PURPOSE We attempted to determine whether oral L-arginine, the substrate for nitric oxide synthase, increases nitric oxide synthase activity and cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) levels in the urine from interstitial cystitis patients. Nitric oxide and cGMP are decreased in urine from interstitial cystitis patients and both induce smooth muscle relaxation and immunological responses. Increa...

PURPOSE The cascade of molecular events leading to tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-mediated tumor regression is still incompletely elucidated. We investigated the role of endothelial nitric oxide synthase in determining the tumor-selective activity of TNF. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN Using quantitative real-time PCR, endothelial nitric oxide synthase gene levels were measured in melanoma metastases of th...

objective(s):the neuropeptide calcitonin gene-related peptide (cgrp) has long been postulated to play an integral role in the pathophysiology of migraine. earlier studies showed that cgrp can stimulate the synthesis and release of nitric oxide (no) and cytokines from trigeminal ganglion glial cells. the purpose of this study was to determine the effect of 17β-estradiol in regulation of cgrp exp...

indirect evidence suggests that estrogen is involved in the etiology of breast cancer. estrogen is also thought to modulate nitric oxide (no) in human breast tumor tissue via regulation of inducible nitric oxide synthase (inos). objectives of this study were to determine whether estradiol (e2) affects inos expression level in breast cancer cells and to study the effect of various concentrations...

BACKGROUND Inducible or neuronal nitric oxide synthase gene deletion increases or decreases anxiety-like behavior in mice, respectively. Since nitric oxide and endocannabinoids interact to modulate defensive behavior, the former effect could involve a compensatory increase in basal brain nitric oxide synthase activity and/or changes in the endocannabinoid system. Thus, we investigated the expre...

Spontaneous calcium waves in cardiac myocytes are caused by diastolic sarcoplasmic reticulum release (SR Ca(2+) leak) through ryanodine receptors. Beta-adrenergic (β-AR) tone is known to increase this leak through the activation of Ca-calmodulin-dependent protein kinase (CaMKII) and the subsequent phosphorylation of the ryanodine receptor. When β-AR drive is chronic, as observed in heart failur...

UNLABELLED There is some evidence of a relationship between nitric oxide and pain control pathways. However, it is still controversial whether nitric oxide synthase (NOS) inhibitors affect minimum alveolar anesthetic concentration (MAC). We examined the effects of 7-nitro indazole (7-NI), a selective neuronal NOS (nNOS) inhibitor, on halothane MAC. With nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phospha...

Introduction: N- nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME), one of the L-arginine analogs, has been specified as an inhibitor of nitric oxide synthase ( NOS).Nitric oxide synthase is an enzyme which leads to nitric oxide synthesis. Since nitric oxide has been known as a pain mediator, it can be said that L-NAME can decrease and relieve pain. In this research the effect of L-NAME on morphine antino...

Alzheimer's disease is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by progressive cognitive impairment and neuropathology. Recent preclinical and epidemiological studies proposed statins as a possible therapeutic drug for Alzheimer's disease, but the exact mechanisms of action are still unknown. Biliverdin reductase-A is a pleiotropic enzyme involved in cellular stress responses. It not only tra...