Relaxation of retinal pericyte contractile tone through the nitric oxide-cyclic guanosine monophosphate pathway.

Abstract

Sodium nitroprusside, which releases nitric oxide, strongly relaxes pericytes through an increase of cGMP. Therefore, the presence of the endothelium-derived relaxing factor nitric oxide in the microcirculation can modulate the tone of pericytes, and it thus has the potential to influence blood flow in capillaries.