Hydrogen sulfide activates the carotid body chemoreceptors in cat, rabbit and rat ex vivo preparations.

We and others previously reported experimental evidence suggesting an important role for hydrogen sulfide (H2S) in oxygen sensing in murine carotid body chemoreceptors. More recent data implicated abnormal H2S-mediated chemoreceptor signaling in pathological conditions such as chronic heart failure and hypertension. However, the idea of H2S as a mediator of oxygen-sensing in chemoreceptors has been challenged. In particular, it was shown that exogenous H2S inhibited the release of neurotransmitters (ACh and ATP) from the cat carotid body, raising the possibility that there exists significant species difference in H2S-mediated signaling in chemoreceptors. This study was designed specifically to determine the effect of H2S on chemoreceptors in different species. We conducted multiunit extracellular recordings of the sinus nerve in the ex vivo carotid body preparation taken from the rat, the cat and the rabbit. As observed in the mouse carotid body, H2S donors (NaHS or Na2S) evoked qualitatively similar excitatory responses of the afferent sinus nerves of the species studied here. The excitatory effects of the H2S donors were concentration-dependent and reversible. The sinus nerve responses to H2S donors were prevented by blockade of the transmission between type I cells and the afferent terminals, as was the response to hypoxia. These results demonstrate that exogenous H2S exerts qualitatively similar excitatory effects on chemoreceptor afferents of different species. The role of endogenous H2S-mediated signaling in carotid body function in different species awaits further investigation.