Dimethylation of the activator ICI 169,369 results in a high-affinity partial deactivator, ICI 170,809, of the arterial 5-hydroxytryptamine2 receptor system.

We investigated the mode of action of the potent antagonist ICI 170,809 in the 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT)2 receptor system of arterial smooth muscle. We used isolated preparations from rat tail artery and calf coronary artery with the endothelium rubbed off. In tail artery ICI 170,809 (0.3-30 nM) antagonized surmountably and nearly competitively the contractile effects of 5-HT (pKB = 10.0) and partially prevented the depression of 5-HT-induced contractions caused by methysergide. Increasing methysergide concentrations gradually prevented the protective effect of ICI 170,809. The combination of 30 nM ICI 170,809 with 300 nM of its demethylated analog ICI 169,369 (pKB = 8.8) caused surmountable blockade of the effects of 5-HT as expected from competition of the three drugs for the same receptor. In calf coronary artery ICI 170,809 (1-100 nM) reduced the maximum contractile response to 5-HT by 35% and caused competitive antagonism (pKB = 10.4) of the remaining 65% of the responses to 5-HT. ICI 169,369 (100 nM) completely prevented the depression of the maximum response to 5-HT caused by ICI 170,809. Methysergide (3 nM) depressed the maximum response to 5-HT by 65 and 30% in the absence and presence of ICI 170,809. The results are consistent with the existence of two interconvertible states R in equilibrium R' of the 5-HT2 receptor. The equilibrium of R in equilibrium R' is shifted toward R' by methysergide greater than ICI 170,809 much greater than ICI 169,369.