Pharmacology of ureter.

Ureter which performs the important function of transport of urine from kidney to the bladder is not a passive tube, but exhibits characteristic spontaneous (peristaltic) activity. This peristaltic activity is characterized by coordinated muscular contractions, which after originating from a spontaneously active primary pacemaker, situated in the vicinity of the pelvi ureteric junction, propagate downwards along the entire length of the ureter. In addition, the ureter, like the heart, possesses certain cells which become activated when the primary pacemaker is suppressed or there is an interruption of conduction, thereby, acting as latent pacemakers. (1) The peristaltic activity of the ureter is modified by several pharmacologically active substances. Moreover, some of these substances are occasionally able to initiate spontaneous activity even in quiescent ureters. This article briefly reviews the effects of catecholamines (adrenaline, noradrenaline and isoprenaline) and acetylcholine on the ureters of human beings and some domestic and laboratory animals.