NITRIC-OXIDE SYNTHASE ACTIVITY IN MALARIA-INFECTED MICE

Nitric oxide (NO) is implicated in a variety of major cellular functio ns including defence from invasion by microbical pathogens, Evidence h as been presented suggesting that it is an important mediator of prote ction in the early non-specific responses to malaria in mice infected with Plasmodium chabaudi (Taylor-Robinson et al. 1993). Other data fro m in vitro studies on the asexual stages of human parasite Plasmodium falciparum indicated that while nitric oxide itself may not be inhibit ory to parasite development, its downstream products do have some anti -plasmodial activity (Rockett et al. 1991) and these could be generate d by macrophages (Gyan et al, 1994), Similarly, the sexual phases of b oth rodent (Motard et al, 1993) and human malaria (Naotunne et al. 199 3) are reportedly susceptible to the toxic effects mediated by nitric oxide generated by blood leucocytes in the course of transmission to t he mosquito vector.