Abstract-The purpose of this study was to provide the first membrane potential profile in coronary endothelial cells from normotensive sham-operated control and 1-kidney, 1-clip renal hypertensive rats. Dilator responses were assessed in cannulated coronary arteries from control and 1-kidney, 1-clip rats, and the perforated patch-clamp method was used to compare membrane potential responses between the intact endothelial cells. Under these conditions, acetylcholine (100 pmol/L to 10 mol/L) induced similar large dilations of coronary arteries from control and 1-kidney, 1-clip rats that were associated with endothelial cell hyperpolarizing responses of 16Ϯ3 and 18Ϯ2 mV, respectively. Substance P (10 fmol/L to 1 nmol/L) and bradykinin (100 fmol/L to 10 nmol/L) also substantially dilated coronary arteries from control rats but only induced small (2 to 4 mV) endothelial cell hyperpolarizing responses. These dilations, which appeared independent of membrane potential changes, were highly blunted or absent in arteries from 1-kidney, 1-clip rats. Thus, dilator responses to acetylcholine that are associated with large endothelial hyperpolarizing responses are normal in the small coronary arteries of 1-kidney, 1-clip rats. However, dilator response to substance P and bradykinin, which apparently are not heavily dependent on endothelial cell hyperpolarizations, are selectively targeted for impairment in the coronary arteries of this model of hypertension (Hypertension. 2001;37:66-71.)Key Words: endothelium Ⅲ hypertension, renal Ⅲ coronary artery disease Ⅲ muscle, smooth, vascular Ⅲ membranes Ⅲ potassium channels E ndothelium-mediated dilations are often blunted in isolated arteries from different rat models of experimental hypertension and in arteries of human subjects with essential hypertension. [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8] Although the mechanisms that underlie this dilator dysfunction are complex, a reduced release of endothelium-derived relaxing factors appears to be a contributing factor. 9 In this regard, the signaling pathways by which dilator substances release relaxing factors from endothelial cells appear to involve changes in membrane potential (E m ). 10,11 Specifically, dilator molecules bind to endothelial membrane receptors to activate plasmalemmal Ca 2ϩ -dependent K ϩ channels, resulting in K ϩ efflux and membrane hyperpolarization. This enhanced electrical gradient for Ca 2ϩ influx, combined with the release of Ca 2ϩ from intracellular stores, elevates cytosolic Ca 2ϩ in the endothelial cell to activate the Ca 2ϩ -dependent enzymes required for the synthesis of dilator factors. 10 -12 Hence, hyperpolarization of the endothelial cell membrane is linked to the release of relaxing factors, and the failure of dilator substances to trigger hyperpolarizing responses may promote endothelial dilator dysfunction during hypertension.In this study, we directly investigated this hypothesis by characterizing vasodilator and endothelial cell E m responses to acetylcholine (ACH), substance P (SP), and bradykinin (BK) in iso...