RE- AND POST-SYNAPTIC ORIGIN OF LITHIUM-INDUCED ACUTE BLOCKADE ON ADRENERGIC TRANSMISSION IN RABBIT HEART

Abstract
The action of Li on adrenergic transmission in perfused rabbit hearts, with sympathetic trunks as a model, was studied. Pre- and post-synaptic responses to nerve stimulation were obtained simultaneously. The primary blocking action of Li on adrenergic transmission is not due to a decrease in the noradrenaline [norepinephrine] which interacts with receptors but rather to an inhibition of post-synaptic responses of the rabbit heart to the transmitter.
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