Extraneuronal accumulation of isoproterenol in atria and ventricle of perfused rat heart.

Extraneuronal accumulation of isoproterenol in atria and ventricle of perfused rat heart was investigated. Rat hearts were perfused with various concentrations of 3H-isoproterenol for 30 min in the absence and the presence of catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) inhibitor (tropolone). When COMT was intact, the accumulation of 3H-isoproterenol in both atria and ventricle after perfusion with low concentration of 3H-isoproterenol (0.01 to 1 mumol/l) was less than that of perfusing concentration; the tissue/medium ratio (T/M) of isoproterenol for artia was lower than that for ventricle. The T/M of isoproterenol after perfusion with 10 and 20 mumol/l of 3H-isoproterenol were 0.94 and 1.76 for atria and 3.25 and 2.95 for ventricle, respectively. When COMT was inhibited by tropolone, the T/M increased 6.3-9.0 folds for atria and 5.1-6.7 folds for ventricle after perfusion with 3H-isoproterenol (0.01 to 1 mumol/l). From these results, it was concluded that both atria and ventricle of the rat heart have an extraneuronal O-methylating system as reported in rat whole heart, and was suggested that there might be different capacities of extraneuronal uptake and COMT between them.