Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2021 Feb 1:163:153-162.
doi: 10.1016/j.freeradbiomed.2020.12.008. Epub 2020 Dec 22.

The role of NO in COVID-19 and potential therapeutic strategies

Wanyi Fang  1 , Jingrui Jiang  2 , Lei Su  3 , Tong Shu  3 , Huan Liu  1 , Shenghan Lai  4 , Reza A Ghiladi  5 , Jun Wang  6
Affiliations
Review

The role of NO in COVID-19 and potential therapeutic strategies

Wanyi Fang et al. Free Radic Biol Med. .

Abstract

Nitric oxide (NO) is a free radical playing an important pathophysiological role in cardiovascular and immune systems. Recent studies reported that NO levels were significantly lower in patients with COVID-19, which was suggested to be closely related to vascular dysfunction and immune inflammation among them. In this review, we examine the potential role of NO during SARS-CoV-2 infection from the perspective of the unique physical, chemical and biological properties and potential mechanisms of NO in COVID-19, as well as possible therapeutic strategies using inhaled NO. We also discuss the limits of NO treatment, and the future application of this approach in prevention and therapy of COVID-19.

Keywords: Anti-inflammation; Anti-viral; COVID-19; Nitric oxide; Vasodilation.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Image 1
Graphical abstract
Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Regulation of NO level and bioavailability via four potential pathways in COVID-19 etiology.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
General biochemical features of NO.
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Six pathways of NO to function in the lungs. (I) NO plays the role of a vasodilator, including selective pulmonary vasodilator effects, bronchodilator effects, increased blood flow to the alveoli and anti-thrombotic effects. (II) NO plays the role of an immune regulator, including anti-inflammatory effects and microbiocidal effects (reference 33, reprinted with permission of the American Thoracic Society. Copyright © 2020 American Thoracic Society. Cite: Roger A. Alvarez, Lorenzo Berra, and Mark T. Gladwin. 2020, Home Nitric Oxide Therapy for COVID-19, Am J Respir Crit Care Med, 202, 16–20. The American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine is an official journal of the American Thoracic Society).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Fehr A.R., Perlman S. Coronaviruses: an overview of their replication and pathogenesis. Methods Mol. Biol. 2015;1282:1–23. doi: 10.1007/978-1-4939-2438-7_1. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Dijkman R., van der Hoek L. Human coronaviruses 229E and NL63: close yet still so far. J. Formos. Med. Assoc. 2009;108:270–279. doi: 10.1016/S0929-6646(09)60066-8. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Zimmermann P., Curtis N. Coronavirus infections in children including COVID-19: an overview of the epidemiology, clinical features, diagnosis, treatment and prevention options in children. Pediatr. Infect. Dis. J. 2020;39:355–368. doi: 10.1097/INF.0000000000002660. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Adusumilli N.C., Zhang D., Friedman J.M., Friedman A.J. Harnessing nitric oxide for preventing, limiting and treating the severe pulmonary consequences of COVID-19. Nitric Oxide. 2020;103:4–8. doi: 10.1016/j.niox.2020.07.003. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. 2020.12.01. https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html

Publication types

MeSH terms