## Effects of Nitric Oxide

NO is synthesized from L-arginine by different isoenzymes of (NOS), and is implicated in a wide range of disease processes, exerting both detrimental and beneficial effects at the cellular and vascular levels. To date, three main isoforms of NOS are known:

- (1) neuronal NOS (NOS-1 or nNOS),
- (2) inducible NOS (NOS-2 or iNOS), and
- (3) endothelial NOS (NOS-3 or eNOS).

NO has been shown to play a key role in the pathogenesis of septic shock. Hyperproduction of NO induces excessive vasodilation, changes in vascular permeability, and inhibition of noradrenergic nerve transmission, all characteristics of human septic shock. The recogniton of NO production by activated macrophages as part of the inflammatory process was an important milestone for assesing both the biological production of NO and the phenomenon of induction of NOS activity. The observation has been extended to neutrophils, lymphocytes, and other cell types. The role of NO in the pathophysiology of endotoxic shock was advanced by Thiemermann and Vane, who observed that administration of the specific NOS inhibitor N-methyl-L-arginine (L-NMMA) decreased the severe hypotension produced by administration of LPS. Other groups simultaneously reported similar results indicating that endotoxin increases NO production and prompted the idea that pharmacological inhibition of NOS may be useful in the treatment of inflammation and septic shock. However, clinical trials using L-NMMA failed to show a beneficial effect in septic shock patient. The major limitation for the use of NOS inhibitors in clinical studies is the development of pulmonary hypertension as a side effect of NOS blockade, which can be alleviated by the use of inhaled NO. However, several compounds which modulate NO synthesis have been patented in recent years, such as various inflammatory mediators that have been implicated in the induction and activation of iNOS, particularly IFNg, TNFa, IL-1b, and platelet-activating factor (PAF) alone or synergistically. In addition to the activation of iNOS, cytokines and endotoxin may increase NO release by increasing arginine availability through the opening of the specific y+ channels and the expression of the cationic amino acid transporter (CAT), or by increasing tetrahydrobiopterin levels, a key cofactor in NO synthesis. Several experimental studies have demonstrated a decrease in NOS activity resulting in an impairment in endothelial-dependent relaxation during endotoxemia and experimental sepsis, possibly as the result of a cytokine-or hypoxia-induced shortened half-life of NOS mRNA, or of altered calcium mobilization. NO exerts in vitro toxic effects including nuclear damage, protein and membrane phospholipid alterations, and the inhibition of mitochondrial respiration in several cell types. Mitochondrial impairment could also be considered as an adaptive phenomenon, decreasing cellular metabolism when the energy supply is limited. The toxicity of NO itself may be enhanced by the formation of ONOO- from the reaction of NO with O-2. Therefore, the multiple organ failure syndrome (MOFS) that often accompanies severe sepsis may be related to the cellular effects of excess NO or ONOO-.