Principle of the Procedure

Nitric oxide (NO) is a reactive radical that plays an important role in many key physiological functions such as neurotransmission, immune response and apoptosis. NO is synthesized from L-arginine by NO synthase (NOS). It has been identified as an endothelial derived relaxation factor (EDRF) and antiplatelet substance. It serves as a neurotransmitter derived from a neutrophil and a cytotoxic substance from an activated macrophage. Although NO’s molecular action in the biological system is very versatile, the most important role of NO is the activation of guanylate cyclase. Nitric Oxide (NO) Assay Kit is designed to accurately measure NO production following reduction of Nitrate to Nitrite by using improved Griess method. The Griess assay’s mechanism is summarized as the azo coupling between diazonium species, which are produced from sulfanilamide with NO2- and N-(1-naphthyl) ethylenediamine dihydrochloride, resulting in a colorimetric (540 nm) product proportional to the NO metabolite present.