The many faces of nitric oxide in schizophrenia. A review

Intense research has been conducted in an effort to identify specific biological markers of schizophrenia. The gas nitric oxide (NO) is one of the most important signaling molecules involved in a plethora of cellular events that take place in the cardiovascular, immune and nervous systems of animals. This survey aims to demonstrate that NO and its metabolites play important roles in schizophrenia and have a significant influence on our understanding of the development, progression and treatment of the disease. Special emphasis is given to the impact of NO metabolism on processes known to be disturbed in schizophrenia (i.e., cell migration, formation of synapses, NMDA receptor mediated neurotransmission, membrane pathology and cognitive abilities). However, when comparing data on the NO metabolism in the brain tissue and body fluids of schizophrenics with those obtained from patients with other neurological and psychiatric diseases, it becomes clear that alterations of NO metabolism are not unique to, or indicative of, schizophrenia. Thus, NO and its metabolites are not suitable diagnostic tools to distinguish schizophrenia from psychically healthy control cases or from other brain disorders.