Endogenous circulating sympatholytic factor in orthostatic intolerance

Sympathotonic orthostatic hypotension (SOH) is an idiopathic syndrome characterized by tachycardia, hypotension, elevated plasma norepinephrine, and symptoms of orthostatic intolerance provoked by assumption of an upright posture. We studied a woman with severe progressive SOH with blood pressure unresponsive to the pressor effects of α₁-adrenergic receptor (AR) agonists. We tested the hypothesis that a circulating factor in this patient interferes with vascular adrenergic neurotransmission. Preincubation of porcine pulmonary artery vessel rings with patient plasma produced a dose-dependent inhibition of vasoconstriction to phenylephrine in vitro, abolished vasoconstriction to direct electrical stimulation, and had no effect on nonadrenergic vasoconstrictive stimuli (endothelin-1), PGF-2α (or KCl). Preincubation of vessels with control plasma was devoid of these effects. SOH plasma inhibited the binding of an α₁-selective antagonist radioligand ([¹²⁵I]HEAT) to membrane fractions derived from porcine pulmonary artery vessel rings, rat liver, and cell lines selectively overexpressing human ARs of the α(1B) subtype but not other AR subtypes (α(1A) and α(1D)). We conclude that a factor in SOH plasma can selectively and irreversibly inhibit adrenergic ligand binding to α(1B) ARs. We propose that this factor contributes to a novel pathogenesis for SOH in this patient. This patient's syndrome represents a new disease entity, and her plasma may provide a unique tool for probing the selective functions of α₁-ARs.