Mechanism of the excitatory action of motilin on isolated rabbit intestine.

Synthetic motilin caused a dose-dependent contraction on isolated rabbit intestinal segments, including the duodenum, ileum, and rectum. The contraction of duodenum was significantly greater than that in the ileum or rectum. In the duodenum, motilin was approximately 100 times as potent as acetylcholine on molar basis. The motilin-induced contractions were not influenced by atropine, chlorpheniramine, cimetidine, phentolamine, propranolol, cinanserin, 1-sar-8-ala-angiotensin II, or aspirin. Motilin did not affect the contraction induced by transmural electrical stimulation or acetylcholine. The response to motilin was unaffected by acetylcholine. Removal of Ca++ from bathing media or verapamil suppressed the motilin-induced contractions to a significantly greater extent than the contractions induced by acetylcholine. Thus, it may be concluded that motilin produces intestinal contractions by acting directly on smooth muscles, but not by acting on pharmacologically known drug receptors nor by releasing neurotransmitters such as endogenous acetylcholine. Motilin does not appear to modify autonomic nerve functions.