Effect of dipyridamole on cerebral extracellular adenosine level in vivo

The effect of dipyridamole, an adenosine transport inhibitor, on cerebral extracellular adenosine concentration remains to be determined. To examine this issue, bilateral brain dialysis samples were obtained from piglet frontal cortex before, during, and after 5 min of cerebral ischemia; 10^-4 M dipyridamole was administered through one dialysis probe. On the control side, dialysate adenosine concentration increased 5.7-fold during ischemia and 15-fold during the first 5 min of reperfusion; it returned to control levels after 15 min of reper-fusion. Relative to the control side, dipyridamole caused a twofold increase in basal dialysate adenosine concentration and increased dialysate adenosine concentration at 10 and 15 min of reperfusion, but no increase in dialysate adenosine occurred during and immediately after ischemia. The results indicate that, in the piglet brain, cerebral ischemia markedly elevates intracerebral extra-cellular adenosine concentration and that dipyridamole increases extracellular adenosine levels.