Metabolic and Contractile Effects of Anoxia on the Rabbit Urinary Bladder

The in vitro metabolic and contractile effects of anoxia and glucose deprivation on the rabbit urinary bladder were studied. The exposure of isolated strips of rabbit urinary bladder to a glucose deficient medium equilibrated with nitrogen rather than with oxygen resulted in 1) a rapid decrease in baseline tension, 2) a progressive decrease in the intracellular concentration of adenosine 5'-triphosphate (ATP) and progressive increases in the concentrations of adenosine 5'-monophosphate and adenosine 5'-diphosphate, 3) a rapid decrease in the ability of bethanechol to stimulate contractility, and 4) the inability of bethanechol to maintain a sustained increase in contractile force. Recovery from a 60-minute exposure of bladder strips to anoxia was characterized by a rapid recovery of the ability of the bladder to respond to bethanechol (50 per cent recovery occurring within 15 minutes) and a slightly slower recovery of the intracellular ATP level. Both the contractile response to bethanechol and the intracellular concentration of ATP returned to control levels within 60 minutes after the termination of anoxia.