1 The effects of nipradilol, a ,B-adrenoceptor antagonist which possesses a nitroxy group, on cytosolic Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+i) and on tension development were simultaneously measured by front-surface fluorometry and fura-2-loaded strips in the proximal portion of pig coronary arteries.2 Nipradilol reduced in a concentration-dependent manner both the [Ca2+]i and tension, irrespective of whether the strips were unstimulated or exposed to either high K+ or histamine containing solutions. However, both in the case of contractions induced by high K+-depolarization and histamine stimulation, for a given [Ca2+]i elevation the tension which developed in the presence of nipradilol was smaller than that generated in its absence, so that the [Ca2 +]i-tension curves during the contraction were shifted to the right.3 In the absence of extracellular Ca2 , the [Ca2i], elevation due to the release of Ca2+ from histaminesensitive store was inhibited by nipradilol. Nipradilol had no effect on the [Ca2+]i elevation due to the release of Ca2+ from caffeine-sensitive stores; however, it did inhibit the caffeine-induced increase in tension. A derivative of nipradilol, which lacked a nitroxy molecule (Nip(-N)), had no effect on the At lower concentrations, nipradilol acted as a fl-blocker, the IC50 value being smaller than that of Nip(-N), and at higher concentrations, it acted as a nitrovasodilator. 5 Thus, it is suggested that, at lower concentrations, nipradilol, an antianginal drug, acts as a ,Badrenoceptor antagonist. At higher concentrations, it relaxes the proximal portion of the coronary artery by directly reducing [Ca2']i and the Ca2+-sensitivity of the myofilaments, apparently due to the presence of the nitroxy molecule.