Abstract
Fluid flow and several other agonists induce prostacyclin (PGI
2) production in endothelial cells, G proteins mediate the response of a large number of hormones such as histamine, but the transduction pathway of the flow signal is unclear. We found that GDPβS and pertussis toxin inhibited flow-induced prostacyclin production in human umbilical vein endothelial cells. In addition, flow potentiated the histamine-induced production of PGI
2. This suggests that flow stimulates prostacyclin production via a pertussis toxin-sensitive G protein and modulates the stimulus-response coupling of other agonists.