Cholinergic and noncholinergic submucosal neurons dilate arterioles in guinea pig colon

Outside diameter of isolated submucosal arterioles in guinea pig colon were monitored to examine vasodilator innervation to these gastrointestinal microvessels. Electrical stimulation of intrinsic submucosal ganglia dilated submucosal arterioles that had been preconstricted with vasopressin or norepinephrine. In approximately 50% of arterioles examined, the muscarinic receptor antagonist 4-diphenylacetoxy-N-methylpiperidine methiodide (4-DAMP, 10 nM) abolished nerve-evoked vasodilations; 4-DAMP (500 nM) only partially inhibited the response in the other 50%. No significant differences in the nerve-evoked vasodilations were observed after extrinsic denervation of sympathetic and sensory fibers and removal of myenteric neurons by surgical myectomy. Immunohistochemistry demonstrated both substance P (SP) and vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) fiber projections to arterioles after sensory denervation and myectomy. Superfusion with muscarine and SP, but not with VIP or calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP), also dilated the arterioles; concentrations of muscarine and SP producing half-maximal responses were 35 and 6 nM, respectively. However, local pressure ejection of both CGRP and VIP dilated the arterioles. The SP receptor antagonist [D-Arg1,D-Phe5,D-Trp7,9,Leu11]SP reduced vasodilations in response to ganglionic stimulation as well as to pressure ejection of both SP and VIP. This study demonstrates that submucosal arterioles in the guinea pig distal colon receive a cholinergic as well as a noncholinergic vasodilator input from neurons in the submucosal plexus. SP and VIP are both likely candidates as the noncholinergic vasodilator transmitter to colonic gastrointestinal microvessels.