Caffeine and the Reduction of the Spontaneous Activity of A1 Adenosine Receptors

Caffeine is one of the most widely consumed stimulants, and has an attendant addiction liability. It also may be a factor in causing human disease. The research was conducted to determine the effect of caffeine on the A 1- adenosine receptor in the presence of an allosteric enhancer, which increases the activity of the receptor. Increased A1-adenosine receptor activity activates an inhibitory G- protein, which leads to a decrease in cyclic AMP (cAMP). The amount of cAMP indicates the level of intracellular activity of the cell. Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells were grown in culture medium, and the effect of the adenosine receptor agonists and antagonists was determined by cAMP level. Acute incubation was used to conduct the experiment and the incubation was impeded by hydrochloric acid (HCI). cAMP level was calculated by radioimmunoassay (RIA), which determined the affect of the drug on the cells. Results indicated that caffeine does antagonize the effect of endogenous adenosine. Drug companies are planning to market allosteric enhancers, and those individuals that consume caffeine with the intake of these medications will experience a decreased in the effect of the drug