The Effects of Ganglion‐blocking and Postganglionic Sympatholytic Drugs on Preparations of the Guinea‐pig Vas Deferens

The contractions of the guinea-pig isolated vas deferens elicited by electrical stimulation of the hypogastric nerve were completely blocked by the following drugs: guanethidine, bretylium, dimethylphenylpiperazinium hydrochloride, nicotine, pempidine, hexamethonium, hemicholinium, D-tubocurarine and procaine. However, when the vas deferens was stimulated through an electrode in its lumen, the contractions in response to frequent, short stimuli (50 shocks/sec, 1 msec duration) were blocked by guanethidine, bretylium and dimethylphenylpiperazinium, but were not affected by the remaining drugs, except that procaine and hemicholinium each caused some reduction in the responses. When the preparation was stimulated transmurally with shocks of 200 msec duration at 1 shock/sec, the contractions were unaffected by any of the above drugs, except hemicholinium which again caused a slow reduction of up to 50% of the original response. It is concluded that nicotine, pempidine, hexamethonium, D-tubocurarine and hemicholinium probably block the response to stimulation of the hypogastric nerve by acting on peripheral ganglia in its pathway. Hemicholinium appears to have an additional effect in depressing the responses of the smooth muscle of the vas deferens to direct electrical stimulation, and procaine may act both on the ganglia and at the nerve terminals.