A novel class of anti-inflammatory and analgesic drugs —— NO-donating NSAIDs

Traditional non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and COX-2 selective inhibitors are among the most widely used drugs. However, their significant side effects in gastrointestinal and cardiovascular systems limited the use of these drugs. Recently, research and development of NO-donating NSAIDs (NO-NSAIDs) have become one of the most important strategies to reduce these side effects. NO-NSAIDs may exert a broad range of positive effects in terms of NO-mediated gastrointestinal and cardiovascular safety as well as comparable or increased anti-inflammatory, analgesic properties relative to NSAIDs. This review briefly deals with chemistry of NO-NSAIDs, more details are focused on biological significance, mechanism of action, and therapeutic potential of this novel class of drugs.