title: Mechanisms of coronary artery depolarization by uridine triphosphate.
abstract: We sought to define the basic mechanisms by which pyrimidine nucleotides constrict rat coronary resistance arteries. Uridine triphosphate (UTP) caused a dose-dependent constriction in coronary arteries stripped of endothelium. UTP also depolarized and increased cytosolic Ca2+ in coronary smooth muscle cells. Nisoldipine, an antagonist of voltage-operated Ca2+ channels, blocked the rise in cytosolic Ca2+ and reduced UTP-induced vasoconstriction by approximately 75% which suggests a prominent role for depolarization in this constrictor response. The ionic basis of UTP-induced depolarization was subsequently explored in coronary smooth muscle cells using whole-cell patch-clamp electrophysiology. In the absence of K+ and with CsCl in the pipette, UTP (40 microM) activated a sustained inwardly rectifying current (-0.66 +/- 0.10 pA/pF at -60 mV). A 100 mM reduction in bath Na+ shifted the reversal potential of this current (from -2 +/- 1 to -28 +/- 4 mV) and reduced the magnitude (from -2.26 +/- 0.61 to -0.51 +/- 0.11 pA/pF). In addition to activating a depolarizing cation current, UTP inhibited hyperpolarizing outward currents. Specifically, UTP inhibited ATP-sensitive and voltage-dependent K+ currents yet had no effect on inwardly rectifying and Ca2+-activated K+ channels. This study indicates that electromechanical coupling is integral to pyrimidine-induced constriction in coronary resistance arteries.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont 05405, USA.
authors.forename: D G
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Welsh
authors.forename: J E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Brayden
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001158:Arteries / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*; D002118:Calcium / Q000378:metabolism; D002121:Calcium Channel Blockers / Q000494:pharmacology; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D003331:Coronary Vessels / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*; D003600:Cytosol / Q000378:metabolism; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D005260:Female; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D007473:Ion Channels / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D008564:Membrane Potentials / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D009131:Muscle, Smooth, Vascular / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D015737:Nisoldipine / Q000494:pharmacology; D018408:Patch-Clamp Techniques; D026902:Potassium Channel Blockers; D015221:Potassium Channels / Q000378:metabolism; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000378:metabolism; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D018048:Receptors, Purinergic P2 / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D014544:Uridine Triphosphate / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000494:pharmacology; D014661:Vasoconstriction / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D002121:Calcium Channel Blockers; D007473:Ion Channels; D026902:Potassium Channel Blockers; D015221:Potassium Channels; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D018048:Receptors, Purinergic P2; D015737:Nisoldipine; D002118:Calcium; D014544:Uridine Triphosphate