Skip to main content
PMC home page
The Journal of Physiology logoLink to The Journal of Physiology
. 1969 Feb;200(2):311–320. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.1969.sp008695

Action of cocaine and chronic sympathetic denervation on vagal escape

H A Campos, P R Urquilla
PMCID: PMC1350469  PMID: 5249864

Abstract

1. The effect of cocaine has been studied on vagal escape and on the tachycardia due to vagal stimulation in the atropinized dog. All the dogs were submitted to acute cervical section of the spinal cord and acute or chronic sympathetic denervation.

2. Cocaine, 5 mg/kg or 40 μg/kg/min, I.V., induces a significant enhancement of the ventricular escape. The effects of a continuous infusion of cocaine are more reproducible than those of a single injection of the drug.

3. Cocaine, 40 μg/kg/min, I.V., potentiates the tachycardia due to vagal stimulation in the atropinized dog.

4. Chronic thoracic sympathectomy markedly retards the recovery of the ventricular rate from the inhibitory action of the vagus. Under this condition, the infusion of cocaine does not significantly enhance the ventricular escape.

5. These findings suggest that an adrenergic mechanism located at the sympathetic nerves supplying the heart is substantially involved in the phenomenon of vagal escape.

Full text

PDF

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. BURN J. H., LEACH E. H., RAND M. J., THOMPSON J. W. Peripheral effects of nicotine and acetylcholine resembling those of sympathetic stimulation. J Physiol. 1959 Oct;148:332–352. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.1959.sp006291. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. CAMPOS H. A., FRIEDMAN A. H. THE INFLUENCE OF ACUTE SYMPATHETIC DENERVATION, RESERPINE AND CHOLINE XYLYL ETHER ON VAGAL ESCAPE. J Physiol. 1963 Nov;169:249–262. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.1963.sp007254. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. COOPER T., GILBERT J. W., Jr, BLOODWELL R. D., CROUT J. R. Chronic extrinsic cardiac denervation by regional neural ablation. Description of the operation, verification of the denervation, and its effects on myocardial catecholamines. Circ Res. 1961 Mar;9:275–281. doi: 10.1161/01.res.9.2.275. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Cabrera R., Cohen A., Middleton S., Utano L., Viveros H. The immediate source of noradrenaline released in the heart by acetyl choline. Br J Pharmacol Chemother. 1966 May;27(1):46–50. doi: 10.1111/j.1476-5381.1966.tb01640.x. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. DENGLER H. J., SPIEGEL H. E., TITUS E. O. Effects of drugs on uptake of isotopic norepinephrine by cat tissues. Nature. 1961 Aug 19;191:816–817. doi: 10.1038/191816a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. FISCHER J. E., KOPIN I. J., AXELROD J. EVIDENCE FOR EXTRANEURONAL BINDING OF NOREPINEPHRINE. J Pharmacol Exp Ther. 1965 Feb;147:181–185. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. FURCHGOTT R. F., KIRPEKAR S. M., RIEKER M., SCHWAB A. ACTIONS AND INTERACTIONS OF NOREPINEPHRINE, TYRAMINE AND COCAINE ON AORTIC STRIPS OF RABBIT AND LEFT ATRIA OF GUINEA PIG AND CAT. J Pharmacol Exp Ther. 1963 Oct;142:39–58. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. GINZEL K. H., KOTTEGODA S. R. Nicotine-like actions in auricles and blood vessels after denervation. Br J Pharmacol Chemother. 1953 Sep;8(3):348–351. doi: 10.1111/j.1476-5381.1953.tb00805.x. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. GOODALL M., KIRSHNER N. Effect of cervico-thoracic ganglionectomy on the adrenaline and noradrenaline content in the mammalian heart. J Clin Invest. 1956 Jun;35(6):649–656. doi: 10.1172/JCI103321. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. LEADERS F. E. LOCAL CHOLINERGIC-ADRENERGIC INTERACTION: MECHANISM FOR THE BIPHASIC CHRONOTROPIC RESPONSE TO NERVE STIMULATION. J Pharmacol Exp Ther. 1963 Oct;142:31–38. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Löffelholz K. Untersuchungen über die Noradrenalin-Freisetzung durch Acetylcholin am perfundierten Kaninchenherzen. Naunyn Schmiedebergs Arch Exp Pathol Pharmakol. 1967;258(2):108–122. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. MUSCHOLL E. Effect of cocaine and related drugs on the uptake of noradrenaline by heart and spleen. Br J Pharmacol Chemother. 1961 Jun;16:352–359. doi: 10.1111/j.1476-5381.1961.tb01095.x. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Moore J. I. Effect of cocaine on vagal escape in the open-chest dog. Proc Soc Exp Biol Med. 1967 Jan;124(1):163–167. doi: 10.3181/00379727-124-31691. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. POTTER L. T., COOPER T., WILLMAN V. L., WOLFE D. E. SYNTHESIS, BINDING, RELEASE, AND METABOLISM OF NOREPINEPHRINE IN NORMAL AND TRANSPLANTED DOG HEARTS. Circ Res. 1965 May;16:468–481. doi: 10.1161/01.res.16.5.468. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. RICHARDSON J. A., WOODS E. F. Release of norepinephrine from the isolated heart. Proc Soc Exp Biol Med. 1959 Jan;100(1):149–151. doi: 10.3181/00379727-100-24555. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. ROBERTS J., STADTER R. P. Effect of reserpine on ventricular escape. Science. 1960 Dec 16;132(3442):1836–1837. doi: 10.1126/science.132.3442.1836. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. WHITBY L. G., HERTTING G., AXELROD J. Effect of cocaine on the disposition of noradrenaline labelled with tritium. Nature. 1960 Aug 13;187:604–605. doi: 10.1038/187604a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from The Journal of Physiology are provided here courtesy of The Physiological Society

RESOURCES