MY DOG IS BROKEN Assignment 1 From : Melody Mikelson <[email protected]> Sent : Wednesday, November 29, 2006 12:20 pm To : Tessa Wright < [email protected] > Subject : What is happening with your dog Hey Tess, I just wanted to clarify what exactly is going on in the diagram that I emailed you a few minutes ago. The first messenger that starts the transduction process is in smooth muscle cell is Nitric Oxide. The most likely second messenger is cyclic guanosine monophosphate. The cellular response, as seen at the bottom of the diagram, is muscle relaxation. You might be wondering why the arrows get bigger over time, and that is just because the signal is being amplified. The receptor that starts the signaling is inside the cell as well, which means it is intracellular. From Mel Assignment 2 1. Ginseng would also enhance the effects of nitric oxide because it is responsible for making more nitric oxide to enhance erections. The signal grows in strength, so erections are more likely to occur. 2. The PDE5 would be broken down by the cGMP, but there is a PDE5 inhibitor that prevents it from breaking it down. The purpose of Viagra is to stop the inhibitor so that