Intravesical prostaglandin: release and effect of bladder instillation on some micturition parameters.

Bladder washout effluent fluid was examined for prostaglandin-like activity following acidic lipid extraction and bioassay using the rat-stomach strips technique. A low basal level of prostaglandin-like material was detected in washouts collected when the bladder was empty in 4 out of 7 dogs. Increased levels were detected following micturition in 5 of these 7 dogs. A significantly high level of prostaglandin-like material was recovered after pelvic nerve stimulation. The prostaglandin-like material was tentatively identified as PGE based on the bioassay with the addition of specific antibody. Intravesically administered PGE2 or PFG2 alpha significantly reduced, in a dose-dependent response, the threshold micturition volume. All of these findings suggested that prostaglandins may play a role in the micturition process.