[Effects of sodium nitrite, a NO donor, on activity of neurons in visual and sensorimotor regions of cortex during...

Administration of sodium nitrite, NO-generating agent, in a dose of 11 mg/kg to conscious rabbits eliminates the increased rates of movements to pain reinforcement which occurs as combinations of light flashes with electric cutaneous irritation recur in the control. Along with this, there is a reduction in the intensity and duration of short latent "modally specific" components in the neuronal responses of visual (to light flashes) and sensomotor (to pain reinforcement) regions of a new cortex. There were less changes in the late latent activation components of neuronal responses of the sensomotor and visual cortex to pain reinforcement, an inhibitory pause in visual neuronal responses to light flashes, its uninhibitory action of pain reinforcement after sodium nitrite administration. The findings suggest that sodium nitrite exerts a neurotropic effect on its systemic administration and support the views that there are differences in the neuromediatory provision of transmission of "modally specific" and "modally nonspecific" effects to the neurons of the new cortex on radiation.