title: Alpha 1-adrenergic effects on intracellular pH and calcium and on myofilaments in single rat cardiac cells.
abstract: 1. The cellular effects of alpha 1-adrenoceptor stimulation by phenylephrine were studied in the presence of propranolol in single cells isolated from the ventricles of rat hearts. 2. Phenylephrine (10-100 microM) induced a biphasic pattern of inotropism in these cells: a transient negative followed by a sustained positive inotropic effect as usually observed in cardiac tissues. 3. In Snarf-1-loaded cells, phenylephrine induced an alkalinization. This effect was reversible on wash-out and inhibited by prazosin, an alpha 1-adrenoceptor antagonist. 4. The alpha 1-adrenoceptor-mediated increase in intracellular pH (pHi) was 0.1 pH unit in HEPES buffer containing 4.4 mM-NaHCO3 and in Krebs buffer containing 25 mM-NaHCO3. 5. The alkalinization was blocked by the Na(+)-H+ antiport blocker, ethylisopropylamiloride (EIPA). 6. The recovery from an acidosis induced by a NH4Cl pre-pulse was accelerated by phenylephrine. The phenylephrine-induced alkalinization was attributed to activation of the Na(+)-H+ antiport. 7. Despite its ability to increase pHi, phenylephrine did not alter Ca2+ current amplitude and kinetics. 8. Ca2+ transients recorded in Indo-1-loaded cells were not augmented by phenylephrine. Diastolic calcium level was decreased. 9. In single skinned cells, the Ca2+ sensitivity of the contractile proteins was increased by a pre-treatment with phenylephrine even when the alpha 1-adrenoceptor-mediated alkalinizing effect had been prevented by EIPA. 10. These results lead us to propose that the alpha 1-adrenergic-induced positive inotropic response of heart muscle could result from an increased sensitivity of the myofilaments to Ca2+ ions. This alpha 1-adrenoceptor-mediated Ca2+ sensitization could result both from an intracellular alkalinization and from a direct effect on contractile proteins.
authors.affiliation: Unité de Recherches de Physiologie Cellulaire Cardiaque, INSERM U-241, Université Paris-Sud, Orsay, France.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Terzic
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pucéat
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Clément
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Scamps
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Vassort
mesh_terms: D000584:Amiloride / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000494:pharmacology; D000818:Animals; D002118:Calcium / Q000493:pharmacokinetics*; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration / Q000187:drug effects; D009200:Myocardial Contraction / Q000187:drug effects; D009206:Myocardium / Q000166:cytology; D010656:Phenylephrine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D011942:Receptors, Adrenergic, alpha / Q000187:drug effects*
chemical_list: D011942:Receptors, Adrenergic, alpha; D010656:Phenylephrine; D000584:Amiloride; D002118:Calcium; C039614:ethylisopropylamiloride