title: Selenium-induced alterations in ionic currents of rat cardiomyocytes.
abstract: In the present study, rats were treated with sodium selenite (5 micromol/kg body weight/day, ip) for 4 weeks and the parameters of contractile activity, action potential, L-type Ca2+-current (ICaL), as well as transient outward (Ito), inward rectifier (IK1), and steady state (Iss) K+-currents were investigated. Sodium selenite treatment increased rat blood glucose level and lowered plasma insulin level, significantly. This treatment also caused slightly prolongation in action potential with no significant effects on spontaneous contraction parameters and intracellular Ca2+ transients of the heart preparations. These effects were associated with marked alterations in the kinetics of both ICaL and Ito including a significant slowing in both inactivation time constants of ICaL and a significant shift to negative potential at half-inactivation of these channels without any change in the current density. Also, there was a significantly faster inactivation of Ito and no shift in half-inactivation of this channel without any change in its current density. Consequently, there was a approximately 50% increase in total charges carried by Ca2+ current and approximately 50% decrease in total charges carried by K+ currents of the treated rat cardiomyocytes. Additionally we observed a significant inhibition in IK1 density in treated rat cardiomyocytes. Oxidized glutathione level was significantly increased (70%) while the observed decrease in reduced glutathione was much less. Since a shift in redox state of regulatory proteins is related with cell dysfunction, selenium-induced increase in blood glucose and decrease in plasma insulin may correlate these alterations. These alterations, in the kinetics of the channels and in IK1 density, might lead to proarrhythmic effect of chronic selenium supplementation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biophysics, School of Medicine, Ankara University, 06100 Ankara, Turkey.
authors.forename: Murat
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ayaz
authors.forename: Semir
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ozdemir
authors.forename: Nazmi
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Yaras
authors.forename: Guy
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Vassort
authors.forename: Belma
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Turan
mesh_terms: D000200:Action Potentials / Q000187:drug effects; D000818:Animals; D002118:Calcium / Q000378:metabolism*; D020746:Calcium Channels, L-Type / Q000378:metabolism; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D004553:Electric Conductivity; D005260:Female; D007700:Kinetics; D008297:Male; D009119:Muscle Contraction / Q000187:drug effects; D032383:Myocytes, Cardiac / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism*; D010084:Oxidation-Reduction / Q000187:drug effects; D010210:Papillary Muscles / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D018408:Patch-Clamp Techniques; D011188:Potassium / Q000378:metabolism*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D012643:Selenium / Q000494:pharmacology*; D018038:Sodium Selenite / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D020746:Calcium Channels, L-Type; D012643:Selenium; D018038:Sodium Selenite; D011188:Potassium; D002118:Calcium