title: Nitric oxide as neuromodulator of sympathetic transmission in rat vas deferens.
abstract: 1. Electrical field stimulation (EFS) of muscle strips in vitro elicited a tetrodotoxin (TTX)-sensitive biphasic contractile response consisting of a phasic component followed by a tonic one. 2. The amplitude of both components of the response was impaired by N omega-nitro-L-arginine and potentiated by sodium nitroprusside. Cystamine caused a reduction in amplitude of both phasic and tonic components of the response to EFS. Neither N omega-nitro-L-arginine, sodium nitroprusside, nor cystamine induced changes in the resting muscle tone, or in the contractile response to exogenous agonists ATP and noradrenaline (NA). 3. The nitric oxide scavenger, 2-phenyl-4,4,5,5-tetramethylimidazoline-1-oxyl-3-oxide, induced a reduction in amplitude of both components of the response to EFS. 4. These results reveal a facilitatory prejunctional modulatory role for nitric oxide in sympathetic neurotransmission in rat vas deferens. Endogenous nitric oxide released in the extracellular space is presumed to potentiate neurotransmission by acting at prejunctional level via cGMP.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Biologia celulare e dello Sviluppo, Università degli Studi di Palermo, Italy.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Postorino
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Vetri
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Leggio
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Serio
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Bonvissuto
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003497:Cyclic N-Oxides / Q000494:pharmacology; D003538:Cystamine / Q000494:pharmacology; D004558:Electric Stimulation; D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors / Q000494:pharmacology; D006162:Guanylate Cyclase / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors; D007093:Imidazoles / Q000494:pharmacology; D008297:Male; D009119:Muscle Contraction / Q000187:drug effects; D009569:Nitric Oxide / Q000378:metabolism*; D019001:Nitric Oxide Synthase / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors; D019335:Nitroarginine / Q000494:pharmacology; D009599:Nitroprusside / Q000494:pharmacology; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D013564:Sympathetic Nervous System / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*; D014649:Vas Deferens / Q000187:drug effects / Q000294:innervation / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D003497:Cyclic N-Oxides; D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors; D007093:Imidazoles; D009599:Nitroprusside; C079391:2-phenyl-4,4,5,5-tetramethylimidazoline-1-oxyl-3-oxide; D019335:Nitroarginine; D009569:Nitric Oxide; D019001:Nitric Oxide Synthase; D006162:Guanylate Cyclase; D003538:Cystamine