Nitric oxide as a secretory product of mammalian cells

Abstract

Evolution has resorted to nitric oxide (NO), a tiny, reactive radical gas, to mediate both servoregulatory and cytotoxic functions. This article reviews how different forms of nitric oxide synthase help confer specificity and diversity on the effects of this remarkable signaling molecule.— Nathan, C. Nitric oxide as a secretory product of mammalian cells. FASEB J. 6: 3051‐3064; 1992.