title: Voltage-dependent calcium currents and cytosolic calcium in equine airway myocytes.
abstract: 1. The relationship between voltage-dependent calcium channel current (I(Ca)) and cytosolic free calcium concentration ([Ca2+]i) was studied in fura-2 AM-loaded equine tracheal myocytes at 35 degrees C and 1.8 mM Ca2+ using the nystatin patch clamp method. The average cytosolic calcium buffering constant was 77 +/- 3 (n = 14), and the endogenous calcium buffering constant component is likely to be between 15 and 50. 2. I(Ca) did not evoke significant calcium-induced calcium release (CICR) since (i)[Ca2+]i scaled with the integrated I(Ca) over the full voltage range of evoked calcium currents, (ii) increases in [Ca2+]i associated with I(Ca) were consistent with cytoplasmic buffering of calcium ions entering through voltage-dependent calcium channels (VDCCs) only, (iii) there was a fixed instantaneous relationship between transmembrane calcium flux (J(Ca)) and the change in cytosolic free calcium concentration (delta [Ca2+]i) during I(Ca), (iv) caffeine (8 mM) triggered 8-fold higher calcium transients than I(Ca), and (v) I(Ca) evoked following release of intracellular calcium by caffeine resulted in an equivalent delta[Ca2+]i-J(Ca) relationship. 3. The time constant (T) for the decay in [Ca2+]i was 8.6 +/- 1.5 s (n = 8) for single steps and 8.6 +/- 1.1 s (n = 13) following multiple steps that increased [Ca2+]i to much higher levels. Following application of caffeine (8 mM), however, [Ca2+]i decay was enhanced (T = 2.0 +/- 0.2 s, n = 3). The rate of [Ca2+]i decay was not voltage dependent, was not decreased in the absence of extracellular Na+ ions, and no pump current was detected. 4. We conclude that under near physiological conditions, neither CICR nor Na(+)-Ca2+ exchange play a substantial role in the regulation of I(Ca)-induced increases in [Ca2+]i, and that, even following release of intracellular calcium by caffeine, Na(+)-Ca2+ exchange does not play an appreciable role in the removal of calcium ions from the cytosol.
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Biology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia 19104-6046, USA.
authors.forename: B K
authors.initials: BK
authors.lastname: Fleischmann
authors.forename: Y X
authors.initials: YX
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pring
authors.forename: M I
authors.initials: MI
authors.lastname: Kotlikoff
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002021:Buffers; D002118:Calcium / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000502:physiology; D015220:Calcium Channels / Q000502:physiology*; D002352:Carrier Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D003600:Cytosol / Q000378:metabolism*; D004594:Electrophysiology; D006736:Horses; D009130:Muscle, Smooth / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism*; D009994:Osmolar Concentration; D019831:Sodium-Calcium Exchanger; D013997:Time Factors; D014132:Trachea / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D002021:Buffers; D015220:Calcium Channels; D002352:Carrier Proteins; D019831:Sodium-Calcium Exchanger; D002118:Calcium