title: Characteristics of neural and humoral systems involved in the regulation of blood pressure in snakes.
abstract: Cardiovascular function is affected by many mechanisms, including the autonomic system, the kallikrein-kinin system (KKS), the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) and the endothelin system. The function of these systems seems to be fairly well preserved throughout the vertebrate scale, but evolution required several adaptations. Snakes are particularly interesting for studies related to the cardiovascular function because of their elongated shape, their wide variation in size and length, and because they had to adapt to extremely different habitats and gravitational influences. To keep the normal cardiovascular control the snakes developed anatomical and functional adaptations and interesting structural peculiarities are found in their autonomic, KKS, RAS and endothelin systems. Our laboratory has characterized some biochemical, pharmacological and physiological properties of these systems in South American snakes. This review compares the components and function of these systems in snakes and other vertebrates, and focuses on differences found in snakes, related with receptor or ligand structure and/or function in autonomic system, RAS and KKS, absence of components in KKS and the intriguing identity between a venom and a plasma component in the endothelin system.
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Farmacologia, Instituto Butantan, Av. Vital Brazil, 1500, 05503-900, São Paulo, SP, Brazil. Electronic address: mcbreno@butantan.gov.br.
authors.forename: Maria Cristina
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Breno
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Farmacologia, Instituto Butantan, Av. Vital Brazil, 1500, 05503-900, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Benedito Carlos
authors.initials: BC
authors.lastname: Prezoto
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Farmacologia, Instituto Butantan, Av. Vital Brazil, 1500, 05503-900, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Rosa A M B
authors.initials: RAMB
authors.lastname: Borgheresi
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Farmacologia, Setor Endocrinologia Experimental, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Rua 3 de maio,100, 04044-020, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Maria Fátima M
authors.initials: MFM
authors.lastname: Lazari
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Farmacologia, Instituto Butantan, Av. Vital Brazil, 1500, 05503-900, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Norma
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Yamanouye
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000502:physiology*; D016232:Endothelins / Q000378:metabolism*; D016234:Kallikrein-Kinin System / Q000502:physiology*; D009424:Nervous System Physiological Phenomena; D012084:Renin-Angiotensin System / Q000502:physiology*; D012911:Snakes / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D016232:Endothelins