The interaction of hexamethonium with muscarinic receptor subtypes in vitro.

1. The action of hexamethonium has been studied at a range of muscarinic receptors in vitro by use of both functional and radioligand binding studies. 2. In functional studies, hexamethonium exhibited little or no significant (P less than 0.05) antagonism of contractile responses to carbachol at muscarinic receptors in the guinea-pig ileum, oesophageal muscularis mucosae, urinary bladder and trachea. However, antagonism was observed at muscarinic receptors in the guinea-pig left atria mediating negative inotropic responses and the calculated pKB value was 3.80. Hexamethonium also antagonized contractile responses to carbachol in the canine saphenous vein. The pKB value at these receptors was 3.75. 3. In the presence of 3.2 mM hexamethonium, the pA2 value for methoctramine at atrial muscarinic receptors was reduced by approximately 10 fold (control pA2 value was 7.81 +/- 0.05; pA2 value in hexamethonium was 6.73 +/- 0.04). In contrast at tracheal muscarinic receptors, the pA2 values for methoctramine were unaffected in the presence of 3.2 mM hexamethonium (control pA2 = 5.58 +/- 0.07; pA2 value in hexamethonium was 5.63 +/- 0.12). All values quoted are mean +/- s.e. mean, n = 8. 4. In competition radioligand binding studies, hexamethonium exhibited a higher affinity for cardiac M2 receptors (pKi = 3.68) than for cerebrocortical M1 receptors (pKi = 3.28) or for submaxillary gland M3 receptors (pKi = 2.61). At M2 receptors hexamethonium at concentrations of 0.1-10 mM, increased the half life of the dissociation rate of [3H]-N-methylscopolamine 1.6-4.3 fold. This was observed at M3 receptors only at 10 mM, when the half life was increased 1.7 fold. 5. We conclude that hexamethonium, in addition to its well characterized nicotinic antagonist properties, can act as a weak muscarinic antagonist and differentiates between cardiac M2 receptors and glandular/smooth muscle M3 receptors. However, hexamethonium differentiates less clearly between M1 and M2 receptors. The selectivity between M2 and M3 receptors observed in the present study with hexamethonium is comparable to other M2 selective antagonists such as AF-DX 116 and himbacine. 6. Caution should be exercised with regard to the inclusion of hexamethonium in functionsal studies of M2 muscarinic receptor subtypes at concentrations of 0.1 mm and above.

Activity of suprachiasmatic and hypothalamic neurons during sleep and wakefulness in the rat.

Single unit activity was recorded from the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) and preoptic/anterior hypothalamus (POAH) of unrestrained Wistar rats during sleep and wakefulness. Regularly firing cells, which are abundant in in vitro SCN preparations and have been considered the basis of a central neuronal oscillator, were conspicuously absent in this preparation and in other in vivo studies. Most of the 55 cells recorded in the SCN and POAH were characterized by spontaneous firing rates below 12 Hz and with heterogeneous patterns of changes in frequency with arousal states. In vivo neurophysiological studies of the SCN in which the anesthetic agent urethane is used should consider the effect of different levels of arousal, as indicated by the cortical EEG, in evaluating the relationship between sensory stimulation and single unit activity.

Interaction of p-F-HHSiD (p-Fluoro-hexahydrosila-difenidol) at muscarinic receptors in guinea-pig trachea.

1. para-Fluoro-hexahydrosila-difenidol (p-F-HHSiD) has been proposed as an M3 selective antagonist. However, the M3 selectivity is variable in that it exhibits a high pA2 value for M3 muscarinic receptors in guinea-pig ileum but a low value at muscarinic receptors in guinea-pig trachea. 2. The pA2 value in the trachea was found to be agonist independent since similar pA2 values were found when acetylcholine, carbachol, (+)-cis-dioxolane or OXA-22 were used (7.13, 7.03, 6.85 and 6.97, respectively). The pA2 value was not meaningfully increased when the equilibrium period was increased from 60 to 180 min. The pA2 value was unaffected by blockade of M1 or M2 receptors, using 0.1 microM pirenzepine or methoctramine (7.03 and 7.14, respectively). p-F-HHSiD and atropine appeared to act at the same site, as adjudged by combination concentration-ratio studies. 3. The pA2 values for p-F-HHSiD vary by 10 fold between ileal (8.0) and tracheal M3 receptors (7.0). The precise reason for this is unknown, but appears to be unrelated to conditions of disequilibrium that could be detected. The antagonist should therefore only be employed to distinguish M3 or M1 from M2 receptors. In this respect, although the M1/M3 vs M2 discrimination is relatively large (68 fold), p-F-HHSiD exhibits similar properties to other putative M3 selective antagonists such as 4-diphenylacetoxy-N-methyl piperidine methiodide (4-DAMP) or the parent compound, hexahydrosiladifenidol (HHSiD).