title: Ionic permeabilities of L-glutamate activated, excitatory synaptic channel in crayfish muscle.
abstract: Excitatory single channel currents triggered by L-glutamate were measured in outside-out excised patches of crayfish muscle membrane. If an 'intracellular' solution was present in the pipette and normal extracellular solution with added glutamate (10(-3) M) passed the outside of the patch, the single channel currents, i1, had amplitudes of -8 pA at a patch potential of -70 mV. If in the extracellular solution Na+ was replaced by Li+ or Ca2+, the amplitudes of single channel currents were reduced by about 30%. Only about 20% of the channel current amplitude remained on replacement of Na+ by choline. Replacement of Na+ reduced the variance of channel amplitude distributions to the level of the baseline. Presence of Na+ thus induces an additional variance of open channel current. When the proportions of Na+/choline were varied, the resulting channel currents could be separated in Na+, Ca2+ and choline components. The amplitude of the Na+ component, i1,Na, could be described by a constant channel permeability pi Na = 110 10(-15) cm3 s-1 according to the constant field equation. Ba2+ could replace Ca2+ without change in single channel current, while replacement of Ca2+ by Mg2+ reduced the channel currents by 20%. The following permeabilities of the single channel were estimated (in 10(-15) cm3 s-1): pi Na = 110, pi K = 86, pi Ca = 30, pi Mg = 24, pi Ba = 30, pi Li = 84 and pi choline = 11. These permeabilities were obtained inserting ionic concentrations. The respective permeabilities are listed also as calculated on the basis of ionic activities.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003400:Astacoidea; D002118:Calcium / Q000494:pharmacology; D002121:Calcium Channel Blockers / Q000494:pharmacology; D002463:Cell Membrane Permeability / Q000187:drug effects*; D005971:Glutamates / Q000493:pharmacokinetics*; D007473:Ion Channels / Q000502:physiology*; D008564:Membrane Potentials / Q000187:drug effects; D009132:Muscles / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*; D012964:Sodium / Q000494:pharmacology; D013569:Synapses / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D002121:Calcium Channel Blockers; D005971:Glutamates; D007473:Ion Channels; D012964:Sodium; D002118:Calcium