Nitric oxide does not inhibit cerebral cytochrome oxidase in vivo or in the reactive hyperemic phase after brief anoxia in the adult rat.

In this study, near-infrared spectroscopy was applied to examine whether cytochrome oxidase in the rat brain is inhibited by nitric oxide in vivo. During normoxia, intravenous N(G)-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME) administration significantly decreased the cerebral saturation of hemoglobin with oxygen but did not alter the cytochrome oxidase redox state. Anoxia significantly reduced the cytochrome oxidase. The time course of the recovery of the redox state during reoxygenation was not altered by L-NAME. The results suggest that in adult rats, cytochrome oxidase is not inhibited by nitric oxide, either in physiologic conditions or during reoxygenation after a brief anoxic period.