Effects of naloxone on renin and pressor responses to acute renal hypotension in rats.

Reduction of renal perfusion is followed by increases in plasma renin activity (PRA) and arterial pressure. The present experiments were designed to determine if an opiate antagonist would alter pressor or renin responses to acute reduction of renal arterial pressure (RAP) in anesthetized rats. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were anesthetized with Inactin, and an adjustable constrictor device was placed around the abdominal aorta proximal to the renal arteries. One-half of the animals were pretreated with the opiate antagonist naloxone (2 mg/kg iv), and the other one-half were pretreated with saline vehicle. The abdominal aorta was then constricted to reduce RAP by 25% (measured as femoral arterial pressure) in one-half of the animals in each pretreatment group. Compared with vehicle pretreatment, naloxone pretreatment did not alter the PRA response to aortic constriction; however, naloxone did attenuate the pressor response. We conclude that 1) the PRA response to acute reduction of renal arterial pressure is not dependent on an opiate mechanism in the rat, and 2) attenuation of the pressor response to aortic constriction by naloxone in intact rats is not secondary to a suppression of the PRA response.