Involvement of nitric oxide in extrinsic nervous control of ileal contractile activity

The experiments were carried out on guinea pig mesenteric nerve-ileal preparations (ileal segments with mesenteric nerves originating from the superior mesenteric ganglion) isolated at various distances from the ileocecal junction (ICJ). Contractile activity was recorded in the presence of hexamethonium (50 microM). On the background of electrical field stimulation (EFS; 0.1 Hz, 0.5 ms, supramaximal current intensity)-induced twitch contractions, the mesenteric nerve stimulation (MNS; frequency of 2-30 Hz, 0.5 ms, supramaximal current intensity, 20-s trains) exerted two types of effects, depending on the distance from ICJ at which the preparations were isolated and on the pulse frequency. In preparations isolated from the ileum at a distance of 20 cm from ICJ, MNS at all the frequencies studied inhibited the EFS-induced twitch contractions, reaching the maximum at 30 Hz. In preparations isolated from the terminal ileum at a distance of 10 cm from ICJ, MNS at 20 Hz and 30 Hz decreased the twitch contraction amplitude, whereas MNS at 2-10 Hz produced an increase in the tone on which twitch contractions with reduced amplitude were superimposed. The finding that guanethidine (5 microM) eliminated the MNS twitch inhibition provides evidence for the adrenergic origin of the latter. The nitric oxide synthase inhibitor Nomega-nitro-L-arginine (100 microM) was efficient in reducing the MNS twitch inhibition but only at low-frequency (5 Hz) MNS (p < 0.05). Our results suggest the participation of nitric oxide in the nervous control exerted by the superior mesenteric ganglion over the ileal contractile activity.