Quantitative assessment of nitric oxide in rat skeletal muscle and plasma after exercise.

Nitric oxide (NO), a short-lived vasoactive substance that has multiple physiological functions, is also involved in skeletal muscle physiology. This work examines the levels of nitrate (the metabolic end-product of NO) in muscle and plasma after different exercise protocols: namely acute, eccentric, cardiac stress and training. Plasma nitrate levels were augmented after strenuous exercise and did not change after training.