Alcohol intoxication and withdrawal: the role of nitric oxide.

Nitric oxide is an important messenger in the central nervous system and several types of evidence suggest that it mediates various alcohol effects. Treatment with a nitric oxide synthase inhibitor enhances the acute central depressant or anesthetic effect of alcohol and decreases some stimulatory effects of alcohol withdrawal after chronic alcohol treatment. Conversely, treatment with a nitric oxide donor inhibits the anesthetic effect of alcohol, blocks the effect of the nitric oxide synthase inhibitor on alcohol anesthesia, and enhances the severity of some alcohol withdrawal signs. These results indicate that changes in nitric oxide synthesis mediate some aspects of alcohol intoxication and withdrawal and that nitric oxide systems represent an important therapeutic target for the development of agents to treat alcoholism and alcohol intoxication.