Malignant hyperthermia: excitation-contraction coupling, Ca2+ release channel, and cell Ca2+ regulation defects

1996 ◽  
Vol 76 (2) ◽  
pp. 537-592 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. R. Mickelson ◽  
C. F. Louis

Malignant hyperthermia (MH) is a disorder of skeletal muscle in which certain anesthetic agents trigger a sustained elevation in myoplasmic Ca2+ concentration that activates metabolic and contractile activity. This review focuses on the biochemical and physiological alterations in the skeletal muscle of MH-susceptible (MHS) pigs and humans that appear responsible for this inherited disorder. In porcine MH, these studies identified the skeletal muscle sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+ release channel gene (RYR1) as the site of the defect. A mutation in this protein results in altered excitation-contraction coupling and secondary changes in porcine muscle structure and function. Although RYR1 mutations have been reported in many MHS human families, there is also significant genetic heterogeneity, and much less is known as to the underlying mechanism responsible for altered human myoplasmic Ca2+ regulation. The effects of caffeine and anesthetic agents on MHS and normal muscle are also discussed to better understand the basis for the in vitro clinical test for this disorder and mechanisms responsible for the initiation and maintenance of MH episodes in susceptible individuals. Finally, we examine the possiblity of a defect in Ca2+ regulation in tissues other than skeletal muscle. Current understanding of the molecular basis of MH elegantly illustrates the successful integration of knowledge obtained from all fields of biological and clinical science.

Physiology ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 15 (6) ◽  
pp. 281-284 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan L. Hamilton ◽  
Irina Serysheva ◽  
Gale M. Strasburg

Excitation-contraction coupling in cardiac and skeletal muscle involves the transverse-tubule voltage-dependent Ca2+ channel and the sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+ release channel. Both of these ion channels bind and are modulated by calmodulin in both its Ca2+-bound and Ca2+-free forms. Calmodulin is, therefore, potentially an important regulator of excitation-contraction coupling. Its precise role, however, has not yet been defined.


2003 ◽  
Vol 49 (5) ◽  
pp. 761-768 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angela Tammaro ◽  
Adele Bracco ◽  
Santolo Cozzolino ◽  
Maria Esposito ◽  
Antonietta Di Martino ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Malignant hyperthermia (MH) is a fatal autosomal dominant pharmacogenetic disorder characterized by skeletal muscle hypertonicity that causes a sudden increase in body temperature after exposure to common anesthetic agents. The disease is genetically heterogeneous, with mutations in the gene encoding the skeletal muscle ryanodine receptor (RYR1) at 19q13.1 accounting for up to 80% of the cases. To date, at least 42 RYR1 mutations have been described that cause MH and/or central core disease. Because the RYR1 gene is huge, containing 106 exons, molecular tests have focused on the regions that are more frequently mutated. Thus the causative defect has been identified in only a fraction of families as linked to chromosome 19q, whereas in others it remains undetected. Methods: We used denaturing HPLC (DHPLC) to analyze the RYR1 gene. We set up conditions to scan the 27 exons to identify both known and unknown mutations in critical regions of the protein. For each exon, we analyzed members from 52 families with positive in vitro contracture test results, but without preliminary selection by linkage analysis. Results: We identified seven different mutations in 11 MH families. Among them, three were novel MH alleles: Arg44Cys, Arg533Cys, and Val2117Leu. Conclusion: Because of its sensitivity and speed, DHPLC could be the method of choice for the detection of unknown mutations in the RYR1 gene.


2002 ◽  
Vol 97 (5) ◽  
pp. 1059-1066 ◽  
Author(s):  
Werner Klingler ◽  
Christoph Baur ◽  
Michael Georgieff ◽  
Frank Lehmann-Horn ◽  
Werner Melzer

Background Malignant hyperthermia (MH) is a pharmacogenetic disorder of skeletal muscle. During general anesthesia, a life-threatening hypermetabolic state may occur resulting from increased release of Ca2+ from the sarcoplasmic reticulum in skeletal muscle. Diagnosis of MH susceptibility requires surgical muscle biopsies to measure force in response to chemical stimulation (in vitro contracture test, IVCT). Here, the authors investigated an alternative way of discriminating MH-susceptible (MHS) from normal (MHN) subjects by using cultured human myotubes and measuring proton release as an indicator of cellular metabolism. Methods Myotubes were stimulated with the Ca2+ release channel agonist 4-chloro-m-cresol (4-CmC), leading to metabolic activation and proton secretion. The rate of extracellular acidification was recorded with a silicon sensor chip. Results A stepwise increase in 4-CmC concentration led to a phasic-tonic increase in the acidification rate. The response, measured at different concentrations of 4-CmC, was considerably larger in cultures from MHS compared with MHN subjects and correlated well with the force response in the IVCT. Conclusions The enhanced metabolism of cultured skeletal myotubes, likely originating from an increased myoplasmic Ca2+ concentration, can be monitored by studying the proton secretion rate. Because the method seems to be able to distinguish normal from pathologic phenotypes, it is a promising technique for possible future use in less invasive MH testing.


1994 ◽  
Vol 266 (6) ◽  
pp. C1729-C1735 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. R. Fruen ◽  
J. R. Mickelson ◽  
T. J. Roghair ◽  
H. L. Cheng ◽  
C. F. Louis

Perchlorate is one of a group of inorganic anions that potentiate excitation-contraction coupling in skeletal muscle. We have compared the effect of perchlorate on the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) Ca(2+)-release channel with the effect of inorganic phosphate (Pi), an anion which accumulates in skeletal muscle during exercise. Perchlorate and Pi (10-20 mM) stimulated Ca2+ release from SR vesicles 2- to 3-fold, respectively, and increased ryanodine binding to SR vesicles 1.5-fold. Stimulation of SR Ca(2+)-release channel activity by both perchlorate and Pi was maximal in the presence of micromolar Ca2+ and was associated with an increased affinity of the channel for ryanodine. Other anions known to potentiate muscle contraction (thiocyanate, iodide, and nitrate) also stimulated skeletal muscle SR Ca2+ release and ryanodine binding, as did the Pi analogue vanadate. However, none of the inorganic anions examined altered ryanodine binding to cardiac muscle SR. These results confirm that the SR Ca(2+)-release channel may be a primary site at which perchlorate and other potentiating anions affect skeletal muscle excitation-contraction coupling. In addition, these results demonstrate that the action of these anions on the SR Ca(2+)-release channel resembles that of Pi, a potential endogenous regulator of this channel.


1998 ◽  
Vol 76 (5) ◽  
pp. 681-694 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peng Leong ◽  
David H MacLennan

Evidence for functional interactions between the Ca2+ release channel in the skeletal muscle sarcoplasmic reticulum (the ryanodine receptor) and the L-type Ca2+ channel in the sarcolemma (the dihydropyridine receptor), leading to excitation-contraction coupling, is reviewed and experimental systems used to identify candidate sites of interaction are outlined.Key words: sarcoplasmic reticulum, excitation-contraction coupling.


2013 ◽  
Vol 304 (7) ◽  
pp. H983-H993 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aleksey V. Zima ◽  
Malikarjuna R. Pabbidi ◽  
Stephen L. Lipsius ◽  
Lothar A. Blatter

Mitochondria play an important role in intracellular Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i) regulation in the heart. We studied sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) Ca2+ release in cat atrial myocytes during depolarization of mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨm) induced by the protonophore FCCP. FCCP caused an initial decrease of action potential-induced Ca2+ transient amplitude and frequency of spontaneous Ca2+ waves followed by partial recovery despite partially depleted SR Ca2+ stores. In the presence of oligomycin, FCCP only exerted a stimulatory effect on Ca2+ transients and Ca2+ wave frequency, suggesting that the inhibitory effect of FCCP was mediated by ATP consumption through reverse-mode operation of mitochondrial F1F0-ATPase. ΔΨm depolarization was accompanied by cytosolic acidification, increases of diastolic [Ca2+]i, intracellular Na+ concentration ([Na+]i), and intracellular Mg2+ concentration ([Mg2+]i), and a decrease of intracellular ATP concentration ([ATP]i); however, glycolytic ATP production partially compensated for the exhaustion of mitochondrial ATP supplies. In conclusion, the initial inhibition of Ca2+ transients and waves resulted from suppression of ryanodine receptor SR Ca2+ release channel activity by a decrease in [ATP], an increase of [Mg2+]i, and cytoplasmic acidification. The later stimulation resulted from reduced mitochondrial Ca2+ buffering and cytosolic Na+ and Ca2+ accumulation, leading to enhanced Ca2+-induced Ca2+ release and spontaneous Ca2+ release in the form of Ca2+ waves. ΔΨm depolarization and the ensuing consequences of mitochondrial uncoupling observed here (intracellular acidification, decrease of [ATP]i, increase of [Na+]i and [Mg2+]i, and Ca2+ overload) are hallmarks of ischemia. These findings may therefore provide insight into the consequences of mitochondrial uncoupling for ion homeostasis, SR Ca2+ release, and excitation-contraction coupling in ischemia at the cellular and subcellular level.


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