Angiotensin-(1-7) attenuates vasoconstriction evoked by angiotensin II but not by noradrenaline in man

Angiotensin-(1-7) has been suggested to be a novel vasodilating peptide. We investigated the direct vascular effect of angiotensin-(1-7) in human forearm resistant vessels, particularly with regard to the interaction with angiotensin II, in healthy normotensive men by strain-gauge venous occlusion plethysmography with intra-arterial infusions of peptides. Intra-arterial infusion of angiotensin-(1-7) at 0.1 to 2000 pmol/min did not cause vasodilatation but rather reduced forearm blood flow by approximately 10% at the highest dose. A placebo-controlled study showed that angiotensin-(1-7) at 0.5 to 40 nmol/min caused weak but significant vasoconstriction (P=0.0016 by ANOVA). Angiotensin-(1-7) at 100 pmol/min, but not at 10 pmol/min, significantly shifted the angiotensin II dose-response curve toward the right (mean+/-SD of percent changes in forearm blood flow: -19+/-17%, -33+/-22%, -55+/-12%, -63+/-10%, and -68+/-5% at 5, 10, 25, 50, and 100 pmol/min of angiotensin II, respectively, with saline; 5+/-13%, 0. 9+/-18%, -40+/-16%, -54+/-9%, and -61+/-6% with angiotensin-(1-7), P=0.0021 by ANOVA). Angiotensin-(1-7) did not affect the dose-response curve of noradrenaline [3+/-12%, 5+/-16%, -20+/-22%, -31+/-18%, and -40+/-12% at 25, 50, 100, 300, and 600 pmol/min of noradrenaline, respectively, with saline; -4+/-15%, -2+/-23%, -29+/-22%, -34+/-16%, and -42+/-9% with angiotensin-(1-7)]. Our results suggest that angiotensin-(1-7) antagonizes vasoconstriction by angiotensin II in human resistant vessels and might act as an endogenous angiotensin II antagonist.