Effects of the thromboxane receptor antagonist S18886 in the porcine coronary circulation

Thromboxane A2 (TxA2) is a potent coronary vasoconstrictor that has been implicated in promoting decreases in myocardial perfusion in a variety of (patho)-physiologic conditions. S18886 is a promising orally-active TxA2 receptor antagonist currently approved for investigational clinical use. However, the coronary vascular effects of S18886 are unknown and its specificity and affinity for the thromboxane receptor in the coronary circulation remain unclear. We tested the hypothesis that administration of S18886 dose-dependently attenuates coronary vasoconstriction to the TxA2 mimetic U46619 without influencing coronary responses to prostaglandin F2α, acetylcholine, or smooth muscle depolarization (K+).

Experiments to test this hypothesis were performed in male (n = 5) and female (n = 6) domestic swine. Hearts were excised and the left circumflex coronary artery isolated, cleaned of periadventitial fat, and cut into 3 mm rings. Isometric tension of coronary artery rings was measured in response to log order increments of U46619 (1 nM to 1 µM) with and without S18886 (0.1-100 nM). Similar isometric studies were conducted with prostaglandin F2α (10 nM-10 µM), acetylcholine (0.1-10 µM), and KCl (5-90 mM).

U46619 induced concentration dependent increases in tension development of isolated coronary artery rings (average EC50 of 42 ± 19 nM). Incubation of coronary arteries with S18886 (1 nM) significantly attenuated coronary vasoconstriction to U46619 resulting in a rightward shift of the EC50 to 187 ± 38 nM (P < 0.02). Vehicle had no effect on U46619-induced contractions. Higher concentrations of S18886 dose-dependently reduced U46619-induced contractions. S18886 (1 nM) antagonized coronary vasoconstriction of prostaglandin F2α (10 µM) by 68% ± 5 (P < 0.0001) but had no effect on either acetylcholine or KCl-induced contraction.

Data from this investigation indicate that S18886 is an effective antagonist of U46619-induced vasoconstriction in the porcine coronary circulation. While S18886 does not influence coronary smooth muscle response to either acetylcholine or activation of L-type Ca2+ channels, attenuation of prostaglandin F2α suggests antagonists specificity may extend beyond TxA2 receptor signaling.