Angiotensin II inhibits and alters kinetics of voltage-gated K(+) channels of rat arterial smooth muscle.

The vasoconstrictor angiotensin II (ANG II) inhibits several types of K(+) channels. We examined the inhibitory mechanism of ANG II on voltage-gated K(+) (K(V)) currents (I(K(V))) recorded from isolated rat arterial smooth muscle using patch-clamp techniques. Application of 100 nM ANG II accelerated the activation of I(K(V)) but also caused inactivation. These effects were abolished by the AT(1) receptor antagonist losartan. The protein kinase A (PKA) inhibitor Rp-cyclic 3',5'-hydrogen phosphothioate adenosine (100 microM) and an analog of diacylglycerol, 1,2-dioctanyoyl-rac-glycerol (2 microM), caused a significant reduction of I(K(V)). Furthermore, the combination of 5 microM PKA inhibitor peptide 5-24 (PKA-IP) and 100 microM protein kinase C (PKC) inhibitor peptide 19-27 (PKC-IP) prevented the inhibition by ANG II, although neither alone was effective. The ANG II effect seen in the presence of PKA-IP remained during addition of the Ca(2+)-dependent PKC inhibitor Gö6976 (1 microM) but was abolished in the presence of 40 microM PKC-epsilon translocation inhibitor peptide. These results demonstrate that ANG II inhibits K(V) channels through both activation of PKC-epsilon and inhibition of PKA.