Full Description
Nitric oxide (NO) is one of the most remarkable biological molecules characterized at the turn of XX century. Small in size, but ubiquitous and complex in its network of molecular, cellular and organ inter- tions, NO plays an important role in mammalian and non-mammalian biology. The scope and versatility of NO actions on the biological systems range from neuromodulation and regulation of cardiovascular homeostasis to cell signaling and immunity. An impressive array of physiologic and pathologic reactions are controlled by or associated with changes in the biological specter of NO. The "career" of NO in science started from a handful of publications written before 1986 to more than 52,000 contributions at the end of 2002 (Pubmed, National Library of Medicine). More than 15,000 publications deal with the effects of NO in the cardiovascular system. The NO field has been recently knighted with the 1998 Nobel Prize in Medicine awarded to R.F. Furchgott, F. Murad and L.J. Ignarro.
Contents
NO and Pathophysiology of Heart Failure.- Nitric Oxide in Heart Failure: Friend or Foe.- NO and the Vasculature: Where Does It Come from and What Does It Do?.- Myocardial Contractile Effects of Nitric Oxide.- Nitric Oxide, Platelet Function, Myocardial Infarction and Reperfusion Therapies.- Nitric Oxide, Atherosclerosis and the Clinical Relevance of Endothelial Dysfunction.- Regulation of Cardiac Remodeling by Nitric Oxide: Focus on Cardiac Myocyte Hypertrophy and Apoptosis.- Role of Nitric Oxide in the Pathophysiology of Heart Failure.- Nitric Oxide, Cell Death, and Heart Failure.- Acute and Chronic Endothelial Dysfunction: Implications for the Development of Heart Failure.- The Role of NOS in Heart Failure: Lessons from Murine Genetic Models.- NO and Cardiovascular Therapeutics.- Nitric Oxide and Cardiovascular Protection.- Angiotensin II and Nitric Oxide Interaction.- The Nitric Oxide-Endothelin-1 Connection.- The Therapeutic Effect of Natriuretic Peptides in Heart Failure; Differential Regulation of Endothelial and Inducible Nitric Oxide Synthases.- Mechanisms Underlying Nitrate-Induced Endothelial Dysfunction: Insight from Experimental and Clinical Studies.- Statins and the Role of Nitric Oxide in Chronic Heart Failure.- Role of Nitric Oxide in Matrix Remodeling in Diabetes and Heart Failure.- Peroxynitrite in Myocardial Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury.- The Role of the NO Axis and its Therapeutic Implications in Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension.- Nitric Oxide and Cardioprotection During Ischemia-Reperfusion.
