Equine coronary artery responds to 5-hydroxytryptamine with relaxation in vitro

Isolated equine coronary arteries responded to 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) with relaxations in both endothelium-dependent and endothelium-independent mechanisms. Experiments were designed to characterize the 5-HT receptor subtype mediating these relaxations. Both 5-HT and alpha-methyl-5-HT (alpha-Me-5-HT; 5-HT2 agonist) produced concentration-dependent relaxations in equine coronary arteries precontracted with a thromboxane A2 derivative (ONO11113). The degree of the maximal relaxation induced by alpha-Me-5-HT was about one-half of that induced by 5-HT. In the coronary arteries without endothelium, alpha-Me-5-HT produced no relaxation, but 5-HT caused relaxation, which was inhibited by a 5-HT1 antagonist (methysergide, mianserin and methiothepin), but was inhibited neither by ketanserin (5-HT2 antagonist) nor by MDL72222 (5-HT3 antagonist). In the coronary arteries with endothelium, however, the relaxation induced by alpha-Me-5-HT was inhibited by ketanserin, L-nitro-arginine (NO synthase inhibitor) and methylene blue (soluble guanylate cyclase inhibitor). These results suggest that the relaxation induced by 5-HT in equine coronary arteries depends mainly on the stimulation of both 5-HT1 receptor subtype on smooth muscle cells directly, and 5-HT2 receptor subtype on endothelial cells indirectly by liberating endothelium-derived NO.