Abstract
It has been known for many years that the uroepithelium in the bladder and the region of the lamina propria are innervated by nerves which contain peptides such as Substance P, VIP and CGRP (see Torrens and Morrison, 1987). These fibres have free nerve endings and appear to be unmyelinated; these nerves are believed to be afferent because they are absent from rats treated neonatally with capsaicin. However there are few suggestions as to the physiological role of these nerves. It is known that some afferent fibres from the bladder are sensitive to acute administration of capsaicin and to irritant chemicals introduced into the bladder (McMahon and Abel, 1987; H_bler et al, 1988, 1990; Maggi, 1990), and it may be that these substances act on sensory endings in the epithelium. There have also been several reports recently that pelvic nerve afferents from the cat bladder include a population of fibres that do not respond to distension in the physiological and noxious ranges of pressure. These fibres are given the label’ silent’ afferents. The present experiments have investigated the effects of intravesical potassium at concentrations near the maximum level observed in normal rat urine.
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Wen, J., Morrison, J.F.B. (1995). The Effects of High Urinary Potassium Concentration on Pelvic Nerve Mechanoreceptors and ‘silent’ Afferents from the Rat Bladder. In: Zderic, S.A. (eds) Muscle, Matrix, and Bladder Function. Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology, vol 385. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-1585-6_29
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-1585-6_29
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