Indirect and direct effects of the divalent cation ionophore A23187 on guinea pig and rat ventricular myocardium

Comparative mechanical and electrical actions of A23187 and X-537A in canine Purkinje fibers

1. At concentrations lower than 10(-5) M, A23187 did not affect the contractile force in canine Purkinje fibers, but at 2 x 10(-5) M, decreased it significantly. 2. X-537A (10(-6) M) slightly increased the contractile force. The increase was not modified by 10(-7) M pindolol. 3. At 20 min after application both ionophores (2 x 10(-5) M) affected little or no changes in the action potential configurations, except for a marked shortening of the action potential duration. A delayed afterdepolarization and an aftercontraction occurred. 4. The electrophysiological effects were potentiated with an increase in extracellular Ca2+ and further by isoproterenol (1-3 x 10(-7) M). 5. A post-rest potentiation was depressed in the presence of these Ca2+ ionophores. 6. When the stimulation frequency was stepped up from 120 to 180 beats/min, the negative staircase of the contractile force was reversed to positive one in the presence of A23187, high Ca2+ and isoproterenol. 7. These results indicate that in canine Purkinje fibers, X-537A produces cellular Ca2+ overload, but A23187 alone does not cause it. Mechanical and electrophysiological effects induced by these ionophores are potentiated by addition of high Ca2+ and isoproterenol.

Halothane attenuation of muscarinic inhibition of adenylate cyclase in rat heart

Halothane stimulated basal adenylate cyclase activity in rat cardiac membranes. Maximal stimulation (54%) was obtained after equilibrating the membranes with 2% halothane. Halothane did not affect the fractional stimulation of adenylate cyclase activity produced by either forskolin or isoproterenol. However, halothane decreased carbamylcholine inhibition of adenylate cyclase activity stimulated by both forskolin and isoproterenol. Maximal depression of carbamylcholine inhibition of stimulated cyclase activity was obtained after equilibration with 1% halothane. These results are consistent with evidence from ligand binding studies and indicate that halothane disrupts muscarinic receptor-G-protein interactions.

Positive inotropic and chronotropic effects of the calcium ionophore A23187 (calimycin) on guinea-pig atria

The inotropic and chronotropic effects of the calcium ionophore A23187 (calimycin = CA) in isolated, superfused, electrically driven, auxotonically contracting left and spontaneously beating right guinea-pig atria were examined at different Ca2+ concentrations. 10(-6) to 10(-5) mol/l CA shows significantly positive inotropic and chronotropic effects. The inotropic effect of CA can be significantly diminished by relatively high concentrations of Ca2+ channel antagonists and relatively low concentrations of ryanodine. The positive chronotropic effect of CA can be reduced slightly, but significantly, by beta-adrenoceptor antagonists and histamine H2-receptor antagonists. From this we infer that the positive inotropic effect of CA is mainly due to the release of Ca2+ from cardiac sarcoplasmic reticulum, whereas catecholamine and histamine release appear to contribute to the positive chronotropic effect of the ionophore.

Neurobehavioral effects of the calcium ionophore A23187

The divalent cationic ionophore A23187 (calimycin) facilitates the transport of calcium ions across biological membranes, resulting in an increase of cytosolic calcium. A23187 has been used extensively in vitro to activate calcium-dependent neurocellular processes. Because of its potential usefulness as a neurotoxicological probe, our laboratory conducted a series of studies to characterize the neurofunctional consequences of A23187 in the intact organism. In addition to approximating the LD50, the effects of acute parenteral administration of A23187 on conditioned avoidance, nociceptive shock threshold, open-field activity, consummatory behavior, body temperature and neuromotor function, including general activity, coordination, balance and grip strength, were assessed in the rodent. The LD50 of A23187, administered intraperitoneally to adult male rats, was 9.2 mg/kg. The predominant overt signs of toxicity included lethargy, limb weakness and apnea. Lower doses, from 0.5 to 0.03 mg/kg, produced a variety of more subtle neurobehavioral effects, including a selective depression of motor activity, a moderate elevation of shock threshold, altered conditioned avoidance behavior and hypothermia.

Temperature-dependent inotropic action of A23187 on guinea-pig ventricular muscles

The effects of the Ca2+ ionophore, A23187, on the contraction and membrane action potential of the isolated guinea-pig papillary muscle were examined at various temperatures (30-16 degrees C) and compared to those of isoprenaline and a high calcium medium. A23187 caused a marked positive inotropic effect with a significant prolongation of the action potential duration at an early repolarization phase but not a late repolarization phase at normal temperature (30 degrees C). Such an inotropic effect was completely abolished at low temperature (16 degrees C) where a marked positive inotropic effect of isoprenaline (5 X 10(-8) M) and a high calcium medium (6.2 mM) still remained. These results suggest that the cardiac responsiveness to A23187 was sensitive to a low temperature at which a membrane lipid phase transition may occur.

Changes in 42K efflux produced by alterations in transmembrane calcium movements in turtle cardiac pace-maker tissue

1. 42K efflux has been measured from small strips of turtle sinus venosus which were electrically paced. Three different procedures for altering transmembrane calcium influx have been utilized to test whether changes in 42K efflux may be modulated by changes in intracellular calcium levels. 2. No significant changes in the 42K fractional escape rate (FER) were observed when external calcium was reduced to O mM or increased to 4 x normal (10 mM). In these experiments extracellular divalent cation concentration was held constant by adding or removing magnesium ions. 3. Application of 10 mM-Ba2+ also failed to alter 42K FER consistently. In red blood cells and snail neurones addition of barium ions has been shown to reduce significantly the calcium-mediated potassium current. 4. A tenfold increase in pacing rate (0.5-5 Hz) resulted in an augmented 42K FER, but repetition of this rate change in O mM-Ca2+ indicated that this increase in 42K FER was not strongly dependent on the amount of calcium entry. 5. Attempts to load the pace-maker cells with calcium by using the ionophore A23187 (10 micrograms ml . -1 of 2.0 x 10(-5) M) consistently resulted in very large increases in 42K FER. However, this effect (i) was blocked by atropine and (ii) was markedly reduced by pretreating the tissues with hemicholinium, indicating that A23187-induced release of acetylcholine from the endogenous nerve terminals was responsible for the observed increase in 42K FER. 6. In summary, three different experimental tests indicate that the majority of the 42K efflux is not tightly linked to transmembrane calcium movement in sinus venosus pace-maker tissue.