• Toxicological Research
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.141-148
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• 2014

Endothelium-derived relaxing factors (EDRFs), including nitric oxide (NO), prostacyclin ($PGI_2$), and endothelium-derived hyperpolarizing factor (EDHF), play pivotal roles in regulating vascular tone. Reduced EDRFs cause impaired endothelium-dependent vasorelaxation, or endothelial dysfunction. Impaired endothelium-dependent vasorelaxation in response to acetylcholine (ACh) is consistently observed in conduit vessels in human patients and experimental animal models of hypertension. Because small resistance arteries are known to produce more than one type of EDRF, the mechanism(s) mediating endothelium-dependent vasorelaxation in small resistance arteries may be different from that observed in conduit vessels under hypertensive conditions, where vasorelaxation is mainly dependent on NO. EDHF has been described as one of the principal mediators of endothelium-dependent vasorelaxation in small resistance arteries in normotensive animals. Furthermore, EDHF appears to become the predominant endothelium-dependent vasorelaxation pathway when the endothelial NO synthase (NOS3)/NO pathway is absent, as in NOS3-knockout mice, whereas some studies have shown that the EDHF pathway is dysfunctional in experimental models of hypertension. This article reviews our current knowledge regarding EDRFs in small arteries under normotensive and hypertensive conditions.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.209-216
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• 1998

The present study was designed: (1) to determine whether or not hypoxia stimulates the release of endothelium-derived relaxing factors (EDRFs) from endothelial cells, and (2) to examine whether or not the hypoxia-induced EDRFs release is further augmented by previous hypoxia-reoxygenation, using bioassay system. In the bioassay experiment, rabbit aorta with endothelium was used as EDRFs donor vessel and rabbit carotid artery without endothelium as a bioassay test ring. The test ring was contracted by prostaglandin $F_{2{\alpha}}$ $(3{\times}10^{-6}\;M/L)$, which was added to the solution perfusing through the aortic segment. Hypoxia was evoked by switching the solution aerated with 95% $O_2/5%\;CO_2$ mixed gas to one aerated with 95% $N_2/5%\;CO_2$ mixed gas. When the contraction induced by prostaglandin $F_{2{\alpha}}$ reached a steady state, the solution was exchanged for hypoxic one. And then, hypoxia and reoxygenation were interchanged at intervals of 2 minutes (intermittent hypoxia). The endothelial cells were also exposed to single 10-minute hypoxia (continuous hypoxia). When the bioassay ring was superfused with the perfusate through intact aorta, hypoxia relaxed the precontracted bioassay test ring markedly. Whereas, when bioassay ring was superfused with the perfusate through denuded aorta or polyethylene tubing, hypoxia relaxed the precontracted ring slightly. The relaxation was not inhibited by indomethacin but by nitro-L-arginine or methylene blue. The hypoxia-induced relaxation was further augmented by previous hypoxia-reoxygenation and the magnitude of the relaxation by intermittent hypoxia was significantly greater than that of the relaxation by continuous hypoxia. The results suggest that hypoxia stimulates EDNO release from endothelial cells and that the hypoxia-induced EDNO release is further augmented by previous hypoxia-reoxygenation.

• The Korean Journal of Pharmacology
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.65-72
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• 1993

Ultraviolet light radiation (UVR) did not affect resting tension of isolated thoracic aortae of rats. In aortic rings contracted with phenylephrine, however, UVR produced contractile and relaxant responses in preparations with and without endothelium, respectively. The contractile response was dependent upon the duration $(10{\sim}320\;sec)$ of irradiation, while the relaxation was not. UVR-induced contractions in endothelium-intact rings were significantly potentiated by increasing the concentrations of phenylephrine from $10^{-7}M$ to $10^{-5}M$, and also by addition of $10^{-6}M$ acetylcholine, $10^{-7}M$ isoproterenol and $3.5{\times}10^{-8}M$ nitroglycerine. However, addition of $10^{-6}M$ phentolamine, or $10^{-7}M$ to $10^{-6}M$ LY83583 inhibited the contraction or reversed the contraction to a relaxation. In endothelium-removed preparations the UVR-induced relaxation was attenuated by increasing concentractions of phenylephrine, and by addition of isoproterenol, nitroglycerin, phentolamine or LY83583. These results suggest that UVR produces contractile and relaxant responses in rat thoracic aortae with and without endothelium, respectively, and that the contractile effect results from the inhibition of endothelium-derived relaxing factor (EDRF) release by UVR the inhibition of and/or is in part re-lated to some endothelium-derived contractile factors (EDCFs).