Noradrenaline can restore decreased neurogenic vasoreactivity.

Experiments on isolated segments of the tail artery from young (aged 4-6 weeks) rats addressed the effects of noradrenaline (0.01-1.0 microM) on the reactions of these segments to stimulation with an electric field in isometric conditions. These studies showed that noradrenaline increases this reaction after spontaneous or acidosis (pH 6.6)-induced decreases and that the extent of this increase was proportional to the magnitude of the previous reduction in the reaction. The increase in the decrease in the reaction to electrical stimulation was accompanied by widening of the range of potentiating noradrenaline concentrations and an increase in the noradrenaline concentration at which potentiation was maximal. The nitric oxide synthesis blocker NG-nitro-L-arginine did not eliminate the potentiating effect of noradrenaline. These data led to the conclusion that noradrenaline produces a concentration-dependent recovery of decreased neurogenic reactivity of blood vessels and that this effect is not associated with changes in nitric oxide synthesis.