Apamin and nonadrenergic inhibition of guinea pig trachealis.

Apamin has been shown to antagonize the nonadrenergic, noncholinergic (NANC) inhibitory system in guinea pig taenia coli. We have examined the effects of apamin on the nonadrenergic noncholinergic inhibitory system and its putative transmitters in isolated guinea pig trachea. Electrical field stimulation (ES) of isolated trachea pretreated with atropine and propranolol evoked reproducible relaxations that were blocked by tetrodoxin, but were unaffected by apamin. Vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP), adenosine (AD), and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) produced concentration-dependent inhibition of histamine (H)-induced contractions of isolated trachea but the inhibitory actions of these agents were not significantly affected by apamin. In contrast, apamin virtually abolished ES-evoked relaxations in guinea pig isolated taenia caeci, and reduced the inhibition of H-induced contraction by ATP from 40% to 1%. We conclude that neither the NANC inhibitory system in the guinea pig trachea nor its putative mediators VIP, AD, and ATP are antagonized by apamin, in contrast to taenia caeci.