Frontiers in Physiology (Feb 2014)

Glycopyrrolate does not influence the visual or motor induced increase in regional cerebral perfusion

  • Kim Zillo Rokamp,
  • Niels Damkjær Olesen,
  • Henrik BW Larsson,
  • Adam Espe Hansen,
  • Thomas eSeifert,
  • Henning Bay Nielsen,
  • Niels H Secher,
  • Egill eRostrup

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2014.00045
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 5

Abstract

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Acetylcholine may contribute to the increase in regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) during cerebral activation since glycopyrrolate, a potent inhibitor of acetylcholine, abolishes the exercise-induced increase in middle cerebral artery mean flow velocity. We tested the hypothesis that cholinergic vasodilatation is important for the increase in rCBF during cerebral activation. The subjects were eleven young healthy males at an age of 24 ± 3 years (mean ± SD). We used arterial spin labelling and blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to evaluate rCBF with and without intravenous glycopyrrolate during a handgrip motor task and visual stimulation. Glycopyrrolate increased heart rate from 56 ± 9 to 114 ± 14 beats/min (mean±SD; pThis study indicates that during a handgrip motor task and visual stimulation, the increase in regional cerebral blood flow is unaffected by blockade of acetylcholine receptors by glycopyrrolate. Further studies on the effect of glycopyrrolate on middle cerebral artery diameter are needed to evaluate the influence of glycopyrrolate on mean flow velocity during intense exercise.

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