Article name: Role of Potassium in Regulating Blood Flow and Blood Pressure
This article was published in the American Journal of Physiology Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology in 2006. It is a review article that summarizes the mechanisms of potassium mediated vasodilation and blood pressure lowering
The article shows that potassium administration has a vasodilatory effect. This is mediated by the increase in the activity of the Na-K
ATPase and the inwardly rectifying potassium channels which lead to the hyperpolarization of the vascular smooth muscle cell membranes. This reduces the influx of calcium into the vascular smooth muscle cell.