Biphasic response of plasma endothelin-1 concentration to exhausting submaximal exercise in man

The concentration of endothelin-1 in forearm venous plasma was measured in 10 healthy men at rest and during ergometer bicycling at 65% of maximal aerobic capacity until exhaustion (96 +/- 10 min, mean +/- SE). A control group of 10 comparable subjects rested for 2 h. Mean plasma endothelin-1 concentration at rest was 2.0 +/- 0.2 pg ml-1, n = 20. The concentration decreased significantly by 21% during the first 30 min of exercise, whereupon it increased so that the concentration after 60 min of exercise was no different from resting values. The change in endothelin concentration could not be explained by changes in plasma volume. Unspecific effects of catheterization or time could also not explain the change in endothelin-1, since in the 10 control subjects who did not exercise, plasma endothelin-1 did not change significantly over 120 min. It is concluded that the concentration of endothelin-1 in forearm venous plasma changes in a biphasic manner during prolonged exhaustive bicycle exercise in man. An initial decrease in concentration is followed by an increase restoring the concentration to resting values after 60 min exercise.