Question:easy

Nitric oxide acts by increasing:

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NO stimulates guanylate cyclase to make which messenger?
Updated On: Jun 24, 2026
  • BRCA 1
  • BRCA 2
  • Interleukin
  • cGMP
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The Correct Option is D

Solution and Explanation

Step 1: Recall the NO signaling pathway. Endothelial NO is a gas that crosses easily into nearby smooth muscle cells.

Step 2: Inside the cell, NO stimulates soluble guanylate cyclase to convert GTP into cyclic GMP, raising intracellular cGMP levels.

Step 3: Elevated cGMP behaves as a second messenger like cAMP, switching on protein kinases that relax the muscle and dilate the vessel.

Step 4: The other choices, the BRCA genes and interleukins, belong to DNA repair and immune signaling and have nothing to do with NO. Hence NO acts by increasing cGMP.

\[\boxed{\text{cGMP}}\]
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