title: Involvement of neuronal nitric oxide synthase in N-methyl-N-nitrosourea-induced retinal degeneration in mice.
abstract: N-methyl-N-nitrosourea (MNU) is widely used to study the mechanism of retinal degenerative diseases (RDs) because of its selectivity of photoreceptor cell death. Many reports suggest that excessive nitric oxide (NO) plays a crucial role in neuronal cell death. We hypothesized that nitric oxide synthase (NOS)/NO are involved in photoreceptor cell death by MNU. We found that the levels of NO increased after MNU treatment. Furthermore, we demonstrated that neuronal NOS specific inhibitor attenuated photoreceptor cell death by MNU in mice. We believe that our findings might be a new target for the treatment of RDs.
authors.affiliation: Graduate School and Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Suzuka University of Medical Science, Suzuka, Japan. Electronic address: koriyama@suzuka-u.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Yoshiki
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Koriyama
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Neurobiology, Graduate School of Medicine, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, Japan.
authors.forename: Suguru
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hisano
authors.affiliation: Wellness Promotion Science Center, Institute of Medical, Pharmaceutical and Health Sciences, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, Japan.
authors.forename: Kazuhiro
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ogai
authors.affiliation: Division of Health Sciences, Graduate School of Medicine, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, Japan.
authors.forename: Kayo
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sugitani
authors.affiliation: Graduate School and Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Suzuka University of Medical Science, Suzuka, Japan.
authors.forename: Ayako
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Furukawa
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Neurobiology, Graduate School of Medicine, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, Japan.
authors.forename: Satoru
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kato
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D016923:Cell Death / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics; D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008297:Male; D008770:Methylnitrosourea / Q000633:toxicity; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D058990:Molecular Targeted Therapy; D009569:Nitric Oxide / Q000502:physiology; D052248:Nitric Oxide Synthase Type I / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000502:physiology*; D010786:Photoreceptor Cells / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology; D012162:Retinal Degeneration / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology; D013890:Thiourea / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000627:therapeutic use
chemical_list: D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors; C000606304:ethyl (4-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl)carbamimidothioate; D009569:Nitric Oxide; D008770:Methylnitrosourea; D052248:Nitric Oxide Synthase Type I; D013890:Thiourea
keywords: Neurotoxicity; Nitric oxide; Retina