Effects of nitric oxide synthase gene knockout on neurotransmitter release in vivo

Nitric oxide serves as a diffusible messenger within the neuronal networks of the brain. Recent studies have suggested that nitric oxide may amplify neurotransmitter release via its ability to diffuse in a retrograde manner from postsynaptic to presynaptic neurons. Two isoforms of nitric oxide synthase may be present in neurons: Type I nitric oxide synthase (neuronal isoform) and Type III nitric oxide synthase (endothelial isoform). In this study, we examined the role of nitric oxide as an amplifier of neurotransmitter release by using K+ and N-methyl-D-aspartate stimulations via microdialysis probes located in cortex, striatum, and hippocampus. We compared responses obtained in wild-type mice versus knockout mice deficient in either neuronal isoform of nitric oxide synthase or endothelial isoform of nitric oxide synthase gene expression. No significant differences in glutamate and GABA release were observed between knockout mice and wild-type mice after K+ stimulations. In contrast, N-methyl-D-aspartate-stimulated glutamate release in cortex was significantly reduced in the neuronal NOS knockout mice, and N-methyl-D-aspartate-stimulated GABA release was significantly reduced in all brain regions of endothelial NOS knockout mice. These data suggest that the two nitric oxide synthase isoforms, most likely due to their specific neuronal localizations, may serve different roles in the modulation of excitatory versus inhibitory neurotransmission in mammalian brain.