The role of nitric oxide in the failing heart

Nitric oxide (NO) has effects on contractility, energetics and gene expression of failing myocardium. Initial studies on isolated cardiomyocytes showed NO to reduce systolic shortening but intracoronary infusions of NO-donors or of NO synthase (NOS) inhibitors failed to elicit changes in baseline LV contractility indices such as LVdP/dtmax. Intracoronary infusions of NO-donors or of substance P, which releases NO from the coronary endothelium, however demonstrated NO to induce a downward displacement of the left ventricular (LV) diastolic pressure-volume relation, consistent with increased LV diastolic distensibility. In end-stage failing myocardium, the increased oxygen consumption is related to reduced NO production and in isolated cardiomyocytes, NO blunts the norepinephrine-induced expression of the fetal gene programme thereby preserving myocardial calcium homeostasis. In dilated cardiomyopathy, changed endomyocardial NOS gene expression has been reported. Because of lower endomyocardial NOS gene expression in patients with higher functional class and lower LV stroke work, increased endomyocardial NOS gene expression seems to be beneficial rather than detrimental for the failing heart. A beneficial effect of increased NOS gene expression could result from NO's ability to increase LV diastolic distensibility, to augment LV preload reserve, to reduce myocardial oxygen consumption and to prevent downregulation of calcium ATPase. Upregulated endomyocardial NOS gene expression has also been reported in athlete's heart and could therefore play a role in physiological LV remodeling. Reduced endomyocardial NO content because of decreased NO or increased superoxide production could lower LV diastolic distensibility and contribute to diastolic heart failure. In many conditions such as aging, hypertension, diabetes or posttransplantation, the increased incidence of diastolic heart failure is indeed paralleled by reduced endothelium-dependent vasodilation.