Background and Purpose: The predominant view is that the endothelium-derived relaxing factor generated by acetylcholine from blood vessels is nitric oxide. However, there is evidence suggesting that certain nitric oxide-containing compounds such as nitrosothiols resemble the endothelium-derived relaxing factor generated by acetylcholine more closely than does nitric oxide itself. Accordingly, w...

DETC: diethyldithiocarbamate, DMPO: 5,5-dimethyl-1-pyrroline N-oxide, DNIC: di-nitrosyl-iron complex, DTCS: N-(dithiocarboxy)sarcosine, EDRF: endothelium-derived relaxing factor, EPR, ESR: electron paramagnetic resonance; electron spin resonance, cGMP: cyclic GMP, Hb: hemoglobin, LPS: lipopolysaccharide, Mb: myoglobin, MGD: N-methyl-D-glucamine dithiocarbamate, MNIC: mono-nitrosyl-iron complex,...

It has now become well accepted that nitric oxide (NO) has a key role to play in the signalling that takes place in plant cells. However, the sources of NO in plants has been hard to determine and there is considerable debate as to exactly how NO is made by plant cells. In animals nitric oxide synthase (NOS) enzymes have been characterised and such data has been used to inform the studies which...

The vascular endothelium synthesizes nitric oxide (NO) from the terminal guanidino nitrogen atom( s) of L-arginine. NO accounts for the biological actions of endotheliumderived relaxing factor (EDRF). It is becoming apparent that the synthesis of NO from L-arginine not only explains endothelium-dependent vascular relaxation, but is a widespread mechanism for the regulation of cell function and ...

BACKGROUND Linoleic acid (LA) promotes monocyte chemotaxis and cell adhesion molecules such as MCP-1 and VCAM-1, which contribute to atherosclerogenesis. These molecules are restrained by endothelium-derived relaxing factors (EDRFs), such as nitric oxide (NO) and prostaglandin I2 (PGI2). Hence, the expressions of MCP-1 and VCAM-1 upregulated by LA may be partly attributable to decreased EDRF pr...

The endothelial cell is a highly metabolically active organ which plays a role in metabolizing vasoactive substances and also generates factors which modulate the interactions between platelets and the vessel wall. In 1976, Moncada and colleagues discovered prostacyclin [ 11, one of the most potent of these factors, which inhibits platelet aggregation and induces vasodilatation by stimulating a...

Whether endothelium-derived relaxing factor (EDRF)/nitric oxide (NO) plays a role in the dilation of the left circumflex coronary artery during acute exercise and whether endothelium-mediated dilation of this artery is altered after chronic exercise training have not been determined previously. Nine dogs were chronically instrumented for measurements of systemic hemodynamics, left circumflex co...

The effect of lysolecithin (lysophosphatidylcholine) on the relaxation of rabbit aortic strip closely resembled that produced by acetylcholine (ACh) which releases the endothelium-derived relaxing factor (EDRF). Relaxation induced by lysolecithin depended on the presence of endothelium and was inhibited by hemoglobin and methylene blue. It appeared to be mediated by the second messenger, c-GMP....

Since it was identified as the elusive endothelium-derived relaxing factor (EDRF) in the 1980s, nitric oxide (NO) has rapidly gained status as one of the most important signalling molecules in the cardiovascular system. Now, 20 years later, NO is regarded by most to be a ubiquitous mediator of cardioprotection. However, due to various complex underlying cellular mechanisms, the actions of NO of...