title: Central venous pressure and mean circulatory filling pressure in the dogfish Squalus acanthias: adrenergic control and role of the pericardium.
abstract: Subambient central venous pressure (Pven) and modulation of venous return through cardiac suction (vis a fronte) characterizes the venous circulation in sharks. Venous capacitance was estimated in the dogfish Squalus acanthias by measuring the mean circulatory filling pressure (MCFP) during transient occlusion of cardiac outflow. We tested the hypothesis that venous return and cardiac preload can be altered additionally through adrenergic changes of venous capacitance. The experiments involved the surgical opening of the pericardium to place a perivascular occluder around the conus arteriosus. Another control group was identically instrumented, but lacked the occluder, and was subjected to the same pharmacological protocol to evaluate how pericardioectomy affected cardiovascular status. Routine Pven was negative (-0.08+/-0.02 kPa) in control fish but positive (0.09+/-0.01 kPa) in the pericardioectomized group. Injections of 5 microg/kg body mass (Mb) of epinephrine and phenylephrine (100 microg/kg Mb) increased Pven and MCFP, whereas isoproterenol (1 microg/kg Mb) decreased both variables. Thus, constriction and relaxation of the venous vasculature were mediated through the respective stimulation of alpha- and beta-adrenergic receptors. Alpha-adrenergic blockade with prazosin (1 mg/kg Mb) attenuated the responses to phenylephrine and decreased resting Pven in pericardioectomized animals. Our results provide convincing evidence for adrenergic control of the venous vasculature in elasmobranchs, although the pericardium is clearly an important component in the modulation of venous function. Thus active changes in venous capacitance have previously been underestimated as an important means of modulating venous return and cardiac performance in this group.
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Zoology, Göteborg Univ., Box 463, Göteborg S-405 30, Sweden. erik.sandblom@zool.gu.se
authors.forename: Erik
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Sandblom
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Axelsson
authors.forename: Anthony P
authors.initials: AP
authors.lastname: Farrell
mesh_terms: D000322:Adrenergic Agonists / Q000494:pharmacology; D018674:Adrenergic Antagonists / Q000494:pharmacology; D000818:Animals; D001775:Blood Circulation / Q000502:physiology*; D002302:Cardiac Output / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D002496:Central Venous Pressure / Q000502:physiology*; D004837:Epinephrine / Q000494:pharmacology; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D009200:Myocardial Contraction / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D010492:Pericardiectomy; D010496:Pericardium / Q000502:physiology* / Q000601:surgery; D010656:Phenylephrine / Q000494:pharmacology; D011224:Prazosin / Q000494:pharmacology; D011941:Receptors, Adrenergic / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D048251:Squalus acanthias / Q000502:physiology*; D013318:Stroke Volume / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D018924:Vascular Capacitance / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D000322:Adrenergic Agonists; D018674:Adrenergic Antagonists; D011941:Receptors, Adrenergic; D010656:Phenylephrine; D011224:Prazosin; D004837:Epinephrine