The guy who connected nitric oxide to heart disease

Well, well, well. Not only did was he one of three researchers who got the Nobel Prize for independently discovering the role of nitric oxide (NO) in heart disease, now he’s gotten really smart and written a book about it.

And hired a professional copywriter to write the press release headline, too, I’ll wager. Check this out: Nobel Laureate Award Winner Announces #1 Solution to the #1 Killer in America, Heart Disease; Announces St. Martin’s Press

Pretty hard to ignore that one, isn’t it? Which, of course, is what we copywriters and true-voice-finders are paid to do. I surely want to know he says in the book, and as a committed Internet researcher, I’m happy to say I’ve found the kernel of the research in this online article, Nitric Oxide and Vascular Health.

The gist is that healthy endothelial cells (cells that line blood vessels and filter various gases, fluid and various molecules across their cell membranes) produce the NO that signals another substance and your blood vessels end up dilating. Good for lots of things–it’s even the basis on which Viagra was created.

Ah, the wonders of science.