Heterogeneous distribution of type I nitric oxide synthase in pulmonary vasculature of ovine fetus.
The nitric oxide/guanosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate pathway plays an essential role in mediating pulmonary vasodilation at birth. Small resistance arteries in the fetal lung are vessels of major significance in the regulation of pulmonary vascular tone. The present study is to determine that type I nitric oxide synthase (NOS-I) is present in ovine fetal pulmonary vasculature and that NOS-I is distributed heterogeneously in ovine fetal pulmonary circulation. We used reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate diaphorase (NADPH-d) histochemistry and NOS-I immunohistochemistry to localize NOS-I in fetal sheep lungs and showed a colocalization for NADPH-d activity with NOS-I immunoreactivity. Strong NOS-I immunoreactivity was observed exclusively in the endothelium of the terminal bronchiole and respiratory bronchiole-associated arteries. As a comparison, adult sheep lung did not show positive immunoreactivity in the pulmonary endothelium. NOS-I was absent in the umbilical or systemic arteries from the ovine fetus, whereas abundant NOS-III immunoreactivity was present in these arteries. We conclude that NOS-I is present uniquely in the ovine fetal pulmonary circulation as opposed to the adult pulmonary or the fetal systemic circulation. NOS-I is distributed heterogeneously in the ovine pulmonary vasculature. We speculate that NOS-I plays an active role in the regulation of perinatal pulmonary circulation.
Tzao
C
C
Department of Pathology, State University of New York at Buffalo, 204 Farber Hall, 3435 Main Street, Buffalo, NY 14214-3015, USA.
Nickerson
P A
PA
Russell
J A
JA
Noble
B K
BK
Steinhorn
R H
RH
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001011:Aorta / Q000196:embryology / Q000201:enzymology; D001808:Blood Vessels / Q000196:embryology* / Q000201:enzymology*; D002531:Cerebellum / Q000201:enzymology; D005260:Female; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008168:Lung / Q000196:embryology* / Q000201:enzymology*; D008638:Mesenteric Arteries / Q000196:embryology / Q000201:enzymology; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009252:NADPH Dehydrogenase / Q000378:metabolism; D019001:Nitric Oxide Synthase / Q000378:metabolism*; D052248:Nitric Oxide Synthase Type I; D052250:Nitric Oxide Synthase Type III; D011247:Pregnancy; D051381:Rats; D012756:Sheep; D014469:Umbilical Arteries / Q000201:enzymology
D019001:Nitric Oxide Synthase; D052248:Nitric Oxide Synthase Type I; D052250:Nitric Oxide Synthase Type III; C496322:Nos1 protein, rat; C496316:Nos3 protein, rat; D009252:NADPH Dehydrogenase