Jun 5 2020

Nitric oxide: A possible treatment for COVID-19?


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Re-posted from the Canada Free Press By  —— Bio and Archives—June 4, 2020

Nitric oxide: A possible treatment for COVID-19?
Nitric oxide has played many starring biochemical roles.  Now, multiple clinical trials across the US and Canada are testing whether inhaled NO can protect the lungs of people with COVID-19. Researchers think the gas’s power to boost oxygen levels in the lungs may speed recovery for people infected with the virus and prevent them for requiring mechanical ventilation. Hints from lab studies also suggest that the gas may have virus-killing properties. 1

In 2003, during the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) epidemic caused by SARS-COV-1 coronavirus, people in Beijing who received inhaled NO recovered faster than those who didn’t get the gas, with treated patients’ blood becoming oxygenated and their lungs clearing faster from signs of pneumonia. Follow-up lab studies in cells showed that NO interfered with virus’s ability to fuse with host cells and replicate.

Nitric oxide was named ‘Molecule of the Year’

The genomes of SARS and COVID-19 overlap 85-90%. Researchers say the similarity between the two viruses is so close that they anticipated NO would destroy viruses. 1

Currently, 11 trials in total are testing NO against COVID-19, six of which are multicenter randomized controlled trials. One trial is testing whether the gas can protect health care workers who are exposed to COVID-19 patients
from infection. The workers will inhale the gas at the beginning and the end of their shifts.

So far, the laboratory evidence of NO’s ability to kill COVID-19 is preliminary at best but its worth looking at the past history of NO and its benefits. 1

An unlikely wonder drug is the unstable free-radical NO (nitric oxide) gas, which is found in cigarette smoke and smog.  Almost thirty years ago no one would have dreamed how important nitric oxide is within our bodies. Now, it is being implicated in everything from memory to blood pressure.

NO was named ‘Molecule of the Year’ by Science magazine in 1992. Editor Daniel E. Koshland, Jr., wrote, “In the atmosphere it is a noxious chemical, but in the body in small controlled doses it is extraordinarily beneficial.”  2

Observed effects of NO in the human body on physiological systems and diseases

In 1998, the Nobel Prize for Medicine was awarded for discovery concerning NO as a signaling molecule in the cardiovascular system. Tiny puffs of NO mediate an extraordinary range of biological properties in our bodies, ranging from destruction of tumor cells to control of blood pressure. 3

In the body, NO is extremely short-lived. It exists for about six to ten seconds before it is converted by oxygen and water into nitrates and nitrites. 4

Here are some observed effects of NO in the human body on physiological systems and diseases: 5

  • Lungs. NO reduces blood pressure in the lungs without affecting the pressure in the rest of the body.
  • Heart. It has been known for a long time that nitroglycerin, which chemically releases NO can relax blood vessels near the heart and increase blood flow.
  • Cancer. White blood cells may use the NO that they release to fight tumor formation.
  • Brain. NO mediates intercellular communication in the brain.
  • Diagnostic analysis- Some inflammatory diseases can be diagnosed by analyzing NO production by the lungs and intestines.
  • Impotence. Studies of the role of NO in penile erection led to the development of Viagra.
  • Alzheimer’s disease. The role of NO produced by the body in neurodegenerative diseases also is being studied.
  • Others. Some of the most dramatic potential applications of NO are in parasitology and tropical diseases. NO may help treat sickle cell anemia. 6

Nitric oxide supplements boost health and performance

Healthline reports 5 ways nitric oxide supplements boost health and performance: 7

  • Erectile dysfunction
  • Muscle soreness
  • Blood pressure
  • Exercise performance
  • Diabetes

A recent review summarized research showing the beneficial effects of nitrate consumption on blood pressure, arterial stiffness, platelet function, and cerebral blood flow. 8

What foods boost nitric oxide? Vegetables, notably leafy green vegetables and beets, contain nitrate, which can be converted in the body to nitrites and then to nitric oxide. Studies have shown that beet juice can help lower elevated blood pressure, which has been attributed to the ability of its nitrates to boost nitric oxide. 9

So, with all these positive results from NO perhaps it might help in the fight against COVID-19.

References

  1. Alla Katsnelson, “Multiple clinical trials test whether NO gas can treat and prevent COVID-19,” cen.acs.org, May 20, 2020
  2. D. E. Koshland, Jr., “The molecule of the year,” Science 258, 1861, December 18, 1992
  3. C. Djerassi NO, Penguin Books, 1998
  4. S. H. Snyder & D. S. Bredt, “Biological roles of nitric oxide,” Scientific American, 266, 68, May 1992
  5. A. K. Taylor, “Nitric oxide—from pollutant to product,” Chemical Innovation, 30, 41,April 2000
  6. D. Christensen, “Nitric oxide may help treat sickle cell anemia,” Science News, 157, 78, January 29, 2000
  7. “5 ways nitric oxide supplements boost your health and performance, healthline.com, accessed June 3, 2020
  8. Lauren C. Blekkenhorst et al., “Nitrate, the oral microbiome, and cardiovascular health:  a systematic literature review of human and animal studies,” American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 107, 504, April 1, 2018
  9. Jeanine Barone, “Why nitric oxide is so important,” berkeleywellness.com, May 4, 2018

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