Nitric Oxide

Nitric Oxide a vasodilator

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The discovery of Nitric Oxide and its function is one of the most important in the history of

cardiovascular medicine.?

President of the American Heart Association, quoted in The New York Times

New experiments conducted by Duke University Medical Center and Howard Hughes
Medical Institute researchers have shown that specialized forms of nitric oxide called
SNOs may be the key to a problem that has stumped physicians for years
why specific drugs for such diseases as heart failure or asthma lose their
effectiveness over time.
Medical News Today

NITRIC OXIDE (NO) is one of the most important signaling molecules in our body.

Nitric Oxide or nitrogen monoxide is a chemical compound with chemical formula NO.

Nitric Oxide is an important messenger molecule involved in many physiological and

pathological processes within the mammalian body with both beneficial and detrimental

properties.

[1].It is a small, relatively unstable, potentially toxic, free radical that has become one of the

most studied and fascinating molecules in biological chemistry and medicine.

Nitric Oxide is a common air pollutant, a constituent of cigarette smoke, and a toxic gas,

which appears in the exhaust of motorcars,causes acid rain, and destroys the ozone layer.

The realization of such a molecule being produced within our bodies and acting as an

endogenous signaling molecule has revolutionized conceptual reasoning in science and

medicine .

It is involved in virtually every organ system within our body but is known primarily for

maintaining normal blood pressure and blood flow to tissues. In the cardiovascular system

it can expand narrow blood vessels, eliminate dangerous clots and reduce artery-clogging

plaque formation. It also has important properties in the immune system where it helps us

fight off infections and cancer cells and in the nervous system where it helps our brain cells

communicate properly.

Nitric Oxide should not be confused with nitrous oxide (N2O), a general anesthetic, or with

nitrogen dioxide (NO2) which is another poisonous air pollutant. The Nitric Oxide molecule is a

free radical with an unshared electron, which is relevant to understanding its high reactivity. It

reacts with the ozone in air to form nitrogen dioxide, signaled by the appearance of the

reddish-brown color as seen in smog. Nitric Oxide is a fundamental player in the fields of

neuroscience, physiology, and immunology, and was proclaimed "Molecule of the Year"

by Science in 1992 [2].

Nitric Oxide is one of the few gaseous signaling molecules known which has resulted in the search

for other gaseous messengers. It is a key vertebrate biological messenger, playing a role in a

variety of biological processes. Nitric Oxide, also known as the ?endothelium-derived relaxing

factor,? or EDRF, is biosynthesised endogenously from the amino acid L-arginine and oxygen by

various NO synthase (NOS) enzymes. Nitric Oxide is also formed within our body by the reduction

of inorganic nitrate and nitrite. The endothelium (inner lining) of blood vessels uses Nitric Oxide

to signal the surrounding smooth muscle to relax, thus resulting in vasodilation and increasing

blood flow and oxygen delivery. Nitric Oxide is highly reactive (having a lifetime less than a

second), yet diffuses freely across membranes and can travel 100?200 microns

(about 10 to 20 cell diameters). These attributes make Nitric Oxide ideal for a transient signal

molecule between adjacent cells and within cells. Effects of Nitric Oxide are widespread

throughout the body including, but not limited to blood vessel dilation, neurotransmission, host

response, modulation of the hair cycle, and penile erections. Nitroglycerin, an old and effective

treatment for angina for more than a century, serves as a vasodilator because it is converted to

Nitric Oxide in the body. Sildenafil, popularly known by the trade name Viagra, stimulates

erections primarily by enhancing signaling through the Nitric Oxide pathway in the penis.

There are a number of therapeutic strategies designed to affect the Nitric Oxide pathway in

humans and more are surely to follow as we learn and understand more about its actions.

Where can you find naturally occurring NO?

1.The most effective source is sweet red beets.

2. Watermelon

3.Pistachios

4.Salmon

5.Legumes

6. Green leafy vegetables

7.Hawthorne Berries

Nitric Oxide Molecule

Improve circulation and blood flow with nitric oxide
In 1992,Nitric Oxide was named "Molecule of the Year" by the American scientific community. And in 1998,

the discovery of Nitric Oxide as a critical signaling molecule was awarded a Nobel Prize in

physiology/medicine.

The "Talking" Molecule

Nitric Oxide lowers blood pressure, expands narrow blood vessels, eliminates dangerous clots and reduces the formation of artery-clogging plaque Nitric Oxide revolutionized conventional scientific reasoning because it was the first

molecule discovered to literally communicate with another molecule. Why does that

matter? When Nitric Oxide is made by the cells in our blood vessels, it signals the

surrounding arterial tissues "telling" them to relax. That lowers blood pressure,

expands narrow blood vessels, eliminates dangerous clots and reduces the

formation of artery-clogging plaque.

Better Circulation Means Better Living

Nitric Oxide optimizes circulation and is involved in virtually every organ system in our body.
More blood flow means better brain function and better attention.
More blood flow means better oxygen transfer and more energy.
More blood flow means a better sex life. (Nitric Oxide is a key ingredient in many well-known erectile
dysfunction products because it stimulates penile blood flow.)
Nitric Oxide also has important properties in the immune system where it helps us fight off infections
and cancer cells, as well as in the nervous system where it helps our brain cells communicate properly.

Nitric Oxide Is Critical

Nitric Oxide is critical to life. In fact, many scientists believe Nitric Oxide to be as important to humans

as oxygen. Unfortunately, most adults over 40 don't produce enough in order to achieve optimal health.

This author started using beet juice and after 7 days my BP

dropped from 172/78 to 116/58and has remained there .I drink a shake with

protein powder 3 times a week.

This continuing education activity will provide a comprehensive review of recent research findings on the health benefits of beetroot juice and evaluate how nitrate lowers blood pressure, reduces the oxygen cost of exercise, and improves athletic performance.

Dietary Nitrate, Nitrite, and Nitric Oxide
Dietary nitrate is absorbed rapidly from the stomach and small intestine. About 25% of ingested nitrate enters the enterosalivary circulation, where it?s reduced to nitrite by bacterial nitrate reductases from symbiotic anaerobic bacteria on the surface of the tongue.

This nitrite is swallowed and reduced to nitric oxide in the acidic environment of the stomach or is absorbed via the gastrointestinal tract and reenters the circulation as nitrite.3

Nitric oxide is a potent vasodilator that governs systemic blood pressure and retards atherogenesis by inhibiting inflammatory cell recruitment and platelet aggregation. Nitric oxide is generated by two known pathways: the oxidation of L-arginine by endothelial nitric oxide synthase (NOS), requiring the presence of oxygen and several essential cofactors, and by the reduction of nitrate-derived nitrite to nitric oxide.1,3

Numerous cardiovascular pathologies (atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease risk factors such as hypertension and hyperlipidemia) are associated with endothelial dysfunction and diminished nitric oxide activity. Nitrite derived from dietary nitrate provides an alternative source of vasoprotective nitric oxide via the nitrate-nitrite-nitric oxide pathway when conventional nitric oxide synthesis is impaired. Thus, during ischemia or hypoxemia (conditions that inactivate endothelial nitric oxide synthase), nitrate helps preserve nitric oxide production.1,3

Independent of its role as a source of nitric oxide, nitrite provides protection against ischemia/reperfusion injury in the myocardial, hepatic, renal, pulmonary, and cerebral vasculature. Nitrite also causes dose-dependent vasodilatation in the brachial artery of healthy individuals, indicating that it may have an important role in maintaining normal cardiovascular homeostasis.1

Lowering Blood Pressure
Webb and colleagues1 evaluated the effects of 0.5 L of beetroot juice (22.5 mmol of nitrate) on blood pressure, plasma nitrite concentrations, and endothelial function. Systolic blood pressure dropped 10.4 mm Hg three hours after ingestion, and diastolic blood pressure fell 8 mm Hg 2 1/2 hours after ingestion. Plasma nitrite increased twofold after beetroot juice ingestion, reached a peak at three hours, and correlated with the decreases in blood pressure. Researchers measured endothelial function by brachial artery flow-mediated vasodilation after ischemic occlusion of the forearm. Beetroot juice significantly prevented endothelial dysfunction induced by an acute ischemic insult in the forearm and attenuated ex vivo platelet aggregation.1

The researchers also evaluated the effect of spitting out all saliva during and after beetroot juice ingestion on blood pressure and plasma nitrate concentrations. Spitting out saliva interrupted the enterosalivary circulation, thereby preventing nitrite-rich saliva from reaching the stomach. Compared with swallowing, spitting blocked the rise in plasma nitrite concentration, prevented the decrease in systolic blood pressure, and had no effect on platelet aggregation. Thus, the physiological effects of dietary nitrate are due to the production of nitrite from symbiotic anaerobic bacteria on the surface of the tongue rather than from the nitrate itself.1

Oxygen Cost of Exercise and Blood Pressure
Preliminary research suggested that consuming a large dose of pharmaceutical sodium nitrate (0.1 mmol/kg/day for three days) resulted in a lower oxygen cost during submaximal cycling.4 In practical terms, the nitrate supplementation improved exercise economy?the muscles used less oxygen for a given work rate. This finding was surprising and challenged a fundamental principle of human exercise physiology: During submaximal exercise, there?s a predictable oxygen cost for a given work rate. Furthermore, the increase in oxygen uptake is linearly related to the increase in work rate, and this relationship can?t be altered.

Did You KN-Ow:

Your N-O (nitric oxide) might be low if you experience any of these warning signs of poor circulation:

Numbness or tingling in your hands, feet, or toes
Varicose veins
Cold hands, feet, legs, and ears
Fatigue
Headaches
Muscle cramps and pain
Hair loss
Leg pain
Dizziness
Shortness of breath
Swelling in the feet, legs, and/or fingers
Poor sexual performance

1. Murad, F. Shattuck Lecture. Nitric oxide and cyclic GMP in cell signaling and drug development. The New England journal of medicine 355:2003?2011; 2006.
2. Culotta, E.; Kochland, D. E. J. NO news is good news (Molecule of the Year). Science
258:1862?1864; 1992.

3. Ellen Coleman, MA, MPH, RD, CSSD