title: Regional sources of free and sulfoconjugated catecholamines in hypertension.
abstract: To elucidate the sources of free catecholamines (CA) and their sulfates in hyperadrenergic essential hypertensives (EH), their arteriovenous differences were determined radioenzymatically and by sulfatase hydrolysis (with correction for cross-contamination) across several organs and regions in 16 hyperadrenergic essential hypertensive patients. Comparison with arterial concentrations showed that: the adrenal venous outflow contains 240 times more free epinephrine (E), 55 times more free norepinephrine (NE), and 7 times more free dopamine (DA) concentrations, but E, NE, and DA sulfates are not different; free E concentrations are lower in the peripheral venous blood; NE sulfate concentrations are higher in the superior vena cava (p less than 0.05 for all differences noted). The data suggest the following conclusions for hyperadrenergic EH patients: with the exception of NE sulfate added into the superior vena cava region, no other organ or region can be associated with a net DA or NE sulfate release. The proportional adrenal vein concentrations of DA:NE:E are approximately 1:10:50, which are very close to those seen in other studies performed under different degrees of stress. Free E is extracted in peripheral tissues. The DA surges in hyperadrenergic EH patients probably result from the pulsatile, predominantly adrenal, release of free DA.
mesh_terms: D001158:Arteries; D004298:Dopamine / Q000097:blood*; D004837:Epinephrine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000097:blood*; D009638:Norepinephrine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000097:blood*; D013429:Sulfatases; D014680:Veins
chemical_list: C036526:epinephrine sulfate; C017574:noradrenaline sulfate; D013429:Sulfatases; D004298:Dopamine; D009638:Norepinephrine; D004837:Epinephrine