In the present study we have extended our previous findings about the effects of 10 minutes of passive mandibular extension in anesthetized Wistar rats. By prolonging the observation time to 3 hours, we showed that 10 minutes mandibular extension caused a significant reduction of the mean arterial blood pressure and heart rate respect to baseline values, which persisted up to 160 minutes after ...

Nitric oxide (NO) is a major regulatory molecule of the cardiovascular system; however, measurement of vascular NO synthesis in vivo represents a major challenge. NO stemming from the lower respiratory tract has been used as a marker of vascular endothelial function. Experimental evidence for this concept is lacking. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate this relationship. ...

Nitric oxide is a short-lived mediator, which can be induced in a variety of cell types and produces many physiologic and metabolic changes in target cells. It is important in many biological functions and generated from L-arginine by the enzyme nitric oxide synthase. Nitric oxide conveys a variety of messages between cells, including signals for vasorelaxation, neurotransmission and cytotoxici...

This brief overview sketches current evidence of imbalance between inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS), role of oxidant stress, and generation of peroxynitrite in the pathophysiology of acute ischemic renal injury. The development of endothelial cell dysfunction at early stages of experimental acute renal ischemia is the focus of the review, with ...

There is evidence that genetic factors affect nitric oxide formation and that sequence variants in the nitric oxide synthase genes contribute to the observed variance of nitric oxide levels in exhaled air (fraction of expired nitric oxide, FENO) in subjects with asthma. We identified a strong association between a known functional NOS3 missense sequence variant in the endothelial nitric oxide g...

Nitric oxide is implicated in methamphetamine (METH)-induced neurotoxicity; however, the source of the nitric oxide has not been identified. Previous work has also revealed that animals with partial dopamine loss induced by a neurotoxic regimen of methamphetamine fail to exhibit further decreases in striatal dopamine when re-exposed to methamphetamine 7-30 days later. The current study examined...

Nitric oxide is produced by almost all cardiac cells, endothelial cells, cardiomyocytes and nerve fibers. It is synthesized by an enzyme, a nitric oxide synthase, which occurs in endothelial, neural and inducible form. The distribution of nitric oxide synthase in the heart is characterized by a pronounced non-uniformity. Nitric oxide exerts its effects in physiological and pathophysiological co...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Treatment with a selective proteasome inhibitor, VELCADE, in combination with tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) extended the therapeutic window to 6 hours in young rats after stroke. However, stroke is a major cause of death and disability in the elderly. The present study investigated the effect of VELCADE in combination with a low-dose tPA on aged rats after embolic st...

Background & Aims: The activity of nitric oxide synthase was assayed in enterocytes isolated from human duodenal biopsies to determine its role in celiac disease. Patients were categorized into those with irritable bowel syndrome, iron deficiency anemia, B12/folate deficiency and treated and untreated celiac disease. Methods & Results: Enterocytes isolated from all groups showed 1400W-inhibitab...

Hyperglycemia, which increases O-linked beta-N-acetylglucosamine (O-GlcNAc) proteins, leads to changes in vascular reactivity. Because vascular dysfunction is a key feature of arterial hypertension, we hypothesized that vessels from deoxycorticosterone acetate and salt (DOCA-salt) rats exhibit increased O-GlcNAc proteins, which is associated with increased reactivity to constrictor stimuli. Aor...