Pharmacologic characterization of cloned alpha 1-adrenoceptor subtypes: selective antagonists suggest the existence of a fourth subtype.

In membranes prepared from Cos-7 or HeLa cells expressing one of three individual cloned alpha 1-adrenoceptor subtypes, competition with 2-[(beta-(4-hydroxy-3-[125I]iodophenyl)ethylaminomethyl]-tetralone ([125I]HEAT) by the selective compounds [+]-niguldipine, 5-methyl-urapidil, and benoxathian reveals high affinity for the cloned alpha 1C-adrenoceptor subtype and low affinity for both the cloned alpha 1A-adrenoceptor and alpha 1B-adrenoceptor. Competition with [125I]HEAT by spiperone revealed high affinity for the cloned alpha 1C-adrenoceptor, intermediate affinity for the cloned alpha 1B-adrenoceptor, and low affinity for the cloned alpha 1A-adrenoceptor. Combining pharmacological properties previously described for alpha 1-adrenoceptor subtypes in rat membranes and here described from cloned receptors, these data suggest the existence of a fourth distinct alpha 1-adrenoceptor subtype.