title: Neuropeptide Y-induced constriction in small resistance vessels of skeletal muscle.
abstract: The in vivo responsiveness of small arterioles and venules in the rat cremaster muscle to topical administration of neuropeptide Y was assessed using closed-circuit television microscopy. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were anesthetized with sodium pentobarbital (50 mg/kg) and the cremaster muscle was exposed to increasing bath concentrations of neuropeptide Y (10(-10)-10(-7) M). Neuropeptide Y produced dose-dependent constrictions in first (90 +/- 8 microns), second (50 +/- 6 microns) and third (21 +/- 4 microns) order arterioles. Arteriolar reactivity to the peptide was inversely related to vessel diameters. Venules were relatively unresponsive to neuropeptide Y. Exposure to the alpha-adrenergic receptor antagonist, phentolamine (10(-6) M), failed to modify the arteriolar constrictor responses to neuropeptide Y, while pretreatment with the sympathetic neuronal blocking agent, guanethidine (10(-5) M), produced a small, but significant, reduction in sensitivity. These data suggest that neuropeptide Y causes constriction of arterioles of skeletal muscle, primarily by acting directly on vascular smooth muscle to induce contraction, and not via release of endogenous norepinephrine.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology and Biophysics, School of Medicine, University of Louisville, KY 40292.
authors.forename: I G
authors.initials: IG
authors.lastname: Joshua
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001160:Arterioles / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D006145:Guanethidine / Q000494:pharmacology; D008297:Male; D009132:Muscles / Q000098:blood supply*; D009478:Neuropeptide Y / Q000502:physiology*; D009638:Norepinephrine / Q000494:pharmacology; D010646:Phentolamine / Q000494:pharmacology; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D014655:Vascular Resistance / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D014661:Vasoconstriction / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D014699:Venules / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D009478:Neuropeptide Y; D009638:Norepinephrine; D010646:Phentolamine; D006145:Guanethidine