The goal of these studies was to examine endothelin-1 (ET-1)-induced modulation of contractile responses elicited by the selective alpha 1-adrenergic agonist, phenylephrine (PE), on isolated human corporal tissue strips. Pharmacological studies were conducted on human corporal tissue strips obtained from 22 patients undergoing implantation of penile prostheses for erectile dysfunction. For the purposes of statistical analysis, the patients were stratified into two age groups: A, age < or = 59 y (n = 10) and B, age > or = 60 y (n = 12). The patients were further sub-divided into two diagnostic categories, diabetics (DM, n = 9) and nondiabetics (ND, n = 13). Cumulative concentration-response curves (CRCs) were constructed to the alpha 1-adrenergic agonist, PE, prior to constructing a CRC to a single mixture of PE and ET-1 on the same tissue. A previously described fixed molar ratio (FMR) protocol was used to generate CRCs to mixtures of PE and ET-1. In all cases, for the PE:ET-1 FMRs of 90:10, 80:20 and 70:30, the partial substitution of PE with ET-1 resulted in an approx 3-fold leftward shift in the EC50 of the PE alone CRC with an approx 4% concomitant increase in Emax and a decrease in the slope factor value. There were no significant age- or disease-related differences in any of the logistic parameter estimates that describe the FMR CRC, indicating that there are no detectable age- or disease-related alterations in ET-1-induced amplification of alpha 1-adrenergic-mediated contractions in these studies. In addition, the location of the FMR CRC was precisely predicted by the theoretical CRC for simple additivity of agonist effects. In conclusion, since relatively small increases in ET-1 concentrations were associated with significant increases in alpha 1-adrenergic-mediated contractile responses, these data provide further testimony to the importance of ET-1 in modulating corporal smooth muscle tone, and moreover, establish a conceptual framework for understanding the mechanism of its action(s).