Basic & clinical pharmacology & toxicology
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Basic Clin. Pharmacol. Toxicol. · Jul 2015
Specific role of α2A - and α2B -, but not α2C -, adrenoceptor subtypes in the inhibition of the vasopressor sympathetic out-flow in diabetic pithed rats.
Several lines of evidence have shown an association of diabetes with a catecholamines' aberrant homeostasis involving a drastic change in the expression of adrenoceptors. This homeostatic alteration includes, among other things, atypical actions of α2 -adrenoceptor agonists within central and peripheral α2 -adrenoceptors (e.g. profound antinociceptive effects in diabetic subjects). Hence, this study investigated the pharmacological profile of the α2 -adrenoceptor subtypes that inhibit the vasopressor sympathetic out-flow in streptozotocin-pre-treated (diabetic) pithed rats. ⋯ Interestingly, the ED50 for B-HT 933 in diabetic rats (25 μg/kg min) was almost 1-log unit greater than that in normoglycaemic rats (3 μg/kg.min). Moreover, the sympatho-inhibition induced by 10 μg/kg min B-HT 933 in diabetic rats was (i) abolished by 300 μg/kg rauwolscine or 100 and 300 μg/kg BRL 44408; (ii) partially blocked by 1000 μg/kg imiloxan; and (iii) unchanged by 1000 μg/kg JP-1302. Our findings, taken together, suggest that B-HT 933 has a less potent inhibitory effect on the sympathetic vasopressor responses in diabetic (compared to normoglycaemic) rats and that can probably be ascribed to a down-regulation of α2C -adrenoceptors.