Christian Thorup

Carbon monoxide induces vasodilation and nitric oxide release but suppresses endothelial NOS.

The vascular effects of carbon monoxide (CO) resemble those of nitric oxide (NO), but it is unknown whether the two messengers converge or exhibit reciprocal feedback regulation. These questions were examined in microdissected perfused renal resistance arteries (RRA) studied using NO-sensitive microelectrodes. Perfusion of RRA with buffers containing increasing concentrations of CO resulted in a biphasic release of NO. The NO response peaked at 100 nM CO and then declined to virtually zero at 10 μM. When a series of 50-s pulses of 100 nM CO were applied repeatedly (150-s interval), the amplitude of consecutive NO responses was diminished. NO release from RRA showed dependence on l-arginine but notd-arginine, and the responses to CO were inhibited by pretreatment with N G-nitro-l-arginine methyl ester (l-NAME), an inhibitor of NO synthases (NOS). CO (100 nM) also suppressed NO release induced by 100 μM carbachol, a potent agonist for endothelial NOS (eNOS). RRA from rats in which endogenous CO production from inducible HO was elevated (cobalt chloride 12 h prior to study) also showed suppressed responses to carbachol. Furthermore, responses consistent with these findings were obtained in juxtamedullary afferent arterioles perfused in vitro, where the vasodilatory response to CO was biphasic and the response to acetylcholine was blunted. Collectively, these data suggest that the CO-induced NO release could be attributed to either stimulation of eNOS or to NO displacement from a cellular storage pool. To address this, direct in vitro measurements with an NO-selective electrode of NO production by recombinant eNOS revealed that CO dose-dependently inhibits NO synthesis. Together, the above data demonstrate that, whereas high levels of CO inhibit NOS activity and NO generation, lower concentrations of CO induce release of NO from a large intracellular pool and, therefore, may mimic the vascular effects of NO.The vascular effects of carbon monoxide (CO) resemble those of nitric oxide (NO), but it is unknown whether the two messengers converge or exhibit reciprocal feedback regulation. These questions were examined in microdissected perfused renal resistance arteries (RRA) studied using NO-sensitive microelectrodes. Perfusion of RRA with buffers containing increasing concentrations of CO resulted in a biphasic release of NO. The NO response peaked at 100 nM CO and then declined to virtually zero at 10 microM. When a series of 50-s pulses of 100 nM CO were applied repeatedly (150-s interval), the amplitude of consecutive NO responses was diminished. NO release from RRA showed dependence on L-arginine but not D-arginine, and the responses to CO were inhibited by pretreatment with NG-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME), an inhibitor of NO synthases (NOS). CO (100 nM) also suppressed NO release induced by 100 microM carbachol, a potent agonist for endothelial NOS (eNOS). RRA from rats in which endogenous CO production from inducible HO was elevated (cobalt chloride 12 h prior to study) also showed suppressed responses to carbachol. Furthermore, responses consistent with these findings were obtained in juxtamedullary afferent arterioles perfused in vitro, where the vasodilatory response to CO was biphasic and the response to acetylcholine was blunted. Collectively, these data suggest that the CO-induced NO release could be attributed to either stimulation of eNOS or to NO displacement from a cellular storage pool. To address this, direct in vitro measurements with an NO-selective electrode of NO production by recombinant eNOS revealed that CO dose-dependently inhibits NO synthesis. Together, the above data demonstrate that, whereas high levels of CO inhibit NOS activity and NO generation, lower concentrations of CO induce release of NO from a large intracellular pool and, therefore, may mimic the vascular effects of NO.

Nitric oxide and renal blood pressure regulation

In the mammalian body the kidney might be the most important organ for long-term blood pressure regulation. Nitric oxide seems to play a particular role in the control of renal haemodynamics, and changes in renal nitric oxide synthesis should therefore be of great importance for the renal control of blood pressure.

Increased tubuloglomerular feedback reactivity is associated with increased NO production in the streptozotocin-diabetic rat.

The characteristics of the tubuloglomerular feedback (TGF) mechanism were examined in streptozotocin-diabetic rats. This model is known to induce damage in the distal tubular system and thus Tamm-Horsfall protein (THP) secretion. Three groups of male Sprague-Dawley rats were studied: (A) diabetic rats with blood glucose levels (BG)<19 mmol/l, (B) with BG>/=19 mmol/l, and (C) control rats. After 50 days, the diabetic rats had higher arterial blood pressure and increased TGF reactivity (delta P(SF)) than control rats. The proximal tubular free-flow pressure (P(T)) and stop-flow pressure (P(SF)) were reduced, while the glomerular filtration was normal. This indicates that the diabetic animals of this study were severely vasoconstricted. Inhibition of renal nitric oxide synthase (NOS) resulted in a greater increase of TGF reactivity in diabetic rats than in control rats. Diabetic rats also showed increased excretion rates of albumin and THP. The excretion rate of THP was associated with P(SF) (r=-0.88, p<0.01). In conclusion, diabetes mellitus was associated with an increased blood pressure and an increased TGF reactivity, which indicates that the diabetic rats were vasoconstricted. NOS inhibition increased the reactivity of TGF to greater extent in diabetic animals than in controls, indicating that the renal vasoconstriction was compensated for by an increased NO production.

Measurement of Nitric Oxide Formation

Nitric oxide (NO) is a simple gaseous monoxide that is involved in a variety of biological mechanisms in the mammalian body (1). NO is produced by a group of enzymes, nitric oxide synthases. One of the more important functions of NO is to regulate the tone of blood vessels (2). As one of the most potent vasodilators known, NO modulates the vasoconstrictive action of humoral factors, including angiotensin II (Ang II). Therefore, a well-controlled balance between Ang II and NO is required for normal hemodynamic function in all blood vessels (3-6).