Title: Effects of calcium and nifedipine on noradrenaline- and PGF-2 -induced activity of the ampullary-isthmic junction of the human oviduct in vitro
Abstract: From 22 women undergoing hysterectomy at various stages of the menstrual cycle, strip preparations were dissected from the outer, longitudinal and the inner, circular smooth muscle layers of the ampullary-isthmic junction (AIJ). The strips were mounted in organ baths, and isometric tension was recorded. Spontaneous contractions were recorded mainly in circular muscle strips. Contractions were elicited by 127 mM-K+, 10(-6) M-noradrenaline and 10(-6) M-PGF-2 alpha. Potassium induced biphasic responses that were slightly different in the two tissues. In circular muscle strips, noradrenaline and PGF-2 alpha induced phasic contractions superimposed on a rise in tone. In longitudinal muscle specimens, the two compounds produced tonic responses. All types of mechanical activity were inhibited by removal of extracellular calcium. K+-induced responses and phasic contractions produced by noradrenaline and PGF-2 alpha could be abolished by 10(-6) M-nifedipine whereas the tonic contractions in the circular and longitudinal muscle were more resistant to the calcium antagonist. The results suggest that K+-induced responses in circular and longitudinal muscle of the human AIJ, and the phasic contractions in circular muscle, depend on calcium influx via potential-sensitive membrane channels. Receptor-operated calcium channels seem to be involved in the tonic contractions observed mainly in the longitudinal smooth muscle.