Modal gating in neuronal and skeletal muscle ryanodine-sensitive Ca2+ release channels

Hysteresis in voltage-gated channels

Ion channels constitute a superfamily of membrane proteins found in all living creatures. Their activity allows fast translocation of ions across the plasma membrane down the ion's transmembrane electrochemical gradient, resulting in a difference in electrical potential across the plasma membrane, known as the membrane potential. A group within this superfamily, namely voltage-gated channels, displays activity that is sensitive to the membrane potential. The activity of voltage-gated channels is controlled by the membrane potential, while the membrane potential is changed by these channels' activity. This interplay produces variations in the membrane potential that have evolved into electrical signals in many organisms. These signals are essential for numerous biological processes, including neuronal activity, insulin release, muscle contraction, fertilization and many others. In recent years, the activity of the voltage-gated channels has been observed not to follow a simple relationship with the membrane potential. Instead, it has been shown that the activity of voltage-gated channel displays hysteresis. In fact, a growing number of evidence have demonstrated that the voltage dependence of channel activity is dynamically modulated by activity itself. In spite of the great impact that this property can have on electrical signaling, hysteresis in voltage-gated channels is often overlooked. Addressing this issue, this review provides examples of voltage-gated ion channels displaying hysteretic behavior. Further, this review will discuss how Dynamic Voltage Dependence in voltage-gated channels can have a physiological role in electrical signaling. Furthermore, this review will elaborate on the current thoughts on the mechanism underlying hysteresis in voltage-gated channels.

FKBP12.6 activates RyR1: investigating the amino acid residues critical for channel modulation

We have previously shown that FKBP12 associates with RyR2 in cardiac muscle and that it modulates RyR2 function differently to FKBP12.6. We now investigate how these proteins affect the single-channel behavior of RyR1 derived from rabbit skeletal muscle. Our results show that FKBP12.6 activates and FKBP12 inhibits RyR1. It is likely that both proteins compete for the same binding sites on RyR1 because channels that are preactivated by FKBP12.6 cannot be subsequently inhibited by FKBP12. We produced a mutant FKBP12 molecule (FKBP12E31Q/D32N/W59F) where the residues Glu(31), Asp(32), and Trp(59) were converted to the corresponding residues in FKBP12.6. With respect to the functional regulation of RyR1 and RyR2, the FKBP12E31Q/D32N/W59F mutant lost all ability to behave like FKBP12 and instead behaved like FKBP12.6. FKBP12E31Q/D32N/W59F activated RyR1 but was not capable of activating RyR2. In conclusion, FKBP12.6 activates RyR1, whereas FKBP12 activates RyR2 and this selective activator phenotype is determined within the amino acid residues Glu(31), Asp(32), and Trp(59) in FKBP12 and Gln(31), Asn(32), and Phe(59) in FKBP12.6. The opposing but different effects of FKBP12 and FKBP12.6 on RyR1 and RyR2 channel gating provide scope for diversity of regulation in different tissues.

Insights into the gating mechanism of the ryanodine-modified human cardiac Ca2+-release channel (ryanodine receptor 2)

Ryanodine receptors (RyRs) are intracellular membrane channels playing key roles in many Ca(2+) signaling pathways and, as such, are emerging novel therapeutic and insecticidal targets. RyRs are so named because they bind the plant alkaloid ryanodine with high affinity and although it is established that ryanodine produces profound changes in all aspects of function, our understanding of the mechanisms underlying altered gating is minimal. We address this issue using detailed single-channel gating analysis, mathematical modeling, and energetic evaluation of state transitions establishing that, with ryanodine bound, the RyR pore adopts an extremely stable open conformation. We demonstrate that stability of this state is influenced by interaction of divalent cations with both activating and inhibitory cytosolic sites and, in the absence of activating Ca(2+), trans-membrane voltage. Comparison of the conformational stability of ryanodine- and Imperatoxin A-modified channels identifies significant differences in the mechanisms of action of these qualitatively similar ligands.

Regulation of dendritic calcium release in striatal spiny projection neurons

The induction of corticostriatal long-term depression (LTD) in striatal spiny projection neurons (SPNs) requires coactivation of group I metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs) and L-type Ca(2+) channels. This combination leads to the postsynaptic production of endocannabinoids that act presynaptically to reduce glutamate release. Although the necessity of coactivation is agreed upon, why it is necessary in physiologically meaningful settings is not. The studies described here attempt to answer this question by using two-photon laser scanning microscopy and patch-clamp electrophysiology to interrogate the dendritic synapses of SPNs in ex vivo brain slices from transgenic mice. These experiments revealed that postsynaptic action potentials induce robust ryanodine receptor (RYR)-dependent Ca(2+)-induced-Ca(2+) release (CICR) in SPN dendritic spines. Depolarization-induced opening of voltage-gated Ca(2+) channels was necessary for CICR. CICR was more robust in indirect pathway SPNs than in direct pathway SPNs, particularly in distal dendrites. Although it did not increase intracellular Ca(2+) concentration alone, group I mGluR activation enhanced CICR and slowed Ca(2+) clearance, extending the activity-evoked intraspine transient. The mGluR modulation of CICR was sensitive to antagonism of inositol trisphosphate receptors, RYRs, src kinase, and Cav1.3 L-type Ca(2+) channels. Uncaging glutamate at individual spines effectively activated mGluRs and facilitated CICR induced by back-propagating action potentials. Disrupting CICR by antagonizing RYRs prevented the induction of corticostriatal LTD with spike-timing protocols. In contrast, mGluRs had no effect on the induction of long-term potentiation. Taken together, these results make clearer how coactivation of mGluRs and L-type Ca(2+) channels promotes the induction of activity-dependent LTD in SPNs.

The liver: Key in regulating appetite and body weight

Liver fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase (FBPase) is a regulatory enzyme in gluconeogenesis that is elevated by obesity and dietary fat intake. Whether FBPase functions only in glucose metabolism or has other metabolic roles is currently unclear. In our recently published study, we examined the importance of liver FBPase in body weight regulation by performing a series of comprehensive physiological and biochemical assessments of energy balance and specific intervention studies in our transgenic mouse line that overexpresses FBPase specifically in the liver. Compared with negative littermates, these FBPase transgenic mice weighed 10% less, had 50% less adiposity, ate 15% less food but did not have altered energy expenditure. Increased circulating leptin and cholecystokinin levels, elevated fatty acid oxidation and reduced appetite stimulating neuropeptides, neuropeptide Y (NPY) and agouti-related peptide (AGRP), underpinned this phenotype. Blocking the action of FBPase returned food intake and body weight to those of the negative littermates. Our study is the first to identify liver FBPase as a previously unknown regulator of appetite and adiposity. Importantly, this work recognizes the liver as an important organ in appetite and body weight regulation. This commentary will provide further insight and expand on this novel concept that the liver does in fact play an important role in adiposity.

Coupled gating of skeletal muscle ryanodine receptors is modulated by Ca2+, Mg2+, and ATP

Coupled gating (synchronous openings and closures) of groups of skeletal muscle ryanodine receptors (RyR1), which mimics RyR1-mediated Ca(2+) release underlying Ca(2+) sparks, was first described by Marx et al. (Marx SO, Ondrias K, Marks AR. Science 281: 818-821, 1998). The nature of the RyR1-RyR1 interactions for coupled gating still needs to be characterized. Consequently, we defined planar lipid bilayer conditions where ∼25% of multichannel reconstitutions contain mixtures of coupled and independently gating RyR1. In ∼10% of the cases, all RyRs (2-10 channels; most frequently 3-4) gated in coupled fashion, allowing for quantification. Our results indicated that coupling required cytosolic solutions containing ATP/Mg(2+) and high (50 mM) luminal Ca(2+) (Ca(lum)) or Sr(2+) solutions. Bursts of coupled activity (events) started and ended abruptly, with all channels activating/deactivating within ∼300 μs. Coupled RyR1 were heterogeneous, where highly active RyR1 ("drivers") seemed open during the entire coupled event (P(o) = 1), while other RyR1s ("followers") displayed abundant flickering and smaller amplitude. Drivers mean open time increased with cytosolic Ca(2+) (Ca(cyt)) or caffeine, whereas followers flicker frequency was Ca(cyt) independent and more sensitive to inhibition by cytosolic Mg(2+). Coupled events were insensitive to varying lumen-to-cytosol Ca(2+) fluxes from ∼1 to 8 pA, which does not corroborate coupling of neighboring RyR1 by local Ca(2+)-induced Ca(2+) release. However, coupling requires specific Ca(lum) sites, as it was lost when Ca(lum) was replaced by luminal Ba(2+) or Mg(2+). In summary, coupled events reveal complex interactions among heterogeneous RyR1, differentially modulated by cytosolic ATP/Mg(2+), Ca(cyt), and Ca(lum,) which under cell-like ionic conditions may parallel synchronous RyR1 gating during Ca(2+) sparks.

Modulation of cardiac ryanodine receptor channels by alkaline earth cations

Cardiac ryanodine receptor (RyR2) function is modulated by Ca(2+) and Mg(2+). To better characterize Ca(2+) and Mg(2+) binding sites involved in RyR2 regulation, the effects of cytosolic and luminal earth alkaline divalent cations (M(2+): Mg(2+), Ca(2+), Sr(2+), Ba(2+)) were studied on RyR2 from pig ventricle reconstituted in bilayers. RyR2 were activated by M(2+) binding to high affinity activating sites at the cytosolic channel surface, specific for Ca(2+) or Sr(2+). This activation was interfered by Mg(2+) and Ba(2+) acting at low affinity M(2+)-unspecific binding sites. When testing the effects of luminal M(2+) as current carriers, all M(2+) increased maximal RyR2 open probability (compared to Cs(+)), suggesting the existence of low affinity activating M(2+)-unspecific sites at the luminal surface. Responses to M(2+) vary from channel to channel (heterogeneity). However, with luminal Ba(2+)or Mg(2+), RyR2 were less sensitive to cytosolic Ca(2+) and caffeine-mediated activation, openings were shorter and voltage-dependence was more marked (compared to RyR2 with luminal Ca(2+)or Sr(2+)). Kinetics of RyR2 with mixtures of luminal Ba(2+)/Ca(2+) and additive action of luminal plus cytosolic Ba(2+) or Mg(2+) suggest luminal M(2+) differentially act on luminal sites rather than accessing cytosolic sites through the pore. This suggests the presence of additional luminal activating Ca(2+)/Sr(2+)-specific sites, which stabilize high P(o) mode (less voltage-dependent) and increase RyR2 sensitivity to cytosolic Ca(2+) activation. In summary, RyR2 luminal and cytosolic surfaces have at least two sets of M(2+) binding sites (specific for Ca(2+) and unspecific for Ca(2+)/Mg(2+)) that dynamically modulate channel activity and gating status, depending on SR voltage.

ER calcium and Alzheimer's disease: in a state of flux

The calcium ion (Ca(2+)) plays fundamental roles in orchestrating dynamic changes in the function and structure of nerve cell circuits in the brain. The endoplasmic reticulum (ER), an organelle that actively removes Ca(2+) from the cytoplasm, can release stored Ca(2+) through ER membrane receptor channels responsive either to the lipid messenger inositol trisphosphate (IP(3)) or to cytosolic Ca(2+). Emerging findings suggest that perturbed ER Ca(2+) homeostasis contributes to the dysfunction and degeneration of neurons that occurs in Alzheimer's disease (AD). Presenilin-1 (PS1) is an integral membrane protein in the ER; mutations in PS1 that cause early-onset inherited AD increase the pool of ER Ca(2+) available for release and also enhance Ca(2+) release through ER IP(3)- and ryanodine-sensitive channels. By enhancing Ca(2+) flux across the ER membrane, PS1 mutations may exaggerate Ca(2+) signaling in synaptic terminals and thereby render them vulnerable to dysfunction and degeneration in the settings of aging and amyloid accumulation in AD.

Calcium regulation of single ryanodine receptor channel gating analyzed using HMM/MCMC statistical methods

Type-II ryanodine receptor channels (RYRs) play a fundamental role in intracellular Ca²⁺ dynamics in heart. The processes of activation, inactivation, and regulation of these channels have been the subject of intensive research and the focus of recent debates. Typically, approaches to understand these processes involve statistical analysis of single RYRs, involving signal restoration, model estimation, and selection. These tasks are usually performed by following rather phenomenological criteria that turn models into self-fulfilling prophecies. Here, a thorough statistical treatment is applied by modeling single RYRs using aggregated hidden Markov models. Inferences are made using Bayesian statistics and stochastic search methods known as Markov chain Monte Carlo. These methods allow extension of the temporal resolution of the analysis far beyond the limits of previous approaches and provide a direct measure of the uncertainties associated with every estimation step, together with a direct assessment of why and where a particular model fails. Analyses of single RYRs at several Ca²⁺ concentrations are made by considering 16 models, some of them previously reported in the literature. Results clearly show that single RYRs have Ca²⁺-dependent gating modes. Moreover, our results demonstrate that single RYRs responding to a sudden change in Ca²⁺ display adaptation kinetics. Interestingly, best ranked models predict microscopic reversibility when monovalent cations are used as the main permeating species. Finally, the extended bandwidth revealed the existence of novel fast buzz-mode at low Ca²⁺ concentrations.

Kinetic studies of calcium-induced calcium release in cardiac sarcoplasmic reticulum vesicles

Fast Ca(2+) release kinetics were measured in cardiac sarcoplasmic reticulum vesicles actively loaded with Ca(2+). Release was induced in solutions containing 1.2 mM free ATP and variable free [Ca(2+)] and [Mg(2+)]. Release rate constants (k) were 10-fold higher at pCa 6 than at pCa 5 whereas Ryanodine binding was highest at pCa < or =5. These results suggest that channels respond differently when exposed to sudden [Ca(2+)] changes than when exposed to Ca(2+) for longer periods. Vesicles with severalfold different luminal calcium contents exhibited double exponential release kinetics at pCa 6, suggesting that channels undergo time-dependent activity changes. Addition of Mg(2+) produced a marked inhibition of release kinetics at pCa 6 (K(0.5) = 63 microM) but not at pCa 5. Coexistence of calcium activation and inhibition sites with equally fast binding kinetics is proposed to explain this behavior. Thimerosal activated release kinetics at pCa 5 at all [Mg(2+)] tested and increased at pCa 6 the K(0.5) for Mg(2+) inhibition, from 63 microM to 136 microM. We discuss the possible relevance of these results, which suggest release through RyR2 channels is subject to fast regulation by Ca(2+) and Mg(2+) followed by time-dependent regulation, to the physiological mechanisms of cardiac channel opening and closing.

Ryanodine receptor calcium release channels

The ryanodine receptors (RyRs) are a family of Ca2+ release channels found on intracellular Ca2+ storage/release organelles. The RyR channels are ubiquitously expressed in many types of cells and participate in a variety of important Ca2+ signaling phenomena (neurotransmission, secretion, etc.). In striated muscle, the RyR channels represent the primary pathway for Ca2+ release during the excitation-contraction coupling process. In general, the signals that activate the RyR channels are known (e.g., sarcolemmal Ca2+ influx or depolarization), but the specific mechanisms involved are still being debated. The signals that modulate and/or turn off the RyR channels remain ambiguous and the mechanisms involved unclear. Over the last decade, studies of RyR-mediated Ca2+ release have taken many forms and have steadily advanced our knowledge. This robust field, however, is not without controversial ideas and contradictory results. Controversies surrounding the complex Ca2+ regulation of single RyR channels receive particular attention here. In addition, a large body of information is synthesized into a focused perspective of single RyR channel function. The present status of the single RyR channel field and its likely future directions are also discussed.

Effects of quercetin on single Ca(2+) release channel behavior of skeletal muscle

Quercetin, a bioflavonoid, is known to affect Ca(2+) fluxes in sarcoplasmic reticulum, although its direct effect on Ca(2+) release channel (CRC) in sarcoplasmic reticulum has remained to be elucidated. The present study examined the effect of quercetin on the behavior of single skeletal CRC in planar lipid bilayer. The effect of caffeine was also studied for comparison. At very low [Ca(2+)](cis) (80 pM), quercetin activated CRC marginally, whereas at elevated [Ca(2+)](cis) (10 microM), both open probability (P(o)) and sensitivity to the drug increased markedly. Caffeine showed a similar tendency. Analysis of lifetimes for single CRC showed that quercetin and caffeine led to different mean open-time and closed-time constants and their proportions. Addition of 10 microM ryanodine to CRC activated by quercetin or caffeine led to the typical subconductance state (approximately 54%) and a subsequent addition of 5 microM ruthenium red completely blocked CRC activity. When 6 microM quercetin and 3 mM caffeine were added together to the cis side of CRC, a time-dependent increase of P(o) was observed (from mode 1 (0.376 +/- 0.043, n = 5) to mode 2 (0.854 +/- 0.062, n = 5)). On the other hand, no further activation was observed when quercetin was added after caffeine. Quercetin affected only the ascending phase of the bell-shaped Ca(2+) activation/inactivation curve, whereas caffeine affected both ascending and descending phases. [(3)H]ryanodine binding to sarcoplasmic reticulum showed that channel activity increased more by both quercetin and caffeine than by caffeine alone. These characteristic differences in the modes of activation of CRC by quercetin and caffeine suggest that the channel activation mechanisms and presumably the binding sites on CRC are different for the two drugs.

Markovian models of low and high activity levels of cardiac ryanodine receptors

The modal gating behavior of single sheep cardiac sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) Ca2+-release/ryanodine receptor (RyR) channels was assessed. We find that the gating of RyR channels spontaneously shifts between high (H) and low (L) levels of activity and inactive periods where no channel openings are detected (I). Moreover, we find that there is evidence for multiple gating modes within H activity, which we term H1 and H2 mode. Our results demonstrate that the underlying mechanisms regulating gating are similar in native and purified channels. Dwell-time distributions of L activity were best fitted by three open and five closed significant exponential components whereas dwell-time distributions of H1 activity were best fitted by two to three open and four closed significant exponential components. Increases in cytosolic [Ca2+] cause an increase in open probability (Po) within L activity and an increase in the probability of occurrence of H activity. Open lifetime distributions within L activity were Ca2+ independent whereas open lifetime distributions within H activity were Ca2+ dependent. This study is the first attempt to estimate RyR single-channel kinetic parameters from sequences of idealized dwell-times and to develop kinetic models of RyR gating using the criterion of maximum likelihood. We propose distinct kinetic schemes for L, H1, and H2 activity that describe the major features of sheep cardiac RyR channel gating at these levels of activity.

Effects of tetracaine on sarcoplasmic calcium release in mammalian skeletal muscle fibres

1. Single muscle fibres were dissociated enzymatically from the extensor digitorum communis muscle of rats. The fibres were mounted into a double Vaseline gap experimental chamber and the events in excitation-contraction coupling were studied under voltage clamp conditions in the presence and absence of the local anaesthetic tetracaine. 2. Changes in intracellular calcium concentration ([Ca2+]i) were monitored using the calcium sensitive dyes antipyrylazo III and fura-2 and the rate of calcium release (Rrel) from the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) was calculated. Tetracaine decreased the maximal attained [Ca2+]i and suppressed, in a dose-dependent manner, both the early peak and the steady level of Rrel in the voltage range examined. 3. The concentration dependence of the effects on the two kinetic components of Rrel were almost identical with a half-effective concentration (K50) of 70 and 71 microM and a Hill coefficient (nH) of 2.7 and 2.3 for the peak and the steady level, respectively. Furthermore, the drug did not alter the peak to steady level ratio up to a concentration (50 microM) that caused a 35 +/- 5 % reduction in calcium release. Higher concentrations did suppress the ratio but the degree of suppression was voltage independent. 4. Tetracaine (50 microM) neither influenced the total available intramembrane charge nor altered its membrane potential dependence. It shifted the transfer function, the normalized SR permeability versus normalized charge to the right, indicating that similar charge transfer caused a smaller increase in SR permeability. 5. To explore the site of action of tetracaine further the ryanodine receptor (RyR) calcium release channel of the SR was purified and reconstituted into planar lipid bilayers. The reconstituted channel had a conductance of 511 +/- 14 pS (n = 8) in symmetric 250 mM KCl that was not affected by tetracaine. Tetracaine decreased the open probability of the channel in a concentration-dependent manner with K50 = 68 microM and nH = 1.5. 6. These experiments show that tetracaine suppresses SR calcium release in enzymatic isolated mammalian skeletal muscle fibres. This effect is due, presumably, to the decreased open probability of the RyR in the presence of the drug. Since both the inactivating peak and the steady level of Rrel were equally affected by tetracaine, our observations suggest that there is a tight coupling between these kinetic components of SR calcium release in mammalian skeletal muscle.

A repetitive mode of activation of discrete Ca2+ release events (Ca2+ sparks) in frog skeletal muscle fibres

1. Ca2+ release events (Ca2+ 'sparks'), which are believed to arise from the opening of a sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) Ca2+ release channel or a small cluster of such channels that act as a release unit, have been measured in single, frog (Rana pipiens) skeletal muscle fibres. 2. Under conditions of extremely low rates of occurrence of Ca2+ sparks we observed, within individual identified triads, repetitive Ca2+ release events which occurred at a frequency more than 100-fold greater than the prevailing average event rate. Repetitive sparks were recorded during voltage-clamp test depolarizations after a brief (0.3-2 s) repriming interval in fibres held at 0 mV and in chronically depolarized, 'notched' fibres. 3. These repetitive events are likely to arise from the re-opening of the same SR Ca2+ release channel or release unit operating in a repetitive gating mode ('rep-mode'), rather than from the random activation of multiple, independent channels or release units within a triad. A train of rep-mode events thus represents a series of Ca2+ sparks arising from a single location within the fibre. Rep-mode events are activated among different triads in a random manner after brief repriming. The frequency of repetitive events among all identified events during voltage-clamp depolarization to 0 mV after brief repriming was 3.9 +/- 1.3 %. The occurrence of repetitive events was not related to exposure of the fibre to laser illumination. 4. The events observed within a rep-mode train exhibited a relatively uniform amplitude. Analysis of intervals between identified events in triads exhibiting rep-mode trains indicated similar variations of fluorescence as in neighbouring, quiescent triads, suggesting there was not a significant number of small, unidentified events at the triads exhibiting rep-mode activity. 5. The distribution of rep-mode interspark intervals exhibited a paucity of events at short intervals, consistent with the need for recovery from inactivation before activation of the next event in a repetitive train. The mean interspark interval of repetitive sparks during voltage-clamp depolarizations was 88 +/- 5 ms, and was independent of membrane potential. 6. The individual Ca2+ sparks within a rep-mode train were similar in average amplitude and spatiotemporal extent to singly occurring sparks, suggesting a common mechanism for termination of the channel opening(s) underlying both types of events. The average properties of the sparks did not vary during a train. The relative amplitude of a spark within a rep-mode was not correlated with its rise time. 7. Repetitive Ca2+ release events represent a mode of gating of SR Ca2+ release channels which may be significant during long depolarizations and which may be influenced by the biochemical state of the SR ryanodine receptor Ca2+ release channels.

Voltage change-induced gating transitions of the rabbit skeletal muscle Ca2+ release channel

1. We used the planar lipid bilayer method to study single ryanodine receptor Ca2+ release channels (RyRCs) from fast skeletal muscle of the rabbit. We found that changes in membrane voltage directly induced gating transitions of the RyRC: (i) in the steady state, even at activating Ca2+ concentrations (20 microM), at a constant membrane potential the channels resided in a low open probability (Po) state (inactivated-, I-mode), and (ii) upon abrupt changes of voltage, the apparent inactivation of the RyRCs was relieved, resulting in a rapid and transient increase in Po. 2. The magnitude of the Po increase was a function of both the duration and the amplitude of the applied prepulse, but was independent of the channel activity during the prepulse. 3. The voltage-induced Po increase probably involved major conformational changes of the channel, as it resulted in substantial alterations in the gating pattern of the channels: the voltage change-induced increase in Po was accompanied by the rapid appearance of two types of channel activity (high (H) and low (L) open probability modes). 4. The response of the RyRC to voltage changes raises the interesting possibility that the activation of RyRC in situ might involve electrical events, i.e. a possible dipole-dipole coupling between the release channel and the voltage sensor.

Heterogeneity of Ca2+ gating of skeletal muscle and cardiac ryanodine receptors

The single-channel activity of rabbit skeletal muscle ryanodine receptor (skeletal RyR) and dog cardiac RyR was studied as a function of cytosolic [Ca2+]. The studies reveal that for both skeletal and cardiac RyRs, heterogeneous populations of channels exist, rather than a uniform behavior. Skeletal muscle RyRs displayed two extremes of behavior: 1) low-activity RyRs (LA skeletal RyRs, approximately 35% of the channels) had very low open probability (Po < 0.1) at all [Ca2+] and remained closed in the presence of Mg2+ (2 mM) and ATP (1 mM); 2) high-activity RyRs (HA skeletal RyRs) had much higher activity and displayed further heterogeneity in their Po values at low [Ca2+] (< 50 nM), and in their patterns of activation by [Ca2+]. Hill coefficients for activation (nHa) varied from 0.8 to 5.2. Cardiac RyRs, in comparison, behaved more homogeneously. Most cardiac RyRs were closed at 100 nM [Ca2+] and activated in a cooperative manner (nHa ranged from 1.6 to 5.0), reaching a high Po (> 0.6) in the presence and absence of Mg2+ and ATP. Heart RyRs were much less sensitive (10x) to inhibition by [Ca2+] than skeletal RyRs. The differential heterogeneity of heart versus skeletal muscle RyRs may reflect the modulation required for calcium-induced calcium release versus depolarization-induced Ca2+ release.