[The role of endothelin in adrenal medulla: identification of endothelin and its receptor in two cases of pheochromocytoma]

To clarify the role of a novel vasoactive peptide endothelin in endocrine hypertension, we examined endothelin (ET)-like immunoreactivity and the ET binding sites in the tissues of two pheochromocytoma. Case 1 was a 25-year-old woman who manifested multiple endocrine neoplasia (MEN) II b with left adrenal pheochromocytoma, and case 2 was a 48-year-old woman with familial bilateral pheochromocytoma. In both cases, fairly high amount of ET-like immunoreactivity was detected in the resected tumors. By competitive binding analysis, high affinity binding sites for 125I-ET-1 were also detected in the same resected tissues. Concomitant existence of ET and its receptor suggests that ET may play an important role in these tumors in modulating the secretion of catecholamines from the tumors by an autocrine/paracrine fashion.