Abstract
Objective: The contractile response to digitalis and β adrenoceptor agonists is lower in the senescent than in the adult myocardium, while the development of ventricular arrhythmias is increased. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of aging on cardiac response to digitalis and an adrenergic agonist used clinically. Methods: The electrical and mechanical responses were tested in isolated and perfused hearts from 3-24 month old rats receiving 15 min infusion of digitalis drug (ouabain, 6 X 10-5 M) alone, and after 5 min of β adrenoceptor agonist drug (epinine, 1.5 × l0-7 M). Results: Ouabain action was associated with a rise in left ventricular end diastolic pressure (p <0.01) which increased progressively with aging, and with an elevation of left ventricular developed pressure (p
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 358-364 |
| Number of pages | 7 |
| Journal | Cardiovascular Research |
| Volume | 28 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| Publication status | Published - Mar 1994 |
Keywords
- adrenergic receptor
- aging heart
- catecholamines
- digitals toxicity
- dopaminergic receptor
- epinine
- Na/K-ATPase pump
- ouabain
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine
- Statistics, Probability and Uncertainty
- Applied Mathematics
- Physiology (medical)
- Physiology