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Smooth muscle, which is found primarily in the internal body organs and undergoes involuntary, often rhythmic contractions that are not dependent on outside nerve impulses, generally shows a broad sensitivity to drugs relative to striated muscle. Most of the drugs that stimulate or inhibit smooth muscle contraction do so by regulating the concentration of intracellular calcium, which is involved in initiating the process of contraction. But other intracellular messengers such as cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) and cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) are also involved (see the section Principles of drug action). Drugs such as adrenoceptor agonists, muscarinic agonists, nitrates, and calcium ...(100 of 9029 words)