Absence of Digitalis-like Cardiac Effects in the Action Pattern of Several Simple Lactones.

Abstract

Measurement of the contractile force of a segment of the right ventricle in open-chest dog prepns., and concomitant recordings of arterial pressures and electrocardiographs were made when the animals were treated intraven. with [beta], [gamma]-angelica lactone, L-ascorbic acid, [phi]-santonin, the dilactone of pulvinic acid, and the dilactone of dicumarol. The results were compared against characterization studies using several cardiac glycosides, sympathomimetic amines, veratrine alkaloids and crythrophleum alkaloids. The lactones lacked characteristic digitalis-like actions in mammalian heart prepns. These compounds had been previously shown to produce digitalis-like effects in frogs heart prepns.