Endotoxic shock is a life-threatening consequence of severe Gram-negative infection
characterized by vascular smooth muscle cell relaxation and severe hypotension. The
production of nitric oxide (NO), through the inducible NO synthase pathway, has been
implicated as a major contributor in this process. We now demonstrate that heme oxygenase
(HO), an enzyme that generates carbon monoxide (CO) in the course of heme metabolism,
may also be involved in the hemodynamic compromise of endotoxic shock. Inducible HO …