Indomethacin is used to constrict the patent ductus arteriosus in premature infants. To clarify possible prostanoid receptor antagonists that can constrict the ductus, we studied in vivo constriction of the fetal and neonatal ductus arteriosus by AE3-208, a prostanoid EP4-receptor antagonist, in rats. Following quick cesarean section of near-term pregnant rats (21 d), neonates were incubated in room air at 33°C. The inner diameter of the ductus was measured with a microscope and a micrometer following rapid whole-body freezing of the fetus and neonate, and sectioning of the thorax in the frontal plane on a freezing microtome. In the control, the ductus arteriosus constricted quickly after birth, and the inner diameter was 0.80 mm in the fetus and 0.06 mm at 90 min after birth. AE3-208, administered orogastrically to the dam, constricted the fetal ductus dose dependently. Maximal ductal constriction was observed 4 h after administration, and the ductal diameters were 0.06 mm and 0.26 mm after administration of 10 mg/kg and 10 ng/kg of AE3-208, respectively. In neonatal rats, AE3-208 injected subcutaneously at 30 min after birth, inhibited dilatation of the ductus by PGE1 dose dependently. PGE1 (10 μg/kg) was injected subcutaneously to the 1-h-old neonatal rat, and the ductal diameters were 0.53 mm and 0.19 mm without and with pretreatment of AE3-208 (10 μg/kg), respectively. These results indicate the major role of EP4 in the fetal and neonatal ductus and show that an EP4 antagonist can be used to constrict the patent ductus of premature infants.Abbreviations: DA, ductus arteriosus; PDA, patent ductus arteriosus; PGE, prostaglandin E
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