Evaluation of the effect of endothelin-1 and characterization of the selective endothelin A receptor antagonist PD155080 in the prostate

Purpose: To evaluate the contractile effect of endothelin-1 (ET-1) on prostatic urethral pressure and to characterize the effect of the selective ETA receptor antagonist PD155080 on ET-1 mediated prostatic urethral pressure. Materials and Methods: The effect of intravenous ET-1 administration on canine urethral pressure was determined in the presence and absence of PD 155080. The affinity of PD155080 for endothelin mediated contraction was determined using antagonist dissociation studies. Saturation and competition binding studies were performed using [I-125] ET-1 in both human and canine prostate. Results: ET-1 bolus injection elicited shallow and prolonged increases the prostatic urethral pressure. Pretreatment with PD155080 totally abolished the urethral contractile response to ET-1. Specific [I-125] ET-1 binding was saturable and of high affinity. Two ET receptor subtypes (ETA receptor, ETB receptor) have been identified in human prostate. The ratio of ETA to ETB receptors was approximately 1.5:1 in both human and canine prostates. Isometric tension studies revealed that PD155080 shifted the ET-1 dose-response curves to the right and exhibited no effect on the ETB receptor selective agonist sarafotoxin dose-response curves. Conclusion: ET-1 mediates prostate smooth muscle tone and may play a role in the pathophysiology and treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH).