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Neuronal nitric oxide synthase in the neural pathways of the urinary bladder

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 May 1999

YUAN ZHOU
Affiliation:
Department of Experimental Surgery, Singapore General Hospital, Singapore
ENG-ANG LING
Affiliation:
Department of Anatomy, National University of Singapore, Singapore
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Abstract

Nitric oxide (NO) is a unique biological messenger molecule. It serves, in part, as a neurotransmitter in the central and peripheral nervous systems. Neurons containing NO have been identified histochemically by the presence of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate diaphorase (NADPH-d) reactivity or immunohistochemically by the antibody for neuronal NO synthase (n-NOS). Previous histochemical or pharmacological studies have raised the possibility that NO may play an important role in the neural pathways of the lower urinary tract. There is also considerable evidence to suggest that n-NOS is plastic and could be upregulated following certain lesions in the lower urinary tract. The present review summarises the distribution of n-NOS containing neurons innervating the urinary bladder and the changes of the enzyme expression in some experimentally induced pathological conditions.

Type
Review
Copyright
© Anatomical Society of Great Britain and Ireland 1999

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