We have investigated the role of carbon monoxide (CO) in lucigenin-dependent chemiluminescence of alveolar macrophages from rat lungs. CO (10 nM to 1 microM) decreased chemiluminescence of alveolar macrophages in a concentration-dependent fashion. At a concentration of 1 microM, CO significantly increased intracellular cyclic GMP levels from a control value of 175 +/- 25 fmol/2 x 10(6) cells to 431 +/- 49 fmol/2 x 10(6) cells. Pretreatment of alveolar macrophages with NG-monomethyl-L-arginine (100 microM) failed to inhibit CO (1 microM)-induced decreases in chemiluminescence of alveolar macrophages (3.7 +/- 0.7 cpm x 10(3) in the presence of NG-monomethyl-L-arginine and 3.4 +/- 0.6 cpm x 10(3) in the absence of NG-monomethyl-L-arginine) and CO (1 microM)-induced increases in intracellular cyclic GMP levels (452 +/- 65 fmol/2 x 10(6) cells in the presence of NG-monomethyl-L-arginine and 419 +/- 58 fmol/2 x 10(6) cells in the absence of NG-monomethyl-L-arginine). Decreases in chemiluminescence of alveolar macrophages induced by CO (1 microM) were concentration-dependently inhibited by methylene blue (from 0.1 microM to 10 microM). Dibutyryl cyclic GMP (db cyclic GMP) (1 mM) also reduced chemiluminescence of alveolar macrophages (1.5 +/- 0.3 cpm x 10(3) in the presence of db cyclic GMP and 3.6 +/- 0.6 cpm x 10(3) in the absence of db cyclic GMP). In contrast to CO and db cyclic GMP, zinc protoporphyrin-9 (10nM to microM), an inhibitor of heme oxygenase potentiated chemiluminescence of alveolar macrophages in a concentration-dependent fashion.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)