Pertussis toxin-sensitive airway beta-adrenergic dysfunction by somatostatin

To elucidate the effect of somatostatin and its mechanism of action on airway beta-adrenergic function, we studied canine bronchial smooth muscle under isometric conditions in vitro. Somatostatin (10(-6) M) inhibited the salbutamol-induced relaxation, so that the salbutamol concentration-response curves were displaced to higher concentrations (P < 0.01). This inhibition was dose dependent, the concentration of somatostatin required to produce a half-maximal effect being 10(-8) M. The relaxant responses to forskolin were likewise inhibited by somatostatin, but those to dibutyryl 3',5'--adenosine cyclic monophosphate (DB-cAMP), verapamil and nitroprusside were not. Somatostatin inhibited the salbutamol-induced accumulation of intracellular cAMP. These effects were abolished by the somatostatin antagonist cyclo [7-aminoheptanoyl-Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr (Bz)] or pertussis toxin. These observations suggest that somatostatin down-regulates beta-adrenergic function of airway smooth muscle through activation of an inhibitory guanine nucleotide (GTP)-binding regulatory protein, Gi, coupled to adenylate cyclase.