Abstract

This study examined the relative contributions of phosphodiesterase inhibition and adenosine receptor blockade in the respiratory-stimulant effects of selected xanthines. The respiratory effects of caffeine, theophylline, 8-phenyltheophylline (8-PT), 8-cyclopentyltheophylline (8-CPT), 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine and enprofylline, as well as the nonxanthine phosphodiesterase inhibitor, rolipram, and the adenosine analogs, N6-cyclopentyladenosine (CPA) and 5'-N-ethylcarboxamide adenosine (NECA), were studied in unanesthetized rhesus monkeys. Ventilation was measured continuously by enclosing the monkey's head in a fitted Lexan helmet while a pressure transducer measured differences in pressure produced by inspirations and expirations against a constant flow of air. Drugs were administered (i.m.) using cumulative-dosing procedures while the subjects breathed air or 5% CO2 mixed in air. All xanthines except 8-PT produced dose-related increases in respiratory frequency and less pronounced changes in tidal volume, both in air and in 5% CO2 mixed in air. 8-PT, an adenosine antagonist with little activity as a phosphodiesterase inhibitor, did not have respiratory effects over the range of doses studied. Enprofylline, a phosphodiesterase inhibitor with little activity as an adenosine antagonist, had effects that were comparable to those of caffeine. Rolipram also had effects on respiration that were similar to those of caffeine, and it was approximately 100 times more potent than caffeine. The adenosine A1/A2 agonist, NECA, produced dose-related increases in respiratory frequency, and both CPA (an A1-selective agonist) and NECA produced dose-related decreases in tidal volume; NECA was 30 to 100 times more potent than CPA.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)