Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 4, 2026

Preclinical Model of Hind Limb Ischemia in Diabetic Rabbits
Published on: June 2, 2019
Prostacyclin analogs stimulate receptor-mediated cAMP synthesis and ATP release from rabbit and human erythrocytes
Randy S Sprague1, Elizabeth A Bowles, Madelyn S Hanson
1Department of Pharmacological and Physiological Science, Saint Louis University, School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri 63104, USA. spraguer@slu.edu
Objectives:
The purpose of this study was to establish that the prostacyclin (PGI(2)) receptor (IP receptor) is present on rabbit and human erythrocytes and that its activation stimulates cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) synthesis and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) release.
Methods:
The effect of incubation of erythrocytes with the active PGI(2) analogs, iloprost or UT-15C, on cAMP levels and ATP release was determined in the absence and presence of the IP receptor antagonist, CAY10441. Western analysis was used to determine the presence of the IP receptor on isolated membranes. To establish that effects of PGI(2) analogs were not due to prostaglandin E(2)(PGE(2)) receptor activation, the effect of PGE(2) on cAMP levels and ATP release was determined.
Results:
Rabbit and human erythrocytes possess IP receptors. Iloprost and UT-15C stimulated increases in cAMP and ATP release that were prevented by the IP receptor antagonist, CAY10441. PGE(2) did not stimulate cAMP accumulation or ATP release and did not inhibit iloprost-induced increases in cAMP.
Conclusions:
This study establishes that the IP receptor is present on rabbit and human erythrocytes and that its activation results in increases in cAMP and ATP release. These results suggest a novel mechanism by which PGI(2) and its active analogs, when administered pharmacologically, could produce vasodilation.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Treatment for Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension: Prostacyclin Receptor Agonists
These agonists bind to the IPR receptor situated on the plasma membrane of the pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells. This binding triggers a cascade of reactions known as the GS-AC-cAMP-PKA pathway. This pathway results in the relaxation of smooth muscle...
Antiplatelet Drugs: Prostaglandin Synthesis, P2Y12 and Glycoprotein IIb/IIIa Inhibitors
Prostaglandin synthesis inhibitors, exemplified by the widely known aspirin, wield their power by irreversibly acetylating...
GPCRs Regulate Adenylyl Cylase Activity
Two...
cAMP-dependent Protein Kinase Pathways
Transducer Mechanism: Enzyme-Linked Receptors
Major types that are helpful drug targets include:
Nitric Oxide Signaling Pathway

