Effect of morphine on the nerve terminal impulse and transmitter release from sympathetic varicosities innervating the mouse vas deferens.

1 The effect of morphine on both the propagation of the nerve terminal impulse along the sympathetic varicose axons as well as the evoked and spontaneous transmitter release has been evaluated. 2 Morphine (1 microM) did not significantly change the shape or the regularity by which the nerve terminal impulse was recorded while evoked transmitter release was greatly reduced. 3 Morphine induced a uniform decrease in evoked transmitter release irrespective of the release probability of individual varicosities of their position along terminal branches. 4 Procedures which are thought to increase intracellular calcium concentration such as increasing the extracellular calcium concentration, stimulation of the nerve with trains of impulses and increasing the duration of the action potential with 4-aminopyridine reduced the ability of morphine to decrease evoked transmitter release. 5 Morphine had to act directly on the varicosities to induce a decrease in evoked transmitter release. 6 The decrease in evoked quantal release does not involve an affect on the nerve terminal impulse or the vesicle release process and morphine may affect the dependence of the secretory process on calcium.