Alcohol use disorders are common both in the United States and globally, and are associated with a variety of co-morbid, inflammation-linked diseases. The pathogenesis of many of these ailments are driven by the activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome, a multi-protein intracellular pattern recognition receptor complex that facilitates the cleavage and secretion of the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL...

The airways of patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) exhibit decreased nitric oxide (NO) concentrations, which might affect airway function. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of NO on ion transport in human airway epithelia. Primary cultures of non-CF and CF bronchial and bronchiolar epithelial cells were exposed to the NO donor sodium nitroprusside (SNP), and bioelectric variable...

BACKGROUND Effectiveness of the immune defense formed by the genotype often determines the predisposition to cancer. Nitric oxide (NO) produced by macrophages is an important element in this defense. MATERIAL AND METHODS We hypothesized that genetic characteristics of NO generation systems can predetermine the vulnerability to tumor development. The study was conducted on mice of 2 genetic subs...

BACKGROUND A natural retinoid all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) contains various beneficial effects on vasculature, including suppression of neointima formation after balloon injury. However, little is known about the effects of ATRA on vascular endothelial function. We therefore studied its role in nitric oxide (NO) production of vascular endothelial cells (ECs). METHODS AND RESULTS Human derma...

PURPOSE To investigate the role of endogenously generated nitric oxide (NO) in the relaxation of bovine iris sphincter. METHODS Isolated bovine sphincters were mounted on an isometric tension apparatus. Contraction-relaxation response was elicited by electrical field stimulation (ES; 12 Hz, 50-msec duration, 70-80 V). Relaxation was arbitrarily defined as maximal decrease of tension below pre...

Endothelial nitric oxide (NO) is the primary mediator of flow-mediated dilation (FMD) in human adipose microvessels. Impaired NO-mediated vasodilation occurs after acute and chronic hypertension, possibly due to excess generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). The direct role of pressure elevation in this impairment of human arteriolar dilation is not known. We tested the hypothesis that ele...

Intracranial hemorrhage remains the most feared complication in tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) thrombolysis for ischemic stroke. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms are still poorly elucidated. In this study, we reported an important role of caveolin-1 (Cav-1) s-nitrosylation in matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2 and 9 secretion from tPA-treated ischemic endothelial cells. Brain vasc...

Increased expression of glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) represents astroglial activation and gliosis during neurodegeneration. However, the molecular mechanism behind increased expression of GFAP in astrocytes is poorly understood. The present study was undertaken to explore the role of nitric oxide (NO) in the expression of GFAP. Bacterial lipopolysachharides (LPSs) induced the producti...

The effects of the cholinergic muscarinic agonist carbachol (CCh) on the basal L-type calcium current, I(Ca,L), in ferret right ventricular (RV) myocytes were studied using whole cell patch clamp. CCh produced two major effects : (i) in all myocytes, extracellular application of CCh inhibited I(Ca,L) in a reversible concentration-dependent manner; and (ii) in many (but not all) myocytes, upon w...

Nitric oxide (NO) is an important signaling molecule in the CNS, regulating neuronal survival, proliferation and differentiation. Here, we explored the mechanism by which NO, produced from the NO donor S-nitroso-acetyl-d-l-penicillamine (SNAP), exerts its neuroprotective effect in purified cultures of chick retinal neurons. Cultures prepared from 8-day-old chick embryo retinas and incubated for...