title: The effect of peripheral chemodenervation on the ventilatory response to potassium.
abstract: The present experiments were designed to test the hypothesis that the increase in plasma potassium which occurs during exercise acts as a stimulus to respiration via the peripheral chemoreceptors. The effect of intravenous infusion of KCl on ventilation was measured in anaesthetised cats while they were loaded with CO2 intravenously via a bubble gas exchanger. Ventilation during K+ infusion was compared with that immediately before in 'intact' and peripherally chemodenervated cats. In the 'intact' group there was a highly significant increase in ventilation of approximately 25% (+253 +/- 22 ml/min, P less than 0.001), whereas in the chemodenervated group there was no significant change (+ 17 +/- 11 ml/min) in spite of similar increases in arterial K+ concentration. The results of these experiments indicate that K+ infusions stimulate ventilation and that this effect is abolished by peripheral chemodenervation.
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001158:Arteries; D002245:Carbon Dioxide / Q000097:blood; D002415:Cats; D003714:Denervation; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D008012:Lidocaine; D010525:Peripheral Nerves / Q000502:physiology*; D011188:Potassium / Q000097:blood / Q000494:pharmacology*; D012119:Respiration / Q000187:drug effects*
chemical_list: D002245:Carbon Dioxide; D008012:Lidocaine; D011188:Potassium