Suppression of the plasma aldosterone to renin activity ratio in anaesthetized cats after pharmacological stimulation of the peripheral arterial chemoreceptors with almitrine bismesylate.

In chloralosed, non-vagotomized, spontaneously breathing cats the peripheral arterial chemoreceptors were stimulated by intravenous infusion of almitrine bismesylate (Vectarion, 0.20 mg/kg). Within 5 h after administration of the drug, a decline of both the mean systemic arterial blood pressure and the effective renal plasma flow, as well as an increase of the plasma renin activity (PRA) and the plasma aldosterone concentration (PAC) was observed. But as the PAC increase was less than that of PRA, a highly significant suppression of the PAC to PRA ratio was noted. The results indicate that not only whole body altitude hypoxia, but also stimulation of the peripheral arterial chemoreceptors in normoxic animals lowers the PAC-to-PRA ratio. It remains to be verified experimentally whether there exists a specific reflex influence of the peripheral arterial chemoreceptors on the renin-aldosterone relationship.