title: Skeletal muscle microcirculatory response to rat alpha-calcitonin gene-related peptide.
abstract: We used in vivo video microscopy to determine the effect of increasing doses of rat alpha-calcitonin gene-related peptide (rCGRP) on rat cremaster muscle arterioles in the presence or absence of the nitric oxide synthase inhibitor N-omega-nitro-L-arginine (L-NNA). Male Sprague-Dawley rats (118-148 g) were anaesthetized with pentobarbital, and neurovascularly intact cremaster muscles were imaged. Changes in the diameter, erythrocyte velocity and volume flow in second-(A2), third-(A3), and fourth-(A4) order arterioles were determined. To produce uniform arteriolar tone, the cremaster preparation was challenged with norepinephrine (NE: 10(-7) M). L-NNA (10(-4) M), which was shown to inhibit acetylcholine-(ACh: 10(-6) M) induced arteriolar dilations, was added to 16 of the preparations. Preparations were then challenged by adding cumulative log concentrations of rCGRP (10(-12)-10-7) M; n = 16) or an equivalent volume of vehicle (n = 19) to the bath. Following rCGRP challenge, arterioles were maximally dilated with 10(-5) M nitroprusside (NP). rCGRP caused significant dose-dependent increases in erythrocyte velocity and volume flow in A2 arterioles, and in diameter, velocity, and volume flow in A3 and A4 arterioles, by 10(-8) M, when compared with vehicle-treated controls. L-NNA had no significant effect on rCGRP-induced responses. These data indicate that rCGRP causes dose-dependent dilation of skeletal muscle resistance arterioles at a concentration similar to that observed in larger vessels. This dilation does not appear to be dependent on the vascular production of nitric oxide from L-arginine.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Kentucky College of Medicine, Lexington.
authors.forename: W A
authors.initials: WA
authors.lastname: Arden
authors.forename: R R
authors.initials: RR
authors.lastname: Fiscus
authors.forename: L D
authors.initials: LD
authors.lastname: Beihn
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Derbin
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Oremus
authors.forename: D R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Gross
mesh_terms: D000109:Acetylcholine / Q000494:pharmacology; D000594:Amino Acid Oxidoreductases / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors; D000818:Animals; D001120:Arginine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000494:pharmacology; D001160:Arterioles / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000187:drug effects; D001810:Blood Volume / Q000187:drug effects; D015740:Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000187:drug effects; D008297:Male; D008833:Microcirculation / Q000187:drug effects; D018715:Microscopy, Video; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000098:blood supply* / Q000187:drug effects; D009569:Nitric Oxide / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000378:metabolism; D019001:Nitric Oxide Synthase; D019335:Nitroarginine; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012039:Regional Blood Flow / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D019335:Nitroarginine; D009569:Nitric Oxide; D001120:Arginine; D019001:Nitric Oxide Synthase; D000594:Amino Acid Oxidoreductases; D015740:Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide; D000109:Acetylcholine