Nitroglycerine, a 100 year old explosive and heart medicine

In atherosclerosis, plaques reduce blood flow in the arteries. This decreases oxygen supply to the heart muscle causing chest pain (angina pectoris) and sometimes even myocardial infarction. Treatment with nitroglycerine provides NO, dilates the vessels, and increases blood flow. Thanks to this year’s Nobel Laureates we now understand how nitroglycerine, an important heart medicine, works. It acts as a NO donor, causes dilation of the blood vessels, increases oxygen supply and protects the heart from damage and cell death.

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MLA style: Nitroglycerine, a 100 year old explosive and heart medicine. NobelPrize.org. Nobel Prize Outreach AB 2024. Sun. 17 Nov 2024. <https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/medicine/1998/7549-nitroglycerine-a-100-year-old-explosive-and-heart-medicine/>

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Nobel Prizes and laureates

Six prizes were awarded for achievements that have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind. The 12 laureates' work and discoveries range from proteins' structures and machine learning to fighting for a world free of nuclear weapons.

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