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Updated: Aug 14, 2026
Contractility Measurements of Human Uterine Smooth Muscle to Aid Drug Development
Published on: January 26, 2018
Term-dependency of P2 receptor-mediated contractile responses of isolated human pregnant uterus
Airat U Ziganshin1, Alexander P Zaitcev, Albir A Khasanov
1Department of Pharmacology, Pharmacognozy and Botany, Kazan State Medical University, 49 Butlerov Street, Kazan 420012, Russia. airatziganshin@yahoo.co.uk
Objective:
The aim of the study was to test the hypothesis that in the human uterus, the effectiveness of P2 receptor-mediated contractile responses is up-regulated during pregnancy.
Study Design:
Experiments were performed on myometrial samples obtained from women undergoing caesarean section at 28-30 weeks of pregnancy (3 women, Group 1), 32-34 weeks of pregnancy (6 women, Group 2) and 38-41 weeks of pregnancy (16 women, Group 3). Concentration-response relationships for a non-selective P2 receptor agonist, adenosine 5'-triphosphate (ATP), a selective P2X receptor agonist, alpha,beta-methylene-ATP (alpha,beta-meATP), and a frequency-response relationship for non-adrenergic non-cholinergic (NANC) electrical field stimulation (EFS) were obtained using routine pharmacological organ bath technique. Effects of pyridoxalphosphate azophenyl-2',4'-disulphonic acid (PPADS, 10(-5) M), a P2 receptor antagonist, were also evaluated. Parametric Student's t-test, non-parametric Wilcoxon T-test, Mann-Whitney U-test, two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Krushkal-Wallis tests were used for statistical analysis.
Results:
ATP (10(-6) to 3 x 10(-4) M), alpha,beta-meATP (10(-7) to 3 x 10(-5) M) and EFS (2-32 Hz) evoked contractions of isolated pregnant uterus in all three groups. Uterus responses to ATP were not correlated with the term of pregnancy while the amplitude of uterine contractions to alpha,beta-meATP and EFS was higher in full term pregnancy than in earlier pregnancy. PPADS antagonized uterus responses to alpha,beta-meATP and EFS, but not to ATP, in all three groups.
Conclusion:
P2X receptor-mediated contractions of human pregnant uterus to alpha,beta-meATP and EFS, but not to ATP, are increased with the progression of pregnancy.
