Useful and harmful effects of nitric oxide

In living sistems synthesis of nitric oxide occurs during metabolism from Larginin, nitrite and ascorbate. Being very significant carrier of information within numerous both physiological and pathological proceses in mammals' organisms, nitric oxid could possibly be useful as well as harmful. Nitric oxide synthesis is adjuvant in a healthy organism because it represents the basic molecule for understanding numerous processes in neurology, psychology, immunology and varios related fields. In other words, nitric oxide participate in number of physiological processes, such as: transmission of nerve signals (neurotransmitter role), regulation of smooth muscle tissue relaxation (eg. vasodilatation), peristaltic movements, immunomodulation, mastocyte activation, development of inflammatory response, apoptosis regulation, angiogenesis and glucose metabolism, normal heart functioning and antioxidation role. Besides being useful, nitric oxide can be harmful as well, because it has one unpaired electron, so consequently it is susceptible to oxidation becoming a stable free radical. Being such, it reacts quickly with superoxide-anion radical, givind at first an extremely reactive peroxinitrite anion, and subsequently peroxidnitrite acid. This acid is very dangerous causing thiol groups oxidation, tyrosine and phenylalanine nitrosylation, lipid oxidation, DNK chain splitting, nitrification and nucleic bases deamination. These damages of macromolecules can cause a series of undesirable changes which subsequently distub functions of molecules, and thus of cells, tissues and even organs.

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