title: Functional evidence for L-type Ca2+ channels controlling ANG II-induced adrenal catecholamine release in vivo.
abstract: The aim of the present study was to investigate the functional involvement of L- and/or N-type Ca2+ channels in adrenal catecholamine secretion in response to exogenous angiotensin II (ANG II) in anesthetized dogs. Plasma catecholamine concentrations in adrenal venous and aortic blood were determined by a high-performance liquid chromatography-electrochemical method. In the first series of experiments, repeated infusions of BAY K 8644 locally into the left adrenal gland at 15-min intervals resulted in significant and reproducible increases in adrenal catecholamine secretion. Nifedipine, similarly administered 5 min before BAY K 8644, diminished BAY K 8644-induced catecholamine secretion in a dose-dependent manner and completely blocked the catecholamine response at the highest dose tested. In the second series of experiments, local infusion of ANG II resulted in a significant increase in adrenal catecholamine secretion. The maximum catecholamine response to ANG II was attenuated by approximately 65% in the presence of nifedipine at the dose that abolished the BAY K 8644-induced catecholamine release. This inhibition by nifedipine remained unchanged in the presence of omega-conotoxin. The present study shows that dihydropyridine-sensitive L-type Ca2+ channels are operative in the adrenal medulla of the dog in vivo. The results indicate that the L-type Ca2+ channels are only partially implicated in the local regulation of ANG II-induced adrenal catecholamine secretion, suggesting the existence of another mechanism. However, omega-conotoxin-sensitive N-type Ca2+ channels are unlikely to be functionally involved in postsynaptic mechanisms mediating adrenal catecholamine secretion in response to exogenous ANG II under in vivo conditions.
authors.affiliation: Groupe de Recherche sur le Système Nerveux Autonome, Faculté de Pharmacie, Université de Montréal, Quebec, Canada.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Martineau
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Briand
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Yamaguchi
mesh_terms: D001498:3-Pyridinecarboxylic acid, 1,4-dihydro-2,6-dimethyl-5-nitro-4-(2-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl)-, Methyl ester / Q000494:pharmacology; D000313:Adrenal Medulla / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*; D000804:Angiotensin II / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000818:Animals; D002120:Calcium Channel Agonists / Q000494:pharmacology; D002121:Calcium Channel Blockers / Q000494:pharmacology; D015220:Calcium Channels / Q000502:physiology*; D004285:Dogs; D004837:Epinephrine / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D009543:Nifedipine / Q000494:pharmacology; D009638:Norepinephrine / Q000378:metabolism*; D010455:Peptides / Q000494:pharmacology; D020866:omega-Conotoxin GVIA
chemical_list: D002120:Calcium Channel Agonists; D002121:Calcium Channel Blockers; D015220:Calcium Channels; D010455:Peptides; D000804:Angiotensin II; D001498:3-Pyridinecarboxylic acid, 1,4-dihydro-2,6-dimethyl-5-nitro-4-(2-(trifluoromethyl)phenyl)-, Methyl ester; D020866:omega-Conotoxin GVIA; D009543:Nifedipine; D009638:Norepinephrine; D004837:Epinephrine