Antidiuretic antagonism and agonism of 1-deamino-pentamethylene-2-D-phenylalanine-4-isoleucine-arginine vasopressin in rats with diabetes insipidus.

Using implanted minipumps it was shown over a period of 7 days that the vasopressin antagonist, 1-deamino-pentamethylene-2-D-Phe-4-Ile-arginine vasopressin, caused increased diuresis in normal rats and reversed vasopressin- or oxytocin-induced antidiuresis in Brattleboro rats. When the antagonist was infused alone in Brattleboro rats it induced a marked antidiuretic response, indicating that the analogue also possessed agonistic properties. The agonist action could not be demonstrated in anaesthetized, hydrated normal rats. In these animals the analogue behaved as a pure antagonist. It is concluded that analogues which behave as antagonists in one test model may display agonistic properties under different experimental conditions.