Endothelial control of vasomotion and nitric oxide production: a potential target for risk factor management

During the past 15 years, new concepts have arisen regarding regulation of vasomotor control. It is now clear that the vascular endothelium modulates vascular tone via the release of a variety of substances. Of these, nitric oxide is predominant in modulating vasodilation. Nitric oxide also has a number of other roles that are clearly antiatherogenic. Importantly, a number of disease processes alter the release of nitric oxide and in fact may serve as risk factors in part via this mechanism. In this review, the mechanisms through which hypercholesterolemia alters vasomotion are discussed, and interventions that may improve endothelial function are considered.