title: Nitric oxide as a regulatory molecule in the processing of the visual stimulus.
abstract: Nitric oxide (NO) is a highly reactive gas with considerable diffusion power that is produced pre- and post synaptically in the central nervous system (CNS). In the visual system, it is involved in the processing of the visual information from the retina to superior visual centers. In this review we discuss the main mechanisms through which nitric oxide acts, in physiological levels, on the retina, lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) and primary visual cortex. In the retina, the cGMP-dependent nitric oxide activity initially amplifies the signal, subsequently increasing the inhibitory activity, suggesting that the signal is "filtered". In the thalamus, on dLGN, neuronal activity is amplified by NO derived from brainstem cholinergic cells, in a cGMP-independent mechanism; the result is the amplification of the signal arriving from retina. Finally, on the visual cortex (V1), NO acts through changes on the cGMP levels, increasing signal detection. These observations suggest that NO works like a filter, modulating the signal along the visual pathways.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Neuroendocrinology, Biological Sciences Institute, Federal University of Pará, Av. Augusto Correa, 01 Guamá, Belém, Pará 66075-110, Brazil. Electronic address: monicalima@ufpa.br.
authors.forename: Monica Gomes
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Lima
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Neuroendocrinology, Biological Sciences Institute, Federal University of Pará, Av. Augusto Correa, 01 Guamá, Belém, Pará 66075-110, Brazil; Zebrafish Neuroscience Research Consortium (ZNRC) Slidell, Louisiana 70458, USA. Electronic address: caio.maximino@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Caio
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Maximino
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Neuroendocrinology, Biological Sciences Institute, Federal University of Pará, Av. Augusto Correa, 01 Guamá, Belém, Pará 66075-110, Brazil. Electronic address: karenrenata@yahoo.com.br.
authors.forename: Karen Renata
authors.initials: KR
authors.lastname: Matos Oliveira
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Neuroendocrinology, Biological Sciences Institute, Federal University of Pará, Av. Augusto Correa, 01 Guamá, Belém, Pará 66075-110, Brazil. Electronic address: alodiabrasil@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Alódia
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Brasil
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Molecular Pharmacology, Biological Sciences Institute, Federal University of Pará, Av. Augusto Correa, 01 Guamá, Belém, Pará CEP 66075-110, Brazil. Electronic address: maria.elena.crespo.lopez@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Maria Elena
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Crespo-Lopez
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Neuroendocrinology, Biological Sciences Institute, Federal University of Pará, Av. Augusto Correa, 01 Guamá, Belém, Pará 66075-110, Brazil. Electronic address: evander.batista@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Evander de Jesus Oliveira
authors.initials: Ede J
authors.lastname: Batista
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Neuroscience Dr. Eduardo Oswaldo Cruz, Biological Sciences Institute, Federal University of Pará, Av. Augusto Correa, 01 Guamá, Belém, Pará CEP 66075-110, Brazil.
authors.forename: Fernando Allan de Farias
authors.initials: FA
authors.lastname: Rocha
authors.affiliation: Nucleus Oriximiná, Federal University of Western Pará, University Campus Oriximiná, Rodovia PA-254, n° 257 Bairro Santíssimo, Oriximiná, Pará CEP 68270-000, Brazil. Electronic address: domdiniz@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Domingos Luiz Wanderley
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Picanço-Diniz
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Neuroendocrinology, Biological Sciences Institute, Federal University of Pará, Av. Augusto Correa, 01 Guamá, Belém, Pará 66075-110, Brazil; Zebrafish Neuroscience Research Consortium (ZNRC) Slidell, Louisiana 70458, USA. Electronic address: aherculanos@yahoo.com.br.
authors.forename: Anderson Manoel
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Herculano
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D006152:Cyclic GMP / Q000378:metabolism; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D005829:Geniculate Bodies / Q000378:metabolism; D005973:Glutamine / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D016202:N-Methylaspartate / Q000378:metabolism; D009474:Neurons / Q000378:metabolism; D009569:Nitric Oxide / Q000378:metabolism*; D012160:Retina / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology*; D012165:Retinal Ganglion Cells / Q000378:metabolism*; D015398:Signal Transduction; D014785:Vision, Ocular / Q000502:physiology*; D014793:Visual Cortex / Q000378:metabolism*; D018350:alpha-Amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic Acid / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D005973:Glutamine; D009569:Nitric Oxide; D016202:N-Methylaspartate; D018350:alpha-Amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic Acid; D006152:Cyclic GMP
keywords: Lateral geniculate nucleus; Nitric oxide; Primary visual cortex; Retina; Visual processing; Visual system