Could High Nitric Oxide Production Contribute to Increased Oxygen in the Blood?
How can some people live at high altitudes and thrive while others struggle to obtain enough oxygen to function? The answer for Tibetans who live at altitudes around 14,000 feet is increased nitric oxide (NO) levels. High levels of NO circulate in various forms in the blood and produce the physiological mechanisms that cause increased blood flows that maintain oxygen delivery despite hypoxia low levels of oxygen in the ambient air and the bloodstream. Researchers from the Institute’s Department of Pathobiology participated in a report by Case Western Reserve University that Tibetans have 10 times more NO and more than double the forearm blood flows of low-altitude dwellers. NO is critical for oxygen transport and delivery in this chronically hypoxic population, write the researchers. The low barometric pressure of high altitudes generally causes low arterial oxygen content among Tibetans, yet the researchers have found that Tibetans consume oxygen at normal rates. We asked how that cou
