scholarly journals The dihydropyridine-sensitive calcium channel subtype in cone photoreceptors.

1996 ◽  
Vol 107 (5) ◽  
pp. 621-630 ◽  
Author(s):  
M F Wilkinson ◽  
S Barnes

High-voltage activated Ca channels in tiger salamander cone photoreceptors were studied with nystatin-permeabilized patch recordings in 3 mM Ca2+ and 10 mM Ba2+. The majority of Ca channel current was dihydropyridine sensitive, suggesting a preponderance of L-type Ca channels. However, voltage-dependent, incomplete block (maximum 60%) by nifedipine (0.1-100 microM) was evident in recordings of cones in tissue slice. In isolated cones, where the block was more potent, nifedipine (0.1-10 microM) or nisoldipine (0.5-5 microM) still failed to eliminate completely the Ca channel current. Nisoldipine was equally effective in blocking Ca channel current elicited in the presence of 10 mM Ba2+ (76% block) or 3 mM Ca2+ (88% block). 15% of the Ba2+ current was reversibly blocked by omega-conotoxin GVIA (1 microM). After enhancement with 1 microM Bay K 8644, omega-conotoxin GVIA blocked a greater proportion (22%) of Ba2+ current than in control. After achieving partial block of the Ba2+ current with nifedipine, concomitant application of omega-conotoxin GVIA produced no further block. The P-type Ca channel blocker, omega-agatoxin IVA (200 nM), had variable and insignificant effects. The current persisting in the presence of these blockers could be eliminated with Cd2+ (100 microM). These results indicate that photoreceptors express an L-type Ca channel having a distinguishing pharmacological profile similar to the alpha 1D Ca channel subtype. The presence of additional Ca channel subtypes, resistant to the widely used L-, N-, and P-type Ca channel blockers, cannot, however, be ruled out.

1984 ◽  
Vol 84 (5) ◽  
pp. 705-726 ◽  
Author(s):  
R S Kass ◽  
M C Sanguinetti

We have studied the influence of divalent cations on Ca channel current in the calf cardiac Purkinje fiber to determine whether this current inactivates by voltage- or Ca-mediated mechanisms, or by a combination of the two. We measured the reversal (or zero current) potential of the current when Ba, Sr, or Ca were the permeant divalent cations and determined that depletion of charge carrier does not account for time-dependent relaxation of Ca channel current in these preparations. Inactivation of Ca channel current persists when Ba or Sr replaces Ca as the permeant divalent cation, but the voltage dependence of the rate of inactivation is markedly changed. This effect cannot be explained by changes in external surface charge. Instead, we interpret the results as evidence that inactivation is both voltage and Ca dependent. Inactivation of Sr or Ba currents reflects a voltage-dependent process. When Ca is the divalent charge carrier, an additional effect is observed: the rate of inactivation is increased as Ca enters during depolarizing pulses, perhaps because of an additional Ca-dependent mechanism.


1992 ◽  
Vol 100 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
T Shimada ◽  
A P Somlyo

The effects of arachidonic acid (AA) and other long-chain fatty acids on voltage-dependent Ca channel current (ICa) were investigated, with the whole cell patch clamp method, in longitudinal smooth muscle cells of rabbit ileum. 10-30 microM AA caused a gradual depression of ICa. The inhibitory effect of AA was not prevented by indomethacin (10 microM) (an inhibitor of cyclooxygenase) or nordihydroguaiaretic acid (10 microM) (an inhibitor of lipoxygenase). 1-(5-Isoquinolinesulfonyl)-2-methylpiperazine (H7; 25-50 microM) or staurosporine (2 microM) (inhibitors of protein kinase C) did not block the AA-induced inhibition of ICa, and application of phorbol ester (a protein kinase C activator) (phorbol-12,13-dibutyrate, 0.2 microM) did not mimic the AA action. Some other cis-unsaturated fatty acids (palmitoleic, linoleic, and oleic acids) were also found to depress ICa, while a trans-unsaturated fatty acid (linolelaidic acid) and saturated fatty acids (capric, lauric, myristic, and palmitic acids) had no inhibitory effects on ICa. Myristic acid consistently increased the amplitude of ICa at negative membrane potentials. The present results suggest the possible role of AA, and perhaps other fatty acids, in the physiological and/or pathological modulation of ICa in smooth muscle.


2006 ◽  
Vol 96 (1) ◽  
pp. 218-234 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrei I. Ivanov ◽  
Ronald L. Calabrese

In leeches, two pairs of reciprocally inhibitory heart interneurons that form the core oscillators of the pattern-generating network for heartbeat possess both high- and low-threshold (HVA and LVA) Ca channels. LVA Ca current has two kinetically distinct components (one rapidly activating/inactivating, ICaF, and another slowly activating/inactivating, ICaS) that mediate graded transmission, generate plateau potentials driving burst formation, and modulate spike-mediated transmission between heart interneurons. Here we used different stimulating protocols and inorganic Ca channel blockers to separate the effects of ICaF and ICaS on graded synaptic transmission and determine their interaction and relative efficacy. Ca2+ entering by ICaF channels is more efficacious in mediating release than that entering by ICaS channels. The rate of Ca2+ entry by LVA Ca channels appears to be as critical as the amount of delivered Ca2+ for synaptic transmission. LVA Ca currents and associated graded transmission were selectively blocked by 1 mM Ni2+, leaving spike-mediated transmission unaffected. Nevertheless, 1 mM Ni2+ affected homosynaptic enhancement of spike-mediated transmission that depends on background Ca2+ provided by LVA Ca channels. Ca2+ provided by both ICaF and ICaS depletes a common pool of readily releasable synaptic vesicles. The balance between availability of vesicles and Ca2+ concentration and its time course determine the strength of inhibitory transmission between heart interneurons. We argue that Ca2+ from multichannel domains arising from ICaF channels, clustered near but not directly associated with the release trigger, and Ca2+ radially diffusing from generally distributed ICaS channels interact at common release sites to mediate graded transmission.


1989 ◽  
Vol 257 (6) ◽  
pp. F1094-F1099 ◽  
Author(s):  
Y. M. Yu ◽  
F. Lermioglu ◽  
A. Hassid

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of depolarizing media and of Ca-channel activators and blockers on cytosolic free Ca in cultured rat mesangial cells. Membrane depolarizing media, containing 10–100 mM K+, dose dependently increased cytosolic Ca, and this effect was sustained and reversible. Nifedipine and lanthanum ion inhibited this increase, whereas verapamil was ineffective. A Ca-channel activator, BAY K 8644, dose dependently increased resting Ca levels, and nifedipine inhibited this effect. Moreover, the increase of Ca induced by maximally effective high K+ and BAY K 8644 was additive, suggesting differential mechanisms of action for the two channel activators. Nifedipine and verapamil decreased resting Ca levels by up to 35–40%. The results support the idea that mesangial cells have spontaneously active Ca channels that can be further activated by membrane depolarization or by the Ca-channel activator, BAY K 8644, and inhibited by the Ca-channel blockers, nifedipine or verapamil. Voltage-sensitive Ca channels in mesangial cells may play a role in the regulation of the glomerular filtration rate.


2000 ◽  
Vol 83 (1) ◽  
pp. 198-206 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kazuyuki Hirooka ◽  
Dmitri E. Kourennyi ◽  
Steven Barnes

We investigated the modulation of voltage-gated Ca channels by nitric oxide (NO) in isolated salamander retinal ganglion cells with the goals of determining the type of Ca channel affected and the signaling pathway by which modulation might occur. The NO donors, S-nitroso- N-acetyl-penicillamine (SNAP, 1 mM) and S-nitroso-cysteine (1 mM) induced modest increases in the amplitude of Ca channel currents recorded with ruptured- and permeabilized-patch techniques by causing a subpopulation of the Ca channels to activate at more negative potentials. The Ca channel antagonists ω-conotoxin GVIA and nisoldipine each reduced the Ca channel current partially, but only ω-conotoxin GVIA blocked the enhancement by SNAP. The SNAP-induced increase was blocked by oxadiazolo-quinoxaline (50 μM), suggesting that the NO generated by SNAP acts via a soluble guanylyl cyclase to raise levels of cGMP. The membrane-permeant cGMP analog 8-(4-chlorophenylthio) guanosine cyclic monophosphate also enhanced Ca channel currents and 8-bromo guanosine cyclic monophosphate (1 mM) occluded enhancement by SNAP. Consistent with these results, isobutyl-methyl-xanthine (IBMX, 10 μM), which can raise cGMP levels by inhibiting phosphodiesterase activity, increased Ca channel current by the same amount as SNAP and occluded subsequent enhancement by SNAP. Neither IBMX, the cGMP analogs, nor SNAP itself, led to activation of cGMP-gated channels. N-[2-(methylamino)ethyl]−5-isoquinoline-sulfonamide (2 μM), a broad spectrum inhibitor of protein kinase activity, KT5823 (1 μM), a specific protein kinase G (PKG) inhibitor, and a peptide inhibitor of PKG (200 μM) blocked SNAP enhancement, as did 5′-adenylylimidophosphate (1.5 mM), a nonhydrolyzable ATP analog that prevents protein phosphorylation. A peptide inhibitor of protein kinase A (10 nM) did not block the facilitory effects of SNAP. Okadaic acid (1 μM), a phosphatase inhibitor, had no effect by itself but increased the enhancement of Ca channel current by SNAP. These results suggest that NO modulates retinal ganglion cell N-type Ca channels by facilitating their voltage-dependent activation via a mechanism involving guanylyl cyclase/PKG-dependent phosphorylation. This effect could fine-tune neural integration in ganglion cells or play a role in ganglion cell disease by modulating intracellular calcium signaling.


2004 ◽  
Vol 101 (4) ◽  
pp. 895-901 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandra Corrales ◽  
Fang Xu ◽  
Zayra V. Garavito-Aguilar ◽  
Thomas J. J. Blanck ◽  
Esperanza Recio-Pinto

Background The authors previously reported that the isoflurane-caused reduction of the carbachol-evoked cytoplasmic Ca transient increase ([Ca]cyt) was eliminated by K or caffeine-pretreatment. In this study the authors investigated whether the isoflurane-sensitive component of the carbachol-evoked [Ca]cyt transient involved Ca influx through the plasma membrane. Methods Perfused attached human neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cells were exposed to carbachol (1 mm, 2 min) in the absence and presence of isoflurane (1 mm) and in the absence and presence of extracellular Ca (1.5 mm). The authors studied the effect of the nonspecific cationic channel blocker La (100 microm), of the L-type Ca channel blocker nitrendipine (10 microm), and of the N-type Ca channel blocker omega-conotoxin GVIA (0.1 microm) on isoflurane modulation of the carbachol-evoked [Ca]cyt transient. [Ca]cyt was detected with fura-2 and experiments were carried out at 37 degrees C. Results Isoflurane reduced the peak and area of the carbachol-evoked [Ca]cyt transient in the presence but not in the absence of extracellular Ca. La had a similar effect as the removal of extracellular Ca. Omega-conotoxin GVIA and nitrendipine did not affect the isoflurane sensitivity of the carbachol response although nitrendipine reduced the magnitude of the carbachol response. Conclusions The current data are consistent with previous observations in that the carbachol-evoked [Ca]cyt transient involves both Ca release from intracellular Ca stores and Ca entry through the plasma membrane. It was found that isoflurane attenuates the carbachol-evoked Ca entry. The isoflurane sensitive Ca entry involves a cationic channel different from the L- or N- type voltage-dependent Ca channels. These results indicate that isoflurane attenuates the carbachol-evoked [Ca]cyt transient at a site at the plasma membrane that is distal to the muscarinic receptor.


1984 ◽  
Vol 110 (1) ◽  
pp. 169-181 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. M. Hennessey ◽  
C. Kung

The anticalmodulin drug, W-7 [N-(6 aminohexyl)-5-chloro-1-naphthalenesulphonamide] specifically inhibits the voltage-dependent Ca-current of Paramecium as well as the behavioural consequence of Ca2+ influx, backward swimming. The dechlorinated analogue, W-5, is four to five times less effective. Analysis of membrane currents under voltage clamp shows that W-7 not only reversibly inhibits the voltage-dependent Ca-current but also shifts the voltage sensitivity of this Ca-current towards less negative voltages in a concentration-dependent manner. We suggest that Paramecium can be used as a system to screen behaviourally for other Ca-channel blockers as well as to study the mechanism of action of these drugs.


2004 ◽  
Vol 92 (2) ◽  
pp. 1252-1256 ◽  
Author(s):  
John P. Vessey ◽  
Melanie R. Lalonde ◽  
Hossein A. Mizan ◽  
Nicole C. Welch ◽  
Melanie E. M. Kelly ◽  
...  

We show that carbenoxolone, a drug used to block hemichannels in the retina to test the ephaptic model of horizontal cell inhibitory feedback, has strong inhibitory effects on voltage-gated Ca channels. Carbenoxolone (100 μM) reduced photoreceptor-to-horizontal cell synaptic transmission by 92%. Applied to patch-clamped, isolated cone photoreceptors, carbenoxolone inhibited Ca channels with an EC50 of 48 μM. At 100 μM, it reduced cone Ca channel current by 37%, reduced depolarization-evoked [Ca2+] signals in fluo-4 loaded retinal slices by 57% and inhibited Ca channels in Müller cells by 52%. A synaptic transfer model suggests that the degree of block of Ca channels accounts for the reduction in synaptic transmission. These results suggest broad inhibitory actions for carbenoxolone in the retina that must be considered when interpreting its effects on inhibitory feedback.


1984 ◽  
Vol 83 (6) ◽  
pp. 941-967 ◽  
Author(s):  
D A Nachshen

K-stimulated (voltage-dependent) influx of 45Ca was measured in synaptosomes (isolated presynaptic nerve terminals) from rat brain. Influx was terminated at 1 s with a rapid-filtration technique, so that most of the Ca uptake was mediated by inactivating ("fast") Ca channels (Nachshen, D. A., and Blaustein, M. P., 1980, J. Gen. Physiol., 76:709-728). This influx was blocked by multivalent cations with half-inhibition constants (K1) that clustered in three distinct groups: (a) K1 greater than 1 mM (Mg2+, Sr2+, and Ba2+); (b) K1 = 30-100 microM (Mn2+, Co2+, Ni2+, Cu2+, Zn2+, and Hg2+); (c) K1 less than 1 micro M (Cd2+, Y3+, La3+ and the trivalent lanthanides, and Pb2+). Most of these ions had very little effect on synaptosome steady state membrane potential, which was monitored with a voltage-sensitive fluorescent dye, or on the voltage dependence of Ca influx, which was assessed by measuring voltage-dependent Ca uptake at two levels of depolarization. The blockers inhibited Ca influx by competing with Ca for the channel site that is involved in the transport of divalent cations. Onset of fast channel inhibition by Mg, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Cd, La, Hg, and Pb was rapid, occurring within 1 s; inhibition was similar after 1 s or 30 min of exposure to these ions. The inhibition produced by Co, Cu, Zn, Cd, La, and Pb could be substantially reversed within 1 s by removing the inhibitory cation. The relative efficacies of the lanthanides as fast channel blockers were compared; there was a decrease in inhibitory potency with decreasing ionic radius. A model of the Ca channel binding site is considered, in which inhibitory polyvalent cation selectivity is determined primarily by coulombic interactions between the binding site and the different cations. The site is envisaged as consisting of two anions (radius 1 A) with a separation of 2 A between them. Small cations are unable to bind effectively to both anions. The selectivity sequences predicted for the alkaline earth cations, lanthanides, and transition metals are in substantial agreement with the selectivity sequences observed for inhibition of the fast Ca channel.


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