Molecular evidence for phytopharmacological K+ channel opening by garlic in human vascular smooth muscle cell membranes
✍ Scribed by G. Siegel; R. Nuck; F. Schnalke; F. Michel
- Publisher
- John Wiley and Sons
- Year
- 1998
- Tongue
- English
- Weight
- 91 KB
- Volume
- 12
- Category
- Article
- ISSN
- 0951-418X
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✦ Synopsis
The electrophysiological correlation to vasodilatation in human coronary arteries was measured under the influence of garlic extract. Between 0.0002 and 0.2 g powder/L extract concentration, garlic (Allium sativum) hyperpolarized the membrane of normal vascular smooth muscle cells of the human coronary artery in a concentration-dependent manner. Correspondingly, the isometric wall tension was decreased. For the garlic constituents allicin and ajoene, a similar course in membrane potential and wall tension for aqueous solutions between 10 À9 and 10 À6 mol/L was obtained. These compounds hyperpolarized the cell membrane and relaxed the vascular strips concentration-dependently. The hyperpolarization in vascular smooth muscle supports the concept of garlic extract and its compounds being classified as phytopharmacological K channel openers.