Acetylsecohemicholinium: Chemical and Pharmacological Evaluation of an Open-Ring Hemicholinium

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Abstract
Acetylsecohemicholinium No. 3 (AcHC-3), the acetate of the open ring (seco form of hemicholinium No. 3, HC-3) hydrolyzes in vitro to the hemiacetal HC-3 at pH values above 9, a temperature-dependent conversion illustrated by UV spectral shifts from 305-257 m.mu., and to a limited extent by certain esterases as measured by manometric analysis. An LD50 of 125 .mu.g/kg for a neutral solution of AcHC-3 was decreased to 78.3 .mu.g/kg (the LD50 of HC-3) upon being made basic. Prolonged treatment of mice with LD10-20 doses of AcHC-3 was associated with decreased fatty acid oxidation in the liver and resulted in infiltration of fat into hepatic cells, a reaction preventable by treatment with small doses of choline (10 mg/kg). AcHC-3 causes neuromuscular and autonomic ganglionic blockade, cholinesterase inhibition, and in vitro inhibition of acetylcholine (ACh) synthesis. These actions, although HC-3-like, appear to be due to AcHC-3 rather than HC-3 since neither cholinesterase inhibition nor hepatic ligation altered the neuromuscular blocking actions of AcHC-3. AcHC-3 consistently produced a transient increase in twitch height of gastrocnemius muscle before blockade and was dose-responsive in depressing blood pressure and in eliciting contractions of the isolated guinea pig ileum. AcHC-3 is both a cholinomimetic (depresses arterial blood pressure, decreases heart rate and increases ileal contractions) and a competitor of acetylcholine. In most preparations tested, AcHC-3 at lower concentrations has as much intrinsic activity as ACh and at somewhat higher concentrations competitively blocks the responses to ACh. These cholinomimetic actions may be due to the presence of 2 ACh moieties on the AcHC-3 molecule which attach to cholinergic receptor sites. Also noted was an action of AcHC-3 that seems to be peculiar to the secohemicholiniums, i.e., the potentiation of catecholamines.