Inhalational Anesthetic Effects on Rat Cerebellar Nitric Oxide and Cyclic Guanosine Monophosphate Production

Abstract

The enhancement of NMDA-induced NO synthase activity by isoflurane and the inhibition of NMDA-stimulated cGMP production by halothane and isoflurane suggests that inhalational anesthetics interfere with the neuronal NO-cGMP pathway. This inhibitory effect of anesthetics on cGMP accumulation is not due to either their interaction with the glycine binding site of the NMDA receptor or to the action of superoxide anions.