The vasodilatory effect of ketamine is independent of the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor: lack of functional N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors in rat mesenteric artery smooth muscle

Background and objective Ketamine, which is a general anaesthetic that induces a dissociative anaesthesia, acts by blocking the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAr) in the brain. Although ketamine elevates blood pressure under the clinical setting, the in-vitro effect of ketamine is vasodilatory. However, it is not clear yet whether the vasodilation by ketamine involves functions of the NMDAr. Therefore, we examined whether the NMDAr is functional in vascular smooth muscle and whether the vasodilatory effect of ketamine is associated with the NMDAr. Methods We measured isometric tension of endothelium-denuded arterial rings from rat mesentery. The relaxing effects of ketamine, after rings were precontracted with noradrenaline (10 mu mol l(-1)) or high KCI (70 mmol l(-1)), were examined. The effects of DL-2-amino-5-phosphonopentanoic acid (AP-5), a competitive NMDAr blocker that is structurally distinct from ketamine, were also examined. The relaxing effects of ketamine in the presence of AP-5 were compared with those in the absence of AP-5. The effects of NMDAr agonists N-methyl-D-aspartate and glutamate were analysed in order to examine the existence of a functional NMDAr. Results Both S(+)-ketamine and racemic(+/-)-ketamine, with similar potencies and efficacies and in a concentration-dependent manner, relaxed the precontracted arterial rings. However, AP-5 neither relaxed the arteries nor affected the vasodilatory actions of ketamine. N-methyl-D-aspartate and glutamate (0.01 - 1 mmol l(-1)) had negligible effects on isometric tension under the resting or precontracted condition. Conclusion These results suggest that the NMDAr is not functional in vascular smooth muscle, and the vasodilatory action of ketamine is independent of the NMDAr in the rat mesenteric artery. Eur J Anaesthesiol 26:676 - 682 (C) 2009 European Society of Anaesthesiology.