Effects of ketamine on responses to sympathomimetic amines were studied using isolated aortic and pulmonary artery strips from the rabbit. Ketamine (1.1 x 10(-5) to 3.7 x 10(-4) M) potentiated adrenaline-contracted strips. Potentiation was not impaired in tissues from animals pretreated with reserpine, with 6-hydroxydopamine, or its tissues pretreated with cocaine. Pretreatment of the strips with the catechol O-methyltransferase (COMT) inhibitors tropolone or pyrogallol or the inhibitor of extraneuronal uptake 17 beta-estradiol blocked the potentiation by ketamine; in addition, potentiation by the COMT and extraneuronal uptake inhibitors was abolished or greatly reduced by ketamine. In rabbit aorta, ketamine potentiated responses to the catecholamines (adrenaline greater than nordefrine greater than noradrenaline) but not to the noncatecholamines phenylephrine, methoxamine, and synephrine; instead a slight relaxant effect was observed. Ketamine potentiated, whereas cocaine inhibited, responses to tyramine Experiments using the technique of oil immersion demonstrated that ketamine reduced the rate at which aortic strips inactivate adrenaline even when monoamine oxidase (MAO) and neuronal uptake processes were fully inhibited. Uptake studies showed that ketamine and 17 beta-estradiol reduced extraneuronal accumulation of [3H]adrenaline in aortic strips. We conclude that ketamine is an inhibitor of extraneuronal uptake in the vascular smooth muscles studied and the importance of this mechanism in producing its known cardiovascular effect is discussed.