Effects of Phenothiazine Derivatives on the Microclimate-pH in the Rat Jejunum

The effects of several phenothiazine derivatives (PTDs) and quinidine (QD) on the jejunal microclimate-pH in rats were studied using a microelectrode. Chlorpromazine, thioridazine, chlorpromazine sulfoxide (CPZSO), trifluoperazine, prochlorperazine, and QD at concentrations of 1 mM increased this microclimate-pH by 0.15–0.3 pH units, while 1 mM diethazine and 1 mM promethazine had little effect on it. The increases in the microclimate-pH caused by PTDs and QD were concentration dependent and reversible. We studied the effects of PTDs on the fluidity of intestinal brush border membranes and on the release of proteins from the intestinal tissue to the lumen. The PTD-induced changes in microclimate-pH could not be explained by either of these nonspecific effects on the membranes. Then, the effects of PTDs on Na+, K+-ATPase activity and Mg2+-ATPase activity were studied using the jejunal homogenate. Each PTD inhibited Na+, K+-ATPase and Mg2+-ATPase activity to some extent. The inhibitory effects on Na+, K+-ATPase and Mg2+-ATPase activity were compared with the PTD-induced increases in the microclimate-pH. No good correlation was obtained between the IC50 values of PTDs for Na+, K+-ATPase activity and the concentrations required to increase the microclimate-pH by 0.1 pH unit, while IC50 values of PTDs for Mg2+-ATPase activity showed a relatively good correlation, except for that of CPZSO. These findings suggest that the effects of PTDs on the microclimate-pH were not nonspecific, although the increases in the microclimate-pH caused by PTDs cannot be fully explained by the inhibitory effects of these compounds on either Na+, K+-ATPase activity or Mg2+-ATPase activity alone.