yes, a very relevant point. As always, cell biology is complex. Reduction of NO can almost be seen as a hallmark of aging.
"Studies in experimental models and even humans reveal that constitutive production of nitric oxide (NO) is reduced with aging and this circumstance may be relevant to a number of diseases that plague the aging population. NO is a multifunctional signaling molecule, intricately involved with maintaining a host of physiological processes including, but not limited to, host defense, neuronal communication and the regulation of vascular tone. NO is one of the most important signaling molecules in our body, and loss of NO function is one of the earliest indicators or markers of disease. Clinical studies provide evidence that insufficient NO production is associated with all major cardiovascular risk factors, such as hyperlipidemia, diabetes, hypertension, smoking and severity of atherosclerosis, and also has a profound predictive value for disease progression including cardiovascular and Alzheimers disease. "
A healthy endothelium and a healthy capillary density is vital for optimal function. Capillary density is the number of capillaries present in a tissue, such as muscle or the organs in the body, which plays a crucial role in determining the oxygen flux from red blood cells to mitochondria, influencing tissue oxygenation and metabolic waste clearance.
Hypo-perfusion of organs is detrimental, not only for the brain and heart, but for the entire body. If we choose to intervene, it is vital to understand that generating to much NO is not what we should aim for. For instance, the brain is one organ where too much nitric oxide might be detrimental. Yet again we need nitric oxide in the brain.
Functions and dysfunctions of nitric oxide in brain - ScienceDirect
“Nitric oxide (NO) works as a retrograde neurotransmitter in synapses, allows the brain blood flow and also has important roles in intracellular signaling in neurons from the regulation of the neuronal metabolic status to the dendritic spine growth. Moreover NO is able to perform post-translational modifications in proteins by the S-nitrosylation of the thiol amino acids, which is a physiological mechanism to regulate protein function. On the other hand, during aging and pathological processes the behavior of NO can turn harmful when reacts with superoxide anion to form peroxynitrite. This gaseous compound can diffuse easily throughout the neuronal membranes damaging lipid, proteins and nucleic acids. In the case of proteins, peroxynitrite reacts mostly with the phenolic ring of the tyrosines forming nitro-tyrosines that affects dramatically to the physiological functions of the proteins. Protein nitrotyrosination is an irreversible process that also yields to the accumulation of the modified proteins contributing to the onset and progression of neurodegenerative processes such as Alzheimer’s disease or Parkinson’s disease.”
Exercise is my best bet for having a healthy level of NO in my body.
