17β-Estradiol increases endothelial nitric oxide synthase mRNA copy number in cerebral blood vessels:: quantification by real-time polymerase chain reaction

The enzyme endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) plays a critical role in the maintenance of vascular tone. The mechanism by which estrogen increases eNOS function remains controversial. We demonstrate here using real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and immunoblot analysis that in vivo estrogen treatment leads to a 100% increase in eNOS messenger RNA (mRNA) copy number and increases eNOS protein levels by 47% in mouse cerebral blood vessels. These data suggest that estrogen can modulate eNOS at the transcriptional level in blood vessels in vivo. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.