L-type Ca2+ current as the predominant pathway of Ca2+ entry during I(Na) activation in beta-stimulated cardiac myocytes.

In the present study Ca2+ entry via different voltage-dependent membrane channels was examined with a fluorescent Ca2+ indicator before and after beta-adrenergic stimulation. To clearly distinguish between Ca2+ influx and Ca2+ release from the sarcoplasmic reticulum the Ca2+ store was blocked with 0.1 microM thapsigargin and 10 microM ryanodine. Omitting Na+ from the pipette filling solution minimized Ca2+ entry via Na+-Ca2+ exchange. Individual guinea-pig ventricular myocytes were voltage clamped in the whole-cell configuration of the patch-clamp technique and different membrane currents were activated using specific voltage protocols. The intracellular Ca2+ concentration was simultaneously recorded with a laser-scanning confocal microscope using fluo-3 as a Ca2+ indicator. Ca2+ entry pathways were discriminated using pharmacological blockers under control conditions and during beta-adrenergic stimulation with 1 microM isoproterenol (isoprenaline) in the bathing solution or 100 microM cAMP in the patch-clamp pipette. Isoproterenol or cAMP potentiated the Ca2+ influx signals recorded during L-type Ca2+ current activation but, more interestingly, also during Na+ current (INa) activation. The Ca2+ influx signal arising from L-type Ca2+ current activation was usually blocked by 50 microM Cd2+. However, the Ca2+ influx signal elicited by the Na+ current activation protocol was only curtailed to 56.4 +/- 28.2 % by 100 microM Ni2+ but was reduced to 17.9 +/- 15.1 % by 50 microM Cd2+ and consistently eliminated by 5 mM Ni2+. The pronounced Cd2+ and moderate Ni2+ sensitivity of the Ca2+ influx signals suggested that the predominant source of Ca2+ influx during the Na+ current activation - before and during beta-adrenergic stimulation - was a spurious activation of the L-type Ca2+ current, presumably due to voltage escape during Na+ current activation. Calculations based on the relationship between Ca2+ current and fluorescence change revealed that, on average, we could reliably detect rapid Ca2+ concentration changes as small as 5.4 +/- 0.7 nM. Thus, we can estimate an upper limit for the Ca2+ permeability of the phosphorylated TTX-sensitive Na+ channels which is less than 0.04:1 for Ca2+ ions flowing through Na+ channels via the proposed 'slip-mode' Ca2+ conductance. Therefore the slip-mode Ca2+ conductance of Na+ channels does not contribute noticeably to the Ca2+ signals observed in our experiments.

Calcium signalling in cardiac muscle: refractoriness revealed by coherent activation.

Contraction of cardiac myocytes is governed by calcium-ion (Ca2+ )-induced Ca2+ release (CICR) from the sarcoplasmic reticulum through Ca2+-release channels. Ca2+ release occurs by concerted activation of numerous elementary Ca2+ events, 'Ca2+ sparks', that are triggered and locally controlled by Ca2+ influx into the cell through plasmalemmal L-type Ca2+ channels. Because of the positive feedback inherent in CICR, an as-yet-unidentified control mechanism is required to restrain the amplification of Ca2+ signalling and to terminate Ca2+ release from the sarcoplasmic reticulum. Here we use ultraviolet-laser-flash and two-photon photolysis of caged Ca2+ to study spatiotemporal features of the termination and refractoriness of Ca2+ release. Coherent and simultaneous activation of all Ca2+-release sites within a cardiac myocyte unmasked a prominent refractoriness, recovering monotonically within about 1 second. In contrast, selective activation of a few Ca 2+-release sites was not followed by a refractoriness of Ca 2+ release from the sarcoplasmic reticulum. This discrepancy is consistent with the idea that a functional depletion of Ca2+ from the cellular sarcoplasmic-reticulum network may underlie the refractoriness of CICR observed after a whole-cell Ca2+ transient. These results also imply the requirement for further mechanisms to terminate spatially limited subcellular Ca2+-release events such as Ca2+ sparks.

Two-photon and UV-laser flash photolysis of the Ca2+ cage, dimethoxynitrophenyl-EGTA-4.

We report efficient two-photon and UV-laser flash photolysis of dimethoxynitrophenyl-EGTA-4 (DMNPE-4), a newly-developed photolabile Ca(2+)-specific chelator. This compound exhibits good two-photon absorption at 705 nm, has a low Mg2+ affinity (approximately 7 mM), a Kd for Ca2+ of 19 nM, a quantum yield of 0.20 and changes its Ca2+ affinity by 21,000-fold upon photolysis. Two-photon excitation photolysis (TPP) experiments were performed with a Ti:Sapphire laser in solutions containing DMNPE-4 with either 0 or 10 mM Mg2+ and compared to that of the widely used Ca2+ cage, DM-nitrophen (Kd for Ca2+ 5 nM, Kd for Mg2+ 2.5 microM, quantum yield 0.18, affinity change 600,000-fold). The resulting Ca2+ signals were recorded with the fluorescent Ca2+ indicator fluo-3 and a laser-scanning confocal microscope in the line-scan mode. In vitro, photolysis of DMNPE-4:Ca2+ produced Ca(2+)-release signals that had comparable amplitudes and time courses in the presence and absence of Mg2+. However, photorelease of Ca2+ from DM-nitrophen was obviated by the presence of Mg2+. In patch-clamped isolated cardiac myocytes, equivalent TPP results were obtained in analogous experiments. Single-photon excitation of DMNPE-4 by Nd:YAG laser flashes produced Na-Ca exchange currents of comparable amplitude in the absence and presence of Mg2+. However, only very small currents were observed in DM-nitrophen solution containing 10 mM Mg2+. In conclusion, both DMNPE-4 and DM-nitrophen undergo TPP, however, only DMNPE-4 exhibits efficient release of Ca2+ in the presence of Mg2+.