Neurogenic vasodilation of cat cerebral arteries.

Transmural nerve stimulation (TNS) with 0.3-msec pulses between 1 and 25 Hz dilated cat cerebral artery segments in the presence of active muscle tone. Maximum vasodilatation occurred at 8 Hz. The dilator response to exogenous acetylcholine, but not to TNS, was abolished by atropine. Neither physostigmine nor hemicholinium affected the dilator response to TNS, which persisted after administration of guanethidine, phenoxybenzamine, propranolol, reserpine, and chronic sympathectomy. However, it was abolished by tetrodotoxin and cold storage. When examined histochemically, cat and rabbit cerebral arteries exhibited a rich plexiform distribution of acetylcholinesterase which was not affected appreciably by sympathetic denervation. These results suggest that vasodilation is not mediated through modification of sympathetic activity. They also indicate the existence of a nonadrenergic, possibly noncholinergic, vasodilator innervation in cat cerebral arteries. Preliminary studies suggest that the transmitter is not histamine, ATP, prostaglandins, gamma-aminobutyric acid, dopamine, or serotonin. The cat cerebral artery segments contrast with the isolated rabbit cerebral arteries which predominantly constrict in response to TNS and show a small dilator response.