A pharmacological in vitro study of the mouse urinary bladder at the time of acute change in bladder reservoir function after irradiation.

Mouse urinary bladder strips were investigated as to whether the acute change in bladder reservoir function seen after irradiation might be due to major changes in basic nerve and smooth muscle functions. The release mechanism of acetylcholine, cholinergic and non-cholinergic nerve activation explored by indomethacin and potassium channel activation were investigated. It was concluded that the normal mouse bladder is partly cholinergically and partly non-cholinergically innervated. The role of acetylcholine is of the same importance as in other rodents. However, it was not possible to distinguish any difference between normal and irradiated mouse bladders in respect to nerve and smooth muscle function.