NIH Scientists Show Nitrite Improves Blood Flow

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Monday, November 3, 2003

 

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NIH Scientists Show Nitrite Improves Blood Flow

 

Scientists at the National Institutes of Health have determined that

nitrite, a common small ion, or salt, in blood, can improve blood flow by

opening blood vessels. This increases oxygen in the blood and makes it a

potential new treatment for diseases such as high blood pressure, heart

attacks, sickle cell disease, and leg vascular problems.

 

The study also describes a newly discovered function for the hemoglobin

molecule itself, perhaps the most studied protein in human history. The new

study demonstrates that when hemoglobin releases its oxygen in regions of

the body with low oxygen (such as organs) or high metabolism, it can then

convert nitrite to nitric oxide, which is known to dilate blood vessels. The

article will be published in the December issue of Nature Medicine and was

published in advance online November 2.

 

" The importance of this work is that no one considered this molecule to have

any significant function and it is relatively abundant in the blood stream, "

said Dr. Mark Gladwin, senior investigator in Critical Care Medicine,

Department of the NIH Clinical Center and an author of the article. Nitrite

levels have been shown to be low in patients with high blood pressure.

 

Gladwin and coauthor Dr. Richard Cannon, III in the Cardiovascular Branch of

the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, NIH, studied eighteen healthy

volunteers who were enrolled in a physiological study. They were infused

with sodium nitrite to determine whether nitrite affects blood flow. They

showed that blood flow increased by 175 percent.

 

" We saw a huge improvement in blood flow, " said Gladwin. " Nitrite helps get

more blood to regions of the body with low oxygen, such as kidneys, the

heart, the brain and muscles. This has potential as a new therapy that was

previously overlooked, said Gladwin. " It's a powder sitting on the shelf and

everyone has it. " However, he warns that at high concentrations it can be

toxic and clinical trials, now in progress at NIH, are required to establish

its clinical usefulness in various diseases.

 

Nitrite is present not only in blood, but in leafy green vegetables and hot

dogs. A similar reaction of nitrite and myoglobin in red meat makes nitric

oxide bind to myoglobin and explains the red color of meat on grocery store

shelves. Further study will be needed to determine if dietary sources of

nitrite affect blood flow and blood pressure.

 

Scientists from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, Wake Forest

University, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and the National Institute of

Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, NIH, also participated in this

study.

 

The Warren Grant Magnuson Clinical Center is a component of the National

Institutes of Health (NIH). The Clinical Center is the clinical research

hospital for NIH. Through clinical research, physicians and scientists

translate laboratory discoveries into better treatments, therapies and

interventions to improve the nation's health.

 

 

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