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We describe a patient with pheochromocytoma, which secretes dopamine. He was admitted to hospital because of chronic diarrhea. After surgical resection of the tumor, dramatic cessation of the diarrhea and blood pressure elevation were observed. Decreased expression of dopamine beta-hydroxylase in the tumor was considered a possible mechanism of producing a pathophysiological concentration of dopamine. This case shows that excessive excretion of dopamine, a vasodilative hormone, may affect blood pressure.

Recently, we have reported two cases with endothelin (ET)-secreting tumor presenting with hypertension and elevated plasma endothelin-1 (ET-1) levels. The present study examines the histopathology of the ET-secreting tumor in one of these cases. The neoplasm was located in the skin and microscopically characterized as a malignant hemangioendothelioma by remarkable intravascular proliferations of atypical endothelium with the expression of Factor VIII-related antigen in the tumor cells. The tumor enlarged rapidly with rising ET-1 and blood pressure levels. The ET-1 content and its messenger RNA expression in the tumor extract were higher than those from normal parts of skin. ET-1 may play a pathophysiological role in patients with ET-secreting malignant hemangioendothelioma.

We examined the involvement of the oxidative stress in high glucose-induced suppression of human aortic endothelial cell proliferation. Chronic glucose treatment for 72 h concentration-dependently (5.6-22.2 mol/l) inhibited human coronary endothelial cell proliferation. Temocaprilat, an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor, at 10 nmol/l to 1 micromol/l inhibited high glucose (22.2 mmol/l)-mediated suppression of human aortic endothelial cell proliferation. Temocaprilat at 1 micromol/l inhibited high glucose-induced membrane-bound protein kinase C activity in human aortic endothelial cells. The protein kinase C inhibitors calphostin C 100 nmol/l or chelerythrine 1 micromol/l inhibited high glucose-mediated suppression of human aortic endothelial cell proliferation. Chronic high glucose treatment for 72 h increased intracellular oxidative stress, directly measured by flow cytometry using carboxydichlorofluorescein diacetate bis-acetoxymethyl ester, and this increase was significantly suppressed by temocaprilat 10 nmol/l to 1 micromol/l. Bradykinin B2 receptor antagonist icatibant 100 nmol/l significantly reduced the action of temocaprilat; whereas bradykinin B1 receptor antagonist des-Arg9-Leu8-bradykinin 100 nmol/l had no effect. These findings suggest that high glucose inhibits human aortic endothelial cell proliferation and that the angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor temocaprilat inhibits high glucose-mediated suppression of human aortic endothelial cell proliferation, possibly through suppression of protein kinase C, bradykinin B2 receptors and oxidative stress.

To elucidate the roles of rat vascular dopamine D1A and D1B receptors in vascular smooth muscle cell migration, the effect of antisense oligonucleotides to D1A receptors (+1 to +21 of rat D1A receptors) and to D1B receptors (-12 to +6 of rat D1B receptors) on dopamine-mediated suppression of platelet-derived growth factor BB-mediated vascular smooth muscle cell migration, evaluated by the Boyden's chamber method, was studied. Increased vascular smooth muscle cell migration by platelet-derived growth factor BB (5 ng/ml) was suppressed significantly by co-incubation with dopamine (0.025-10 micromol/l) (by 15-59%). This suppression by 10 micromol/l dopamine was reversed by D1A antisense oligonucleotides (46%) and D1B antisense oligonucleotides (51%), but by neither the sense nor the random sense oligodeoxynucleotides to these receptors. The suppression by antisense oligodeoxynucleotides (21-51%) is dose dependent (1-10 micromol/l) and time dependent (0-4 h). Dopamine (10 micromol/l)-induced cyclic AMP formation is also suppressed by D1A antisense oligonucleotides (50%) and D1B antisense oligonucleotides (58%), but by neither the sense nor the random sense oligodeoxynucleotides to these receptors. The platelet-derived growth factor BB (5 ng/ml)-mediated activation of phospholipase D and protein kinase C activities were significantly suppressed by co-incubation with 10 micromol/l dopamine, which was reversed by D1A antisense oligonucleotides (45%) and D1B antisense oligonucleotides (50%) but by neither the sense nor the random sense oligodeoxynucleotides to these receptors. These results suggest that vascular D1A and D1B receptors inhibit migration of vascular smooth muscle cells, possibly through cyclic AMP activation and the suppression of phospholipase D and protein kinase C activities.

Heparin shows a blood pressure-lowering effect in various hypertensive rat models. This study was designed to examine the effect of heparin on vasoconstrictor endothelin-1 (ET-1) production by cultured human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). ET-1 and cyclic GMP levels in the medium were determined by radioimmunoassay. ET-1 mRNA was quantified by densitometric Northern blot analysis. ET-1 was released into the medium in a time-dependent manner, and its release was augmented by thrombin (10 U/ml). Heparin suppressed both basal and thrombin-stimulated ET-1 secretion and its mRNA expression in a dose-dependent manner. Heparin suppressed ET-1 mRNA expression in a time-dependent fashion. Heparin did not suppress both basal and thrombin-stimulated ET-1 production in the presence of NG-monomethyl-L-arginine (L-NMMA) (10(-5) M). The production of cGMP stimulated by thrombin was significantly enhanced by heparin, but not in the presence of L-NMMA (10(-5) M). Heparin may suppress vasoconstrictor ET-1 production mediated by the enhancement of endothelium-derived nitric oxide in HUVECs.

Cyclosporine stimulates vasoconstrictor endothelin-1 (ET-1) synthesis. This study examined the effect of heparin on cyclosporine-induced ET-1 synthesis in Wistar rat aortic endothelial cells in culture. Cyclosporine (0.01-5 μmol/L) stimulated ET-1 mRNA expression in a dose-dependent manner. A nitric oxide synthesis inhibitor, N G -monomethyl-L-arginine (L-NMMA) (10 -5 mol/L), did not affect cyclosporine-induced ET-1 mRNA expression. Heparin (1-20 U/ml) suppressed cyclosporine-induced ET-1 mRNA expression in a dose-dependent manner. The inhibitory effect of heparin was blunted in the presence of either L-NMMA (10 -5 mol/L) or calmodulin inhibitors such as N-(6-aminohexyl)-5-chloro-1-naphthalenesulfonamide (W-7) (5 x 10 -5 mol/L) or calmidazolium (5 x 10 -5 mol/L) in the presence of the phosphodiesterase inhibitor 3-isobutyl 1-methylxanthine (0.1 mmol/L). These results suggest that heparin suppresses cyclosporine-induced ET-1 mRNA expression via both NO- and calmodulin-dependent pathways.

Reduced endothelium-derived nitric oxide (NO) production characterizes several vascular diseases. This study examined the effect of triglyceride on NO production induced by endothelin-3 (ET-3) in cultured human umbilical vein endothelial cells. Triglyceride-rich human plasma obtained after a high-carbohydrate diet with white wine was used in an ex vivo study. The plasma triglyceride fraction was found to consist of large amounts of palmitic and oleic acids detected by gas-liquid chromatography. Therefore, the effect of synthetic tripalmitin and triolein emulsion on NO production was also examined. ET-3 stimulated NO and guanosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate production and increased cytosolic Ca 2+ levels in the endothelial cells (ECs). After incubation of the ECs with the triglyceride-rich plasma for 2 h, these responses to ET-3 were ameliorated in a triglyceride concentration-dependent manner (50-200 mg/dl). A synthesized emulsion of tripalmitin (100 mg/dl) and triolein (100 mg/dl) also blunted the responses to ET-3. Neither endothelial constitutive NO synthase mRNA expression nor its protein level was affected by treatment with triglycerides. These results suggest that triglyceride suppresses ET-3-induced NO synthesis in human ECs by inhibiting cytosolic Ca 2+ elevation.

The migration of coronary artery medial smooth-muscle cells (SMCs) is one of the key events in the process of intimal thickening in coronary atherosclerotic lesions. The objectives of the present study were to determine whether any of the three isoforms of endothelin (ET), ET-1, ET-2, and ET-3, or an intermediate form of ET, big ET-1, induces migration of human coronary artery SMCs, and to investigate the possible interaction of ET peptides and well-known migration-stimulatory factors, platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF)-BB and angiotensin II (Ang II), on SMC migration by the Boyden's chamber method. None of the ET peptides alone induced SMC migration between 10 -9 and 10 -7 mol/L. In contrast, ET-1 and ET-2 significantly induced SMC migration in the presence of low concentrations of PDGF-BB (0.5 ng/mL) or Ang II (10 -9 mol/L). although ET-3 was less active (ET-1 = ET-2 > ET-3). In contrast, big ET-1 was without significant activity on PDGF-BB- or Ang II-induced SMC migration. The potentiation of SMC migration by ET peptides was clearly inhibited by the ET A receptor antagonist BG-123 in a concentration-dependent manner. These results suggest that the ET family of peptides, especially ET-1 and ET-2, can induce human coronary artery SMC migration in combination with PDGF-BB or Ang II, probably via ET A receptors. Taken together with the finding that the concentrations of ET, PDGF-BB and Ang II are locally increased at sites of endothelial injury, this indicates that ET may be an initial stimulus for human coronary artery medial SMC recruitment during coronary atherosclerosis, possibly in combination with PDGF-BB or Ang II.