Effect of Acalculous Cholecystitis on Gallbladder Neuromuscular Transmission and Contractility

Effects of Melatonin on Gallbladder Neuromuscular Function in Acute Cholecystitis

“…Inflammation evokes a functional impairment in gallbladder nitrergic innervation as demonstrated by the lack of effects of L-NAME in cholecystitic strips compared with control tissue. This result does not support the study from Parkman et al (2000), where L-NAME only had an effect in inflamed tissue, indicating that normal gallbladder does not release NO from the intrinsic plexus. This is in conflict with the presence of nitrergic nerves described in guinea pig gallbladder (Mawe et al, 2006) and with the functional data reported above.…”

“…The smaller contractile responses to EFS in cholecystitic strips suggest the existence of an inflammation-induced impairment in the gallbladder intrinsic nerves, in agreement with previous results in human and animal models (McKirdy et al, 1994a;Parkman et al, 2000). However, the reduced gallbladder smooth muscle contractility to ACh found in cholecystitis (Parkman et al, 1999a(Parkman et al, , 2000Gomez-Pinilla et al, 2006b) could also contribute to the impaired neuromuscular function in inflamed tissue. The most striking finding in our study was the lack of sensitivity shown by cholecystitic strips to TTX, which could be explained by a direct release of neurotransmitter from nervous terminal.…”

“…Here, we show that in control conditions, atropine abolished EFS-induced contraction, whereas in inflamed tissue, it just reduced EFS-elicited contraction approximately 50%, indicative of a functional denervation of the cholinergic component, similar to results described previously in inflamed gallbladder (Parkman et al, 2000).…”

“…In animal models, it has been described that cholecystitis reduces gallbladder contractile responses to agonists that act directly on smooth muscle cells (Parkman et al, 1999a;Xiao et al, 2001) and that it also causes alterations in calcium signaling and contractile machinery (Gomez-Pinilla et al, 2006b). In addition, EFS-induced contractions are also impaired in inflamed gallbladder, mainly due to the reduction in the function of cholinergic nerves and the up-regulation of the inhibitory nitrergic component (Parkman et al, 2000). The effect of cholecystitis on afferent fibers has not yet been explored.…”

Effect of Endotoxin on Opossum Gallbladder Motility: A Model of Acalculous Cholecystitis

“…Other experimental preparations have been proposed to mimic the clinical scenario of acalculous cholecystitis. Parkman et al 29,30 have demonstrated gallbladder smooth muscle dysfunction after common bile duct ligation. This experimental preparation has been proposed to demonstrate the effects of acute acalculous cholecystitis because it reliably produces acute inflammation of the gallbladder.…”