Nitric oxide
hideNitric oxide or nitrogen monoxide is a chemical compound with chemical formula NO. This gas is an important signaling molecule in the body of mammals, including humans, and is an extremely important intermediate in the chemical industry. It is also an air pollutant produced by cigarette smoke, automobile engines and power plants.
NO is an important messenger molecule involved in many physiological and pathological processes within the mammalian body both beneficial and detrimental. Appropriate levels of NO production are important in protecting an organ such as the liver from ischemic damage. However sustained levels of NO production result in direct tissue toxicity and contribute to the vascular collapse associated with septic shock, whereas chronic expression of NO is associated with various carcinomas and inflammatory conditions including juvenile diabetes, multiple sclerosis, arthritis and ulcerative colitis.
Nitric oxide should not be confused with nitrous oxide (N2O), a general anaesthetic and greenhouse gas, or with nitrogen dioxide (NO2) which is another air pollutant. The nitric oxide molecule is a free radical, which is relevant to understanding its high reactivity.
Despite being a simple molecule, NO is a fundamental player in the fields of neuroscience, physiology, and immunology, and was proclaimed “Molecule of the Year” in 1992.
For more information about Nitric oxide, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
News tagged with nitric oxide
Septic shock: Nitric oxide beneficial after all
Dec 15, 2009 |
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Scientists at VIB and Ghent University in Flanders, Belgium have found an unexpected ally for the treatment of septic shock, the major cause of death in intensive care units. By inducing the release of nitric oxide (NO) gas ...
Research reveals key to world's toughest organism
Oct 19, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A new study by Cornell researchers uncovers the details of how the world's toughest bacterium survives lethal radiation exposure.
Portable and precise gas sensor could monitor pollution and detect disease
Chemistry / Analytical Chemistry
Sep 25, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- In the air, it is a serious pollutant. In the body, it plays a role in heart rate, blood flow, nerve signals and immune function.
Topical erectile dysfunction therapy shows promise (w/ Video)
Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine
Sep 19, 2009 |
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An innovative drug-delivery system - nanoparticles encapsulating nitric oxide or prescription drugs - shows promise for topical treatment of erectile dysfunction (ED), according to a new study by scientists ...
Portable and precise gas sensor could monitor pollution and detect disease
Sep 18, 2009 |
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In the air, it is a serious pollutant. In the body, it plays a role in heart rate, blood flow, nerve signals and immune function. Nitric oxide, a gas well known to scientists for its myriad functions, has ...
Scientists help explain effects of ancient Chinese herbal formulas on heart health
Aug 18, 2009 |
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New research at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston suggests that ancient Chinese herbal formulas used primarily for cardiovascular indications including heart disease may produce large ...
Elevated arginase levels contribute to vascular eye disease such as diabetic retinopathy
Aug 18, 2009 |
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Elevated levels of the enzyme arginase contribute to vascular eye damage and Medical College of Georgia researchers say therapies to normalize its levels could halt progression of potentially blinding diseases ...
Why Certain Cancer Treatments Cause High Blood Pressure
Medicine & Health / Medications
Aug 04, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Drugs that block the formation of new blood vessels that feed tumor growth are helping some cancer patients enjoy longer lives.
Novel light-sensitive compounds show promise for cancer therapy
Jun 16, 2009 |
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Chemists at the University of California, Santa Cruz, have developed novel compounds that show promise for photodynamic cancer therapy, which uses light-activated drugs to kill tumor cells.
New proxy reveals how humans have disrupted the nitrogen cycle
Jun 04, 2009 |
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More and more, scientists are getting a better grip on the nitrogen cycle. They are learning about sources of nitrogen and how this element changes as it loops from the nonliving, such as the atmosphere, soil ...
Viagra developer Furchgott dead at 92: report
Medicine & Health / Medications
May 24, 2009 |
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Robert Furchgott, a Nobel prize-winning pharmacologist whose work with the gas nitric oxide helped develop the anti-impotency drug Viagra, has died at the age of 92, The New York Times reported Sunday.
Embryo's heartbeat drives blood stem cell formation
May 13, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Biologists have long wondered why the embryonic heart begins beating so early, before the tissues actually need to be infused with blood. Two groups of researchers from Children's Hospital ...
New evidence of how high glucose damages blood vessels could lead to new treatments
May 11, 2009 |
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New evidence of how the elevated glucose levels that occur in diabetes damage blood vessels may lead to novel strategies for blocking the destruction, Medical College of Georgia researchers say.
New technology shows promise against resistant staph infections
Apr 30, 2009 |
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Scientists at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have combined their revolutionary new drug-delivery system with a powerful antimicrobial agent to treat potentially deadly drug-resistant staph infections ...
Alzheimer's disease linked to mitochondrial damage
Apr 02, 2009 |
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Investigators at Burnham Institute for Medical Research (Burnham) have demonstrated that attacks on the mitochondrial protein Drp1 by the free radical nitric oxide—which causes a chemical reaction called S-nitrosylation—mediates ...
