Electrical stimulation of the perivascular nerves of the guinea-pig saphenous artery elicited excitatory junction potentials (e.j.ps) in the smooth muscle cells. These e.j.ps were inhibited by arylazido aminopropionyl adenosine triphosphate (ANAPP3), a specific antagonist for the P2-purinoceptor, suggesting that ATP may be the neurotransmitter.

In the accompanying article, we showed that AP5A displayed heterogenous vasoactive effects in rat resistance arteries. It induced a stable vasoconstriction in the superior epigastric artery (SEA) and a transient vasoconstriction in the mesenteric resistance artery (MrA). In the phenylephrine-precontracted MrA AP5A induced a marked vasorelaxation. In this study the noncompetitive inhibition of t...

1. P1 purinoceptor agonists like adenosine have been shown to stimulate Cl- transport in secretory epithelia. In the present study, we investigated whether P1 agonist-induced Cl- secretion is preserved in cystic fibrosis airway epithelium and which signalling mechanism is involved. The effects of purinoceptor agonists on Cl- secretion were examined in a transformed cystic fibrosis airway phenot...

Pathological conditions in the lower urinary tract are common and have a great impact on the quality of life for the patients suffering from such disorders. In this thesis cyclophosphamide (CYP)-induced cystitis, a wellestablished rat model of inflammatory bladder diseases such as bladder pain syndrome/interstitial cystitis (BPS/IC), has been employed to study the role of purinergic transmissio...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE This study analysed the contribution of the purinergic system to enteric neurotransmission in the longitudinal muscle of mouse distal colon. EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH Motor responses to exogenous ATP and to nerve stimulation in vitro were assessed as changes in isometric tension. KEY RESULTS ATP induced a concentration-dependent contraction, reduced by 4-[[4-formyl-5-hydr...