Ion channels in smooth muscle: regulators of intracellular calcium and contractility

2005 ◽  
Vol 83 (3) ◽  
pp. 215-242 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin S Thorneloe ◽  
Mark T Nelson

Smooth muscle (SM) is essential to all aspects of human physiology and, therefore, key to the maintenance of life. Ion channels expressed within SM cells regulate the membrane potential, intracellular Ca2+ concentration, and contractility of SM. Excitatory ion channels function to depolarize the membrane potential. These include nonselective cation channels that allow Na+ and Ca2+ to permeate into SM cells. The nonselective cation channel family includes tonically active channels (Icat), as well as channels activated by agonists, pressure-stretch, and intracellular Ca2+ store depletion. Cl--selective channels, activated by intracellular Ca2+ or stretch, also mediate SM depolarization. Plasma membrane depolarization in SM activates voltage-dependent Ca2+ channels that demonstrate a high Ca2+ selectivity and provide influx of contractile Ca2+. Ca2+ is also released from SM intracellular Ca2+ stores of the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) through ryanodine and inositol trisphosphate receptor Ca2+ channels. This is part of a negative feedback mechanism limiting contraction that occurs by the Ca2+-dependent activation of large-conductance K+ channels, which hyper polarize the plasma membrane. Unlike the well-defined contractile role of SR-released Ca2+ in skeletal and cardiac muscle, the literature suggests that in SM Ca2+ released from the SR functions to limit contractility. Depolarization-activated K+ chan nels, ATP-sensitive K+ channels, and inward rectifier K+ channels also hyperpolarize SM, favouring relaxation. The expression pattern, density, and biophysical properties of ion channels vary among SM types and are key determinants of electrical activity, contractility, and SM function.Key words: smooth muscle, ion channel, membrane potential, calcium, contraction.

2000 ◽  
Vol 278 (2) ◽  
pp. L320-L328 ◽  
Author(s):  
Narelle J. Bramich

Intracellular recordings were taken from the smooth muscle of the guinea pig trachea, and the effects of intrinsic nerve stimulation were examined. Approximately 50% of the cells had stable resting membrane potentials of −50 ± 1 mV. The remaining cells displayed spontaneous oscillations in membrane potential, which were abolished either by blocking voltage-dependent Ca2+channels with nifedipine or by depleting intracellular Ca2+stores with ryanodine. In quiescent cells, stimulation with a single impulse evoked an excitatory junction potential (EJP). In 30% of these cells, trains of stimuli evoked an EJP that was followed by oscillations in membrane potential. Transmural nerve stimulation caused an increase in the frequency of spontaneous oscillations. All responses were abolished by the muscarinic-receptor antagonist hyoscine (1 μM). In quiescent cells, nifedipine (1 μM) reduced EJPs by 30%, whereas ryanodine (10 μM) reduced EJPs by 93%. These results suggest that both the release of Ca2+ from intracellular stores and the influx of Ca2+ through voltage-dependent Ca2+channels are important determinants of spontaneous and nerve-evoked electrical activity of guinea pig tracheal smooth muscle.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ming Yang ◽  
Andrew D. James ◽  
Rakesh Suman ◽  
Richard Kasprowicz ◽  
Michaela Nelson ◽  
...  

AbstractIon channels can regulate the plasma membrane potential (Vm) and cell migration as a result of altered ion flux. However, the mechanism by which Vm regulates motility remains unclear. Here, we show that the Nav1.5 sodium channel carries persistent inward Na+ current which depolarizes the resting Vm at the timescale of minutes. This Nav1.5-dependent Vm depolarization increases Rac1 colocalization with phosphatidylserine, to which it is anchored at the leading edge of migrating cells, promoting Rac1 activation. A genetically-encoded FRET biosensor of Rac1 activation shows that depolarization-induced Rac1 activation results in acquisition of a motile phenotype. By identifying Nav1.5-mediated Vm depolarization as a regulator of Rac1 activation, we link ionic and electrical signaling at the plasma membrane to small GTPase-dependent cytoskeletal reorganization and cellular migration. We uncover a novel and unexpected mechanism for Rac1 activation, which fine tunes cell migration in response to ionic and/or electric field changes in the local microenvironment.


2000 ◽  
Vol 278 (2) ◽  
pp. C235-C256 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan H. Jaggar ◽  
Valerie A. Porter ◽  
W. Jonathan Lederer ◽  
Mark T. Nelson

Local intracellular Ca2+transients, termed Ca2+ sparks, are caused by the coordinated opening of a cluster of ryanodine-sensitive Ca2+ release channels in the sarcoplasmic reticulum of smooth muscle cells. Ca2+ sparks are activated by Ca2+ entry through dihydropyridine-sensitive voltage-dependent Ca2+ channels, although the precise mechanisms of communication of Ca2+ entry to Ca2+ spark activation are not clear in smooth muscle. Ca2+ sparks act as a positive-feedback element to increase smooth muscle contractility, directly by contributing to the global cytoplasmic Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]) and indirectly by increasing Ca2+ entry through membrane potential depolarization, caused by activation of Ca2+ spark-activated Cl− channels. Ca2+ sparks also have a profound negative-feedback effect on contractility by decreasing Ca2+ entry through membrane potential hyperpolarization, caused by activation of large-conductance, Ca2+-sensitive K+ channels. In this review, the roles of Ca2+sparks in positive- and negative-feedback regulation of smooth muscle function are explored. We also propose that frequency and amplitude modulation of Ca2+ sparks by contractile and relaxant agents is an important mechanism to regulate smooth muscle function.


2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (9) ◽  
pp. 9785-9796 ◽  
Author(s):  
Takuro Numaga‐Tomita ◽  
Tsukasa Shimauchi ◽  
Sayaka Oda ◽  
Tomohiro Tanaka ◽  
Kazuhiro Nishiyama ◽  
...  

1998 ◽  
Vol 275 (4) ◽  
pp. G689-G695
Author(s):  
Veronica Prpic ◽  
J. Gregory Fitz ◽  
Yu Wang ◽  
John R. Raymond ◽  
Maria N. Garnovskaya ◽  
...  

It has been demonstrated that K+ channel regulation of membrane potential is critical for control of CCK secretion. Because certain K+ channels are pH sensitive, it was postulated that pH affects K+channel activity in the CCK-secreting cell line STC-1 and may participate in regulating CCK secretion. The present study examines the role of electroneutral Na+/H+exchange on extracellular acidification and hormone secretion. Treatment of STC-1 cells with the amiloride analog ethylisopropyl amiloride (EIPA) to inhibit Na+/H+exchange inhibited Na+-dependent H+ efflux and increased basal CCK secretion. Substituting choline for NaCl in the extracellular medium elevated basal intracellular Ca2+concentration and stimulated CCK release. Stimulatory effects on hormone secretion were blocked by the L-type Ca2+ channel blocker diltiazem, indicating that secretion was dependent on the influx of extracellular Ca2+. To determine whether the effects of EIPA and Na+ depletion were due to membrane depolarization, we tested graded KCl concentrations. The ability of EIPA to increase CCK secretion was inhibited by depolarization induced by 10–50 mM KCl in the bath. Maneuvers to lower intracellular pH (pHi), including reducing extracellular pH (pHo) to 7.0 or treatment with sodium butyrate, significantly increased CCK secretion. To examine whether pH directly affects membrane K+ permeability, we measured outward currents carried by K+, using whole cell patch techniques. K+ current was significantly inhibited by lowering pHo to 7.0. These effects appear to be mediated through changes in pHi, because intracellular dialysis with acidic solutions nearly eliminated current activity. These results suggest that Na+/H+exchange and membrane potential may be functionally linked, where inhibition of Na+/H+exchange lowers pHi and depolarizes the membrane, perhaps through inhibition of pH-sensitive K+ channels. In turn, K+ channel closure and membrane depolarization open voltage-dependent Ca2+ channels, leading to an increase in cytosolic Ca2+ and CCK release. The effects of pHi on K+ channels may serve as a potent stimulus for hormone secretion, linking cell metabolism and secretory functions.


1998 ◽  
Vol 274 (6) ◽  
pp. C1653-C1660 ◽  
Author(s):  
Y. S. Prakash ◽  
Mathur S. Kannan ◽  
Timothy F. Walseth ◽  
Gary C. Sieck

The purpose of the present study was to determine whether cyclic ADP-ribose (cADPR) acts as a second messenger for Ca2+ release through ryanodine receptor (RyR) channels in tracheal smooth muscle (TSM). Freshly dissociated porcine TSM cells were permeabilized with β-escin, and real-time confocal microscopy was used to examine changes in intracellular Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i). cADPR (10 nM–10 μM) induced a dose-dependent increase in [Ca2+]i, which was blocked by the cADPR receptor antagonist 8-amino-cADPR (20 μM) and by the RyR blockers ruthenium red (10 μM) and ryanodine (10 μM), but not by the inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor blocker heparin (0.5 mg/ml). During steady-state [Ca2+]ioscillations induced by acetylcholine (ACh), addition of 100 nM and 1 μM cADPR increased oscillation frequency and decreased peak-to-trough amplitude. ACh-induced [Ca2+]ioscillations were blocked by 8-amino-cADPR; however, 8-amino-cADPR did not block the [Ca2+]iresponse to a subsequent exposure to caffeine. These results indicate that cADPR acts as a second messenger for Ca2+ release through RyR channels in TSM cells and may be necessary for initiating ACh-induced [Ca2+]ioscillations.


1999 ◽  
Vol 276 (1) ◽  
pp. L81-L89 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christina M. Pabelick ◽  
Y. S. Prakash ◽  
Mathur S. Kannan ◽  
Keith A. Jones ◽  
David O. Warner ◽  
...  

The effect of halothane on intracellular Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i) regulation in porcine tracheal smooth muscle cells was examined with real-time confocal microscopy. Both 1 and 2 minimum alveolar concentration (MAC) halothane increased basal [Ca2+]iwhen Ca2+ influx and efflux were blocked, suggesting increased sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) Ca2+ leak and/or decreased reuptake. In β-escin-permeabilized cells, heparin inhibition of inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate-receptor channels blunted the halothane-induced increase in [Ca2+]i. Both 1 and 2 MAC halothane decreased the frequency and amplitude of ACh-induced [Ca2+]ioscillations (which represent SR Ca2+ release through ryanodine-receptor channels), abolishing oscillations in ∼20% of tracheal smooth muscle cells at 2 MAC. When Ca2+ influx and efflux were blocked, halothane increased the baseline and decreased the frequency and amplitude of [Ca2+]ioscillations, inhibiting oscillations in ∼70% of cells at 2 MAC. The fall time of [Ca2+]ioscillations and the rate of fall of the [Ca2+]iresponse to caffeine were both increased by halothane. These results suggest that halothane abolishes agonist-induced [Ca2+]ioscillations by 1) depleting SR Ca2+ via increased Ca2+ leak through inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate-receptor channels, 2) decreasing Ca2+ release through ryanodine-receptor channels, and 3) inhibiting reuptake.


2002 ◽  
Vol 283 (2) ◽  
pp. L433-L444 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carmelle V. Remillard ◽  
Wei-Min Zhang ◽  
Larissa A. Shimoda ◽  
James S. K. Sham

Ca+spark has been implicated as a pivotal feedback mechanism for regulating membrane potential and vasomotor tone in systemic arterial smooth muscle cells (SASMCs), but little is known about its properties in pulmonary arterial smooth muscle cells (PASMCs). Using confocal microscopy, we identified spontaneous Ca2+ sparks in rat intralobar PASMCs and characterized their spatiotemporal properties and physiological functions. Ca2+ sparks of PASMCs had a lower frequency and smaller amplitude than cardiac sparks. They were abolished by inhibition of ryanodine receptors but not by inhibition of inositol trisphosphate receptors and L-type Ca2+ channels. Enhanced Ca2+ influx by BAY K8644, K+, or high Ca2+ caused a significant increase in spark frequency. Functionally, enhancing Ca2+ sparks with caffeine (0.5 mM) caused membrane depolarization in PASMCs, in contrast to hyperpolarization in SASMCs. Norepinephrine and endothelin-1 both caused global elevations in cytosolic Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]), but only endothelin-1 increased spark frequency. These results suggest that Ca2+ sparks of PASMCs are similar to those of SASMCs, originate from ryanodine receptors, and are enhanced by Ca2+ influx. However, they play a different modulatory role on membrane potential and are under agonist-specific regulation independent of global [Ca2+].


2001 ◽  
Vol 280 (5) ◽  
pp. C1090-C1096 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Wu ◽  
C. H. Fry

The role of Na+/Ca2+ exchange in regulating intracellular Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i) in isolated smooth muscle cells from the guinea pig urinary bladder was investigated. Incremental reduction of extracellular Na+ concentration resulted in a graded rise of [Ca2+]i; 50–100 μM strophanthidin also increased [Ca2+]i. A small outward current accompanied the rise of [Ca2+]i in low-Na+ solutions (17.1 ± 1.8 pA in 29.4 mM Na+). The quantity of Ca2+ influx through the exchanger was estimated from the charge carried by the outward current and was ∼30 times that which is necessary to account for the rise of [Ca2+]i, after correction was made for intracellular Ca2+ buffering. Ca2+ influx through the exchanger was able to load intracellular Ca2+ stores. It is concluded that the level of resting [Ca2+]i is not determined by the exchanger, and under resting conditions (membrane potential −50 to −60 mV), there is little net flux through the exchanger. However, a small rise of intracellular Na+ concentration would be sufficient to generate significant net Ca2+ influx.


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