Extra-vesicular binding of noradrenaline and guanethidine in the adrenergic neurones of the rat heart: a proposed site of action of adrenergic neurone blocking agents. (1/18491)

1 The binding and efflux characteristics of [14C]-guanethidine and [3H]-noradrenaline were studied in heart slices from rats which were pretreated with reserpine and nialamide. 2 Binding of both compounds occurred at extra-vesicular sites within the adrenergic neurone. After a brief period of rapid washout, the efflux of [14C]-guanethidine and [3H]-noradrenaline proceeded at a steady rate. The efflux of both compounds appeared to occur from a single intraneuronal compartment. 3 (+)-Amphetamine accelerated the efflux of [14C]-noradrenaline; this effect was inhibited by desipramine. 4 Unlabelled guanethidine and amantadine also increased the efflux of labelled compounds. Cocaine in high concentrations increased slightly the efflux of [14C]-guanethidine but not that of [3H]-noradrenaline. 5 Heart slices labelled with [3H]-noradrenaline became refractory to successive exposures to releasing agents although an appreciable amount of labelled compound was still present in in these slices. 6 It is suggested that [14C]-guanethidine and [3H]-noradrenaline are bound at a common extravesicular site within the adrenergic neurone. Binding of guanethidine to the extra-vesicular site may be relevant to its pharmacological action, i.e., the blockade of adrenergic transmission.  (+info)

Myocardial uptake of digoxin in chronically digitalized dogs. (2/18491)

1 The time course of myocardial uptake of digoxin, increase in contractility and changes in myocardial potassium concentration was studied for 90 min following an intravenous digoxin dose to long-term digitalized dogs. 2 Nineteen dogs were investigated by the use of a biopsy technique which allowed sampling before and after administration of digoxin. 3 Ten minutes after administration of digoxin the myocardial concentration increased from 60 to 306 nmol/kg tissue, the myocardial concentration of digoxin was significantly lower (250 nmol/kg tissue) after 30 min and then increased again. 4 The transmural myocardial distribution of digoxin was uniform before and 90 min after administration of digoxin in long-term digitalized dogs but at 10 min after administration, both the subepicardial and the subendocardial concentration of digoxin were significantly lower than that of the mesocardial layer. 5 During the first 10 min the dp/dtmax increased to 135% of the control level. The increase remained unchanged during the rest of the study. 6 Myocardial potassium decreased throughout the study. 7 The M-configuration of the myocardial uptake curve and the non-uniformity of myocardial distribution of digoxin observed at 10 min after administrating digoxin to long-term digitalized dogs indicate that the distribution of myocardial blood flow may be changed during chronic digitalization.  (+info)

A comparison of affinity constants for muscarine-sensitive acetylcholine receptors in guinea-pig atrial pacemaker cells at 29 degrees C and in ileum at 29 degrees C and 37 degrees C. (3/18491)

1 The affinity of 17 compounds for muscarine-sensitive acetylcholine receptors in atrial pacemaker cells and ileum of the guinea-pig has been measured at 29 degrees C in Ringer-Locke solution. Measurements were also made at 37 degrees C with 7 of them. 2 Some of the compounds had much higher affinity for the receptors in the ileum than for those in the atria. For the most selective compound, 4-diphenylacetoxy-N-methylpiperidine methiodide, the difference was approximately 20-fold. The receptors in the atria are therefore different the structure from those in the ileum. 3 The effect of temperature on affinity are not the same for all the compounds, tested indicating different enthalpies and entropies of adsorption and accounting for some of the difficulty experienced in predicting the affinity of new compounds.  (+info)

Automatic activity in depolarized guinea pig ventricular myocardium. Characteristics and mechanisms. (4/18491)

Membrane potential was changed uniformly in segments, 0.7-1.0 mm long, of guinea pig papillary muscles excised from the right ventricle by using extracellular polarizing current pulses applied across two electrically insulated cf preparations superfused with Tyrode's solution at maximum diastolic membrane potentials ranging from-35.2+/-7.5 (threshold) to +4.0+/-9.2 mV. The average maximum dV/dt of RAD ranged from 17.1 to 18.0 V/sec within a membrane potential range of -40 to +20 mV. Raising extracellular Ca2+ concentration [Ca2+]0 from 1.8 to 6.8 mM, or application of isoproterenol (10(-6)g/ml) enhanced the rate of RAD, but lowering [Ca2+]0 to 0.4 mM or exposure to MnCl2 (6 mM) abolished RAD. RAD were enhanced by lowering extracellular K+ concentration [K+]0 from 5.4 to 1.5 mM. RAD were suppressed in 40% of fibers by raising [K+]0 to 15.4 mM, and in all fibers by raising [K+]0 to 40.4 mM. This suppression was due to increased [K+]0 and not to K-induced depolarization because it persisted when membrane potential was held by means of a conditioning hyperpolarizing puled gradually after maximum repolarization. These observations suggest that the development of RAD in depolarized myocardium is associated with a time-dependent decrease in outward current (probably K current) and with increase in the background inward current, presumably flowing through the slow cha-nel carrying Ca or Na ions, or both.  (+info)

Phasic right coronary artery blood flow in conscious dogs with normal and elevated right ventricular pressures. (5/18491)

We studied phasic right coronary blood flow in well trained normal dogs and dogs with pulmonic stenosis. We installed electromagnetic flow transducers and pressure tubes under anesthesia to monitor right coronary blood flow, cardiac output, central aortic blood pressure, and right ventribular pressure. In normotensive dogs, systolic flow amplitude equaled early diastolic flow levels. The ratio of systolic to diastolic flow at rest was substantially greater in the right coronary bed (36+/-1.3%) than in the left circumflex bed (13+/-3.6%). Right diastolid flow runoff, including the cove late in diastole, resembled left circumflex runoff. Blood flow to the normotensive right (37+/-1.1 ml/min 100(-1) g) and the left (35+/-1.0 ml/min(-1) g) ventricular myocardium indicated equal perfusion of both cardiac walls. Throttling of systolic flow was related directly to the right ventricular systolic pressure level in the dogs with pulmonic stenosis. Retrograde systolic flow occurred in severe right ventricular hypertension. The late diastolic runoff pattern in dogs with pulmonic stenosis appeared the same as for the normotensive dogs. We obtained systolic to diastolic flow ratios of 1/3 the value of normotensive hearts in high and severe pulmonic hypertension. Electrocardiograms and studies of pathology suggested restricted blood flow to the inner layers of the right myocardium in the dogs with severe and high right ventricular hypertension. Normotensive and hypertensive peak hyperemic flow responses were similar, except for an increased magnitude of diastolic flow, with proportionately less systolic flow in hypertensive states.  (+info)

Ventricular pressure-volume curve indices change with end-diastolic pressure. (6/18491)

Many indices have been proposed to describee the diastolic pressure-volume curve mathematically and permit quantification of the elastic properties of the myocardium itself in hopes that changes in the muscle caused by disease would b.e reflected in the diastolic pressure-volume curve. To date, none of the proposed indices has been shown convincingly to discriminate one group of patients from another. While this situation in part arises from the relatively large amount of noise introduced by the technical difficulties of measuring synchronous pressures and volumes during diastole in man, ther is a more fundamental difficulty. In practice, one can measure only a short segment of the entire pressure-volume curve, and the values of all diastolic pressure-volume curve parameters investigated change significantly when one uses different segments of the same pressure-volume curve to compute them. These results were derived from relatively noise-free pressure-volume curves obtained by filling nine excised dog left ventricles at a known rate and monitoring pressure-volume curve used to compute the parameter. Merely increasing measurement fidelity will not resolve this problem, because none of these parameters accurately characterizes the entire diastolic pressure-volume curbe from a segment like that which one can reasonably expect to obtain from humans.  (+info)

Hierarchy of ventricular pacemakers. (7/18491)

To characterize the pattern of pacemaker dominance in the ventricular specialized conduction system (VSCS), escape ventricular pacemakers were localized and quantified in vivo and in virto, in normal hearts and in hearts 24 hours after myocardial infarction. Excape pacemaker foci were localized in vivo during vagally induced atrial arrest by means of electrograms recorded from the His bundle and proximal bundle branches and standard electrocardiographic limb leads. The VSCS was isolated using a modified Elizari preparation or preparations of each bundle branch. Peacemakers were located by extra- and intracellular recordings. Escape pacemaker foci in vivo were always in the proximal conduction system, usually the left bundle branch. The rate was 43+/-11 (mean+/-SD) beats/min. After beta-adrenergic blockade, the mean rate fell to 31+/-10 beats/min, but there were no shifts in pacemaker location. In the infarcted hearts, pacemakers were located in the peripheral left bundle branch. The mean rate was 146+/-20 beats/min. In isolated normal preparations, the dominant pacemakers usually were in the His bundle, firing at a mean rate of 43+/-10 beats/min. The rates of pacemakers diminished with distal progression. In infarcted hearts, the pacemakers invariably were in the infarct zone. The mean firing rates were not influenced by beta-adrenergic blockade. The results indicate that the dominant pacemakers are normally in the very proximal VSCS, but after myocardial infarction pacemaker dominance is shifted into the infarct. Distribution of pacemaker dominance is independent of sympathetic influence.  (+info)

The homeobox gene Pitx2: mediator of asymmetric left-right signaling in vertebrate heart and gut looping. (8/18491)

Left-right asymmetry in vertebrates is controlled by activities emanating from the left lateral plate. How these signals get transmitted to the forming organs is not known. A candidate mediator in mouse, frog and zebrafish embryos is the homeobox gene Pitx2. It is asymmetrically expressed in the left lateral plate mesoderm, tubular heart and early gut tube. Localized Pitx2 expression continues when these organs undergo asymmetric looping morphogenesis. Ectopic expression of Xnr1 in the right lateral plate induces Pitx2 transcription in Xenopus. Misexpression of Pitx2 affects situs and morphology of organs. These experiments suggest a role for Pitx2 in promoting looping of the linear heart and gut.  (+info)