Physiological and Pharmacological Roles of Prostaglandins

Abstract

In 1930, Kurzrok & Lieb first described the effects of seminal plasma on uterine smooth muscle strips (1). These initial observations were extended by the studies of Goldblatt and Euler, and in 1937 Euler coined the term to describe the active principle of seminal fluid (2-7). Although the potent smooth muscle stimulating and vasodepressor actions of these lipid extracts were described almost 40 years ago, further developments in the field awaited the isolation in pure form of the first two prostaglandins (8-11). The studies of Bergstrom and co­ workers led to the identification and synthesis of at least 16 naturally occurring prostaglandins and a number of prostaglandin analogs. The availability of these substances in adequate quantities in crystalline form opened up many new avenues for research into the physiology, biochemistry, and pharmacology of these biologi­ cally active lipids. Comprehensive reviews by Bergstrom and co-workers and Weeks on the biology of the prostaglandins covered the literature through 1972 (12, 13). The remarkable discovery that aspirin-like drugs inhibit the biosynthesis of pros­ taglandins provided the biologist with an important tool for the investigation of physiological roles of these substances and their implication in the pathogenesis of a number of disease states (14, 15). Drugs that inhibit prostaglandin biosynthesis and newer aspects of the mode of action of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs have been reviewed recently (16, 17). A survey of recent reviews on the prostaglan­ dins reveals that the effects of the prostaglandins on the pulmonary circulation have received little attention (12, 13). Hence, the main purpose of the present report is to provide for the first time a comprehensive review of the effects of prostaglandins