0045963 negative regulation of dopamine metabolic process biological_process
GO:0048265 response to pain biological_process
GO:0048609 multicellular organismal reproductive process biological_process
GO:0048662 negative regulation of smooth muscle cell proliferation biological_process
GO:0050668 positive regulation of homocysteine metabolic process biological_process
GO:0005624 membrane fraction cellular_component
GO:0005625 soluble fraction cellular_component
GO:0005737 cytoplasm cellular_component
GO:0005739 mitochondrion cellular_component
GO:0005792 microsome cellular_component
GO:0005829 cytosol cellular_component
GO:0005886 plasma membrane cellular_component
GO:0016021 integral to membrane cellular_component
GO:0043231 intracellular membrane-bounded organelle cellular_component
GO:0000287 magnesium ion binding molecular_function
GO:0008171 O-methyltransferase activity molecular_function
GO:0016206 catechol O-methyltransferase activity molecular_function
GO:0016740 transferase activity molecular_function