• The Korean Journal of Pharmacology
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.101-111
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• 1990

The effect of physostigmine (PS), which has been shown to act on the muscarinic receptors in the brains of the rat, dog and cat, on the arterial blood pressure (BP) was investigated in urethane-anesthetized rabbits. Intravenous (iv) PS, $25{\sim}300\;{\mu}g/kg$, caused little change in BP. However, after treatment of rabbits with either of chlorisondamine (CS), hexamethonium, intracerebroventricular (icv) clonidine, icv xylazine and icy reserpine iv PS produced a pressor response. Spinalization of the rabbit also caused iv PS to increase BP. The pressor effect of iv PS in CS-treated rabbits was markedly reduced after prazosin or pirenzepine. Iv PS inhibited the pressor response to McN-A-343 in CS-treated and in spinal rabbits; alternately during the infusion of McN-A-343 iv PS failed to produce the pressor response. The pressor response to DMPP was not affected by iv PS. Icv PS, $12{\sim}200\;{\mu}g/kg$, produced a pressor response which was accentuated after CS-treatment. This pressor effect was inhibited, though not complete, by prazosin or by pirenzepine. A simultaneous treatment of rabbits with both $[Sar^{1},\;Ala^{8}]-angiotensin$ II, an angiotensin II antagonist, and prazosin or pirenzepine almost completely abolished the pressor effect of icv PS, whereas the angiotensin II antagonist did not enhance the inhibitory effect of pirenzepine and prazosin on the pressor response to iv PS . Icv pirenzepine blocked the pressor response to icv PS without affecting that to iv PS. The present results show that the pressor response to iv PS in CS-treated and in spinal rabbits arises from stimulation of the muscarinic receptors in the sympathetic ganglia, whereas the pressor response by icv PS via activation of the muscarinic receptors in the brain which causes an enhancement in the outflow of sympathetic discharge and angiotensin. The results also suggest that iv PS is unable to produce a pressor response in the rabbit unless the sensitivity of the gangionic muscarinic receptors is altered by ganglionic nicotinic blockade, by the decrease of central sympathetic outflow on the sympathetic ganglia or by spinalization.