Annals of the New York Academy of SciencesVolume 604, Issue 1 p. 372-388 Presynaptic Peptide Receptors and Hypertensiona THOMAS C. WESTFALL, THOMAS C. WESTFALL Department of Pharmacology St. Louis University School of Medicine 1402 South Grand Boulevard St. Louis, Missouri 63104Search for more papers by this authorSONG-PING HAN, SONG-PING HAN Department of Pharmacology St. Louis University School of Medicine 1402 South Grand Boulevard St. Louis, Missouri 63104Search for more papers by this authorXIAOLI CHEN, XIAOLI CHEN Department of Pharmacology St. Louis University School of Medicine 1402 South Grand Boulevard St. Louis, Missouri 63104Search for more papers by this authorKATHERINE DEL VALLE, KATHERINE DEL VALLE Department of Pharmacology St. Louis University School of Medicine 1402 South Grand Boulevard St. Louis, Missouri 63104Search for more papers by this authorMELISSA CURFMAN, MELISSA CURFMAN Department of Pharmacology St. Louis University School of Medicine 1402 South Grand Boulevard St. Louis, Missouri 63104Search for more papers by this authorANITA CIARLEGLIO, ANITA CIARLEGLIO Department of Pharmacology St. Louis University School of Medicine 1402 South Grand Boulevard St. Louis, Missouri 63104Search for more papers by this authorLINDA NAES, LINDA NAES Department of Pharmacology St. Louis University School of Medicine 1402 South Grand Boulevard St. Louis, Missouri 63104Search for more papers by this author THOMAS C. WESTFALL, THOMAS C. WESTFALL Department of Pharmacology St. Louis University School of Medicine 1402 South Grand Boulevard St. Louis, Missouri 63104Search for more papers by this authorSONG-PING HAN, SONG-PING HAN Department of Pharmacology St. Louis University School of Medicine 1402 South Grand Boulevard St. Louis, Missouri 63104Search for more papers by this authorXIAOLI CHEN, XIAOLI CHEN Department of Pharmacology St. Louis University School of Medicine 1402 South Grand Boulevard St. Louis, Missouri 63104Search for more papers by this authorKATHERINE DEL VALLE, KATHERINE DEL VALLE Department of Pharmacology St. Louis University School of Medicine 1402 South Grand Boulevard St. Louis, Missouri 63104Search for more papers by this authorMELISSA CURFMAN, MELISSA CURFMAN Department of Pharmacology St. Louis University School of Medicine 1402 South Grand Boulevard St. Louis, Missouri 63104Search for more papers by this authorANITA CIARLEGLIO, ANITA CIARLEGLIO Department of Pharmacology St. Louis University School of Medicine 1402 South Grand Boulevard St. Louis, Missouri 63104Search for more papers by this authorLINDA NAES, LINDA NAES Department of Pharmacology St. Louis University School of Medicine 1402 South Grand Boulevard St. Louis, Missouri 63104Search for more papers by this author First published: August 1990 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1749-6632.1990.tb32006.xCitations: 13 a These studies have been supported by U.S. Public Health Service grants HL 26319, HL 35202, and NIDA 02668. AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditWechat Citing Literature Volume604, Issue1Presynaptic Receptors and the Question of Autoregulation of Neurotransmitter ReleaseAugust 1990Pages 372-388 RelatedInformation

Experiments have been conducted to evaluate the effect of neuropeptide Y (NPY) administered at three distinct levels of the nervous system: (1) the posterior hypothalamic nucleus, (2) the spinal cord, and (3) the vascular noradrenergic neuroeffector junction. It was observed that NPY produced varying cardiovascular effects at these three distinct sites of the nervous system. Microinjections into the posterior hypothalamic nucleus resulted in an increase in blood pressure, which was reduced by prior microinjection of a muscarinic or H1‐histamine antagonist but not an H2‐histamine antagonist. In addition to the involvement of histaminergic and cholinergic pathways, the pressor effect of NPY appers to result from an increase in sympathetic outflow. NPY was also seen to decrease the potassium‐induced release of norepinephrine (NE) from slices obtained from the posterior hypothalamic nucleus. In contrast to what was observed in the hypothalamus, the intrathecal injection of NPY at a level of T4 or T10 in anesthetized or T10 in unanesthetized rats resulted in a depressor effect as well as a decrease in heart rate. Both an α2‐ and β‐adrenoceptor antagonist reduced the NPY effect. The depressor effect of intrathecal NPY was attenuated in rats pretreated with reserpine as well as in Spontaneously Hypertensive rats (SHR). These data suggest that the effects of NPY are closely associated with sympathetic preganglionic neurons in the spinal cord. At the vascular noradrenergic neuroeffector junction, NPY decreased the nerve stimulation‐induced release of NE while potentiating the contractile response. Moreover, NPY potentiated the increase in perfusion pressure of the perfused mesenteric arterial bed in response to angiotensin, vasopressin, or phenylephrine. The potentiation of smooth muscle contraction produced by NPY was shared by the homologous peptide, peptide YY (PYY) and to a lesser extent, pancreatic polypeptide (PPY). The prejunctional effect of NPY was less and the postjunctional effect greater in SHR compared with that in normotensive rats. The evidence obtained in these studies supports a cotransmitter role of NPY with NE in central and peripheral noradrenergic neurons. Moreover, NPY may be implicated in the development and maintenance of hypertension in the SHR.

Elucidation of the putative central hemodynamic actions of neuropeptide Y has been the subject of considerable research, some of which has been stimulated by its actions at the vascular neuroeffector junction. At that site, NPY produces three distinct effects: inhibition of the evoked release of norepinephrine from sympathetic nerves, direct contraction of vascular smooth muscle, and finally, potentiation of the contractile effects of a wide variety of vasoactive agents (1–3). Moreover, the presence and abundance of NPY in central cardiovascular regulatory areas, as well as its colocalization with catecholamines in some of these regions, provide a morphological basis for and implicate this peptide in the modulation of catecholamines and hemodynamic regulation (see chapters by Sundler and by Hendry, this vol.).