Inhibition of catecholamine release from isolated bovine adrenal medullary cells by various inhibitors: possible involvement of protease, calmodulin and arachidonic acid.

Acetylcholine and arachidonic acid induced catecholamine secretion from isolated bovine adrenal medullary cells. Protease inhibitors and calmodulin inhibitors inhibited catecholamine secretion induced by acetylcholine but did not inhibit the secretion induced by arachidonic acid. BW 755-C, a lipoxygenase inhibitor, inhibited catecholamine release induced by acetylcholine. These results suggest that a protease and calmodulin are involved in the successive reaction after stimulus-receptor coupling and arachidonic acid or its metabolites might be important in catecholamine secretion from bovine adrenal medullary cells.