Possible differences in α-adrenoceptors in rabbit ileum and spleen

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Abstract
In isolated tissues from reserpinized rabbits (5 mg kg−1, i.m. 20 h before experiment) and in the presence of cocaine (3 × 10−5 m), corticosterone (2·8 × 10−5 m), tropolone (3 × 10−5m), propranolol (4 × 10−6m) and disodium EDTA (3 × 10−5m), the potency ratios (relative to (—)-noradrenaline) of (—)adrenaline, (—)-phenylephrine and (±)-methoxamine were (m ± s.e.) 203 ±0·13, 0·045 ± 0·003 and 0·0062 ± 0·0018 respectively in splenic strips and 1·77 ± 0·41, 0·093 ± 0·018 and 0·029 ± 0·004 respectively in isolated ileum. Although the pA2 values for phentolamine and thymoxamine against (—)-noradrenaline in the two tissues were very similar there was a statistically significant difference when using yohimbine as the α-adrenoceptor blocking agent (pA2 = 6·80 ± 0·30 in spleen; 5·60 ± 0·12 in ileum). These differences suggest that the α-adrenoceptor in the two tissues is not identical. The pA2 value of phentolamine in rabbit ileum was not significantly different whether (—)-noradrenaline or (±)-methoxamine was used as agonist (7·91 ± 0·07 and 7·97 ± 0·06 respectively) while that of yohimbine was 5·56 ± 0·10 using (—)-noradrenaline and 6·19 ± 0·12 using (±)-methoxamine. In the light of this latter result and, considering the scatter of the experimentally determined values, there may be two α-adrenoceptors in rabbit ileum and either or both may not be identical in all respects to the α-adrenoceptor found in rabbit spleen.