EPR spectroscopic studies of detection of a carbon-centered free radical during acetylcholine-induced and endothelium-dependent relaxation of guinea pig pulmonary artery.

Vascular smooth muscle relaxation by several vasodilators, including acetylcholine (Ach) and ATP, depends on the presence of intact endothelium. Ach is thought to activate muscarinic receptors on endothelium to release an endothelium-derived relaxing factor (EDRF) which brings about relaxation of smooth muscle. In order to assess the role of free radicals in the endothelium-dependent relaxation of blood vessel, we have studied the effect of a spin-trapping agent, phenyl t-butyl nitrone (PBN), on Ach-, ATP-, and sodium nitroprusside-induced relaxation of guinea pig pulmonary artery. Arterial strips were mounted in a 5-ml organ bath containing Krebs solution equilibrated with 95% O2 and 5% CO2 at 37 degrees C. After increasing vascular tone by a synthetic prostaglandin endoperoxide analog (50 ng/ml), the strips relaxed dose-dependently in response to Ach (5 x 10(-8) M), ATP (1.5 x 10(-6) M) or sodium nitroprusside (6 x 10(-9) M). Removal of the endothelium abolished the relaxation by Ach or ATP, but did not affect the relaxation by sodium nitroprusside. PBN inhibited Ach-induced relaxation of pulmonary artery dose-dependently, but had no effect on relaxations by ATP or sodium nitroprusside. PBN did not block radioligand binding to muscarinic cholinergic membrane receptors on both chick embryonic heart and guinea pig pulmonary artery endothelial cells indicating that it does not block the muscarinic receptors. Spin trapping in combination with electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectral analysis revealed a carbon-centered radical with hyperfine splitting constants of aN = 16.0 G and aH beta = 3.85G in the lipid extracts of pulmonary artery (0.2-0.4 g) incubated with PBN (14 mM) and Ach (3 x 10(-6) M) for 20 min. No signal was detected when endothelium was removed. Our data suggest that the endothelium-dependent relaxation of pulmonary artery by Ach is associated with the generation of a free-radical and can be prevented by a spin-trapping agent. ATP, however, relaxes the arterial smooth muscle by a different mechanism.