Differences in the response of proximal and distal rabbit colonic muscle after electrical field stimulation

Electrical field stimulation (EFS) was performed on rabbit proximal and distal circular colonic smooth muscle to study the mechanisms of neural control of the colon. Electrical pulses were applied with parallel silver plate electrodes to muscle that had been stretched to Lo. The proximal muscle demonstrated an on-contraction during EFS. In distal muscle, EFS initiated an on-relaxation, followed by an on-contraction and an off-contraction. The time delay for the on-contraction of distal muscle was longer by 2.5 +/- 0.5 s than was the delay in proximal muscle (p less than 0.02). The amplitudes of the on- and off-contraction were dependent on the frequency of the EFS. The on- and off-responses were completely inhibited by 3 x 10(-6) M tetrodotoxin. Atropine inhibited the distal on-contraction at all EFS frequencies and the proximal on-response at EFS frequencies less than 16 Hz. Atropine had a partial inhibitory effect on the distal off-response (approximately 30%). Bombesin and substance P were released during prolonged EFS. Desensitization of the distal colonic muscle to bombesin did not affect the distal off-contraction. However, desensitization of the tissue to substance P and exposure to substance P antagonists inhibited the distal off-contraction. These studies suggest that (a) acetylcholine mediates the on-contraction of the distal circular colonic muscle, and a major part of the on-contraction for the proximal muscle, and (b) substance P is responsible for the off-contraction of the distal muscle.