Bradykinin is a potent endothelium-dependent vasodilator, leading to a drop in blood pressure. It also causes contraction of non-vascular smooth muscle in the bronchus and gut, increases vascular permeability and is also involved in the mechanism of pain.Bradykinin also causes natriuresis, contributing to the drop in blood pressure.Bradykinin raises internal calcium levels in neocortical astrocytes causing them to release glutamate.Bradykinin is also thought to be the cause of the dry cough in some patients on angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor drugs. It is thought that bradykinin is converted to inactive metabolites by ACE, therefore inhibition of this enzyme leads to increased levels of bradykinin, which causes a dry cough via bronchoconstriction. This refractory cough is a common cause for stopping ACE inhibitor therapy, in which case angiotensin II receptor antagonists (ARBs) are the next line of treatment.Overactivation of bradykinin is thought to play a role in a rare disease called hereditary angioedema, formerly known as hereditary angio-neurotic edema.

The antibody is stable for at least 1 year from the date of receipt when stored at -20^°C to -70^°C. Reconstituted antibody can also be aliquotted and stored at 4^°C for 1 month or at -20^°C to -70^°C in a manual defrost freezer for many months without detectable loss activity. Please avoid freeze-thaw cycles.