Effects of vasopressin and prostaglandin E<sub>1</sub> on the adenyl cyclase—cyclic 3′,5′-adenosine monophosphate system of the renal medulla of the rat

Nama P. Beck; Toshio Kaneko; Uriel Zor; James B. Field; Bernard B. Davis

doi:10.1172/JCI106746

¹Department of Medicine, The Oakland Veterans Administration Hospital, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213

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¹Department of Medicine, The Oakland Veterans Administration Hospital, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213

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¹Department of Medicine, The Oakland Veterans Administration Hospital, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213

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¹Department of Medicine, The Oakland Veterans Administration Hospital, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213

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¹Department of Medicine, The Oakland Veterans Administration Hospital, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213

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Published in Volume 50, Issue 12 on December 1, 1971
J Clin Invest. 1971;50(12):2461–2465. https://doi.org/10.1172/JCI106746.
© 1971 The American Society for Clinical Investigation

Published December 1, 1971 - Version history

Vasopressin increased adenyl cyclase activity in homogenates of both inner and outer renal medulla of the rat. It also increased the concentration of cyclic 3′,5′-adenosine monophosphate (AMP) in slices of both inner and outer medulla but not in renal cortex. In the inner medulla, a concentration of prostaglandin E₁ (PGE₁), which was ineffective by itself significantly reduced the stimulation of adenyl cyclase activity and cyclic AMP concentration induced by vasopressin. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that PGE₁ can compete with vasopressin for adenyl cyclase-binding sites. However, the findings in the outer medulla suggest the situation is more complex. Although 10^-8 M PGE₁ had no effect by itself and inhibited the vasopressin-induced elevation of cyclic AMP, larger amounts of PGE₁ increased both adenyl cyclase activity and cyclic AMP levels. The maximum effect on the latter parameter was at least 6 times as great as that of maximum amounts of vasopressin.