Donors organic nitrates

Bacteria have been isolated using reduced anthraquinone-2,6-disulfonate (HjAQDS) as electron donor and nitrate as electron acceptor (Coates et al. 2002). The organisms belonged to the a-, p-, y-, and 5-subdivision of the Proteobacteria, and were able to couple the oxidation of H AQDS to the reduction of nitrate with acetate as the carbon source. In addition, a number of C2 and C3 substrates could be used including propionate, butyrate, fumarate, lactate, citrate, and pyruvate. 

This hypothesis clearly contradicted a large body of clinical evidence that nitrates were effective. Some years later, using more sensitive and reliable analytical methods, this interpretation was shown to be incorrect, and the clinical utility of long-acting, oral organic nitrate derivatives affirmed. In 1967, one of the pharmacodynamically active metabolites of ISDN, IS-5N, was shown to be formed in vivo, and shortly thereafter it was introduced as a novel long-acting NO donor with improved bioavailability. 

In addition to organic nitrates, many other chemicals can be transformed into NO in vitro or in vivo. Due to the diversity of NO donor structures, the pathway for each class of compounds to generate NO could differ significantly, e.g., enzymatical vs. 

Figure 8.2 Proposed mode of action of the organic nitrates, nitroglycerin and nitroprusside. Note that nitroprusside acts as a direct donor of nitric oxide (NO), whereas the nitrates require the presence of nitrosothiols to produce NO.

Nitric oxide generation from L-arginine and nitric oxide donors and the formation of cGMP. L-NMMA inhibits nitric oxide synthase. Some of the nitric oxide donors such as furoxans and organic nitrates and nitrites require a thiol cofactor such as cysteine or glutathione to form nitric oxide. 

Similar mechanisms operate in the action of nitrate reductase and nitrite reductase. Both of these substances are produced from ammonia by oxidation. Plants and soil bacteria can reduce these compounds to provide ammonia for metabolism. The common agricultural fertilizer ammonium nitrate, NH4NO3, provides reduced nitrogen for plant growth directly, and by providing a substrate for nitrate reduction. NADH or NADPH is the electron donor for nitrate reductase, depending on the organism. 

Whether or not platelets similar to the vessel wall become tolerant to the platelet-inhibitory effects of organic nitrates is again controversial (Weber et al 1996 Booth et al 1996). There have been many attempts to synthesise tolerance-free NO donors. One of more promising groups of drugs are cysteine-containing nitrates. The incorporation of a cellular... 

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