Effects of angiotensin II blockade on the responses of the pituitary-adrenal axis to corticotropin-releasing factor in humans

Journal of Cardiovascular Pharmacology
A MorgantiA Zanchetti

Abstract

We investigated the possibility that angiotensin II (ANGII) augments the sensitivity of the pituitary to corticotropin releasing factor (CRF) by comparing, in patients with essential hypertension, the responses of plasma adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), cortisol, aldosterone, and renin activity to a bolus injection of either 0.5 or 1.0 microgram/kg of synthetic ovine CRF in control conditions and after chronic treatment with the converting enzyme inhibitor captopril to block the formation of ANGII; the effects of CRF were examined up to 4 h after its administration. In control studies, we found that the two doses of CRF induced similar increments in ACTH and cortisol, the levels of which remained elevated throughout the studies; these changes were associated with increments in plasma aldosterone that were dose dependent, less pronounced, and of shorter duration and with a slight decrease in plasma renin activity. Captopril treatment increased basal plasma renin activity and lowered plasma aldosterone while leaving basal ACTH and cortisol unchanged. During converting enzyme inhibition, the responses of ACTH and cortisol to CRF were similar to those observed in control studies, whereas the changes in plasma aldosterone and pla...Continue Reading

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