Combined effects of angiotensin II and ACTH on cortisol production: In vitro studies on isolated guinea-pig adrenal cells

The effects of angiotensin on cortisol production and ACTH-induced cortisol production have been studied in isolated guinea-pig adrenal cells. At pharmacological doses of μg/ml, angiotensin proved to be a stimulatory hormone for cortisol production. Its effects were additive to those of ACTH. Two-hundred and fifty picograms of angiotensin, which alone were ineffective in provoking any detectable cortisol output, were able to inhibit the cortisol production induced by physiological concentrations of ACTH. The decrease in cortisol was slight but significant, yet it occurred within so narrow a concentration range of angiotensin that its real physiological significance can be questioned.