Effects of octylguanidine on the electrical activity of Xenopus heart.

The effects of laboratory synthesized octylguanidine are described. There is an early decease of the maximum rate of rise of the action potential with negligible reduction of the overshoot although the membrane resting potential is unchanged. Subsequently, there is a remarkable reduction of both membrane potential and overshoot, while the plateau is shortened. The former effects resemble those seen with tetrodotoxin, the latter ones, with metabolic poisons.     

Contribution of divalent cations to the maintenance of membrane potentials in the oocytes of Pleurodeles waltlii Michah (Amphibia, Urodela)]

When the external concentration of Ca and Mg is changed, the oocyte membrane potential, in the Urodela Amphibian: Pleurodeles waltlii, is not significantly modified. The addition of chelator agents, EGTA and EDTA in Ca, Mg free Steinberg solution promotes a membrane depolarisation and the rise of membrane conductance. It is concluded that divalent ions Ca++ and Mg++ are needed to maintain a potential difference between internal and external medium of the oocyte.     

Intracellular injection of cAMP and cGMP into snail neurones induces an increase in Na+-conductance

Injection of cAMP and more rarely cGMP into the neurones of the snail Helix pomatia induces an increase in membrane conductance, membrane depolarization and excitation. The effect is theophylline-dependent and has a reversal potential near -10mV.     

Effects of palytoxin on the electrical activity of dog and rabbit heart.

Reversible effects of palytoxin, extracted from colonies of the soft coral Palythoa caribaeorum, are described. There is a decrease of both membrane resting potential and overshoot during activity. Rise time of the action potential is prolonged, while repolarization is shortened. The electrical events resemble those seen with metabolic poisons.     

Intracellular injection of cAMP and cGMP into snail neurones induces an increase in Na+-conductance

Summary Injection of cAMP and more rarely cGMP into the neurones of the snailHelix pomatia induces an increase in membrane conductance, membrane depolarization and excitation. The effect is theophylline-dependent and has a reversal potential near — 10 mV.     

Adrenocorticotrophic hormone and cyclic adenosine monophosphate effect on mouse adrenal cortical cell membrane potential

Adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) and cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) both caused a rapid and transient depolarization of the resulting membrane potential of superfused rat adrenal cortical cells. The membrane depolarization to both secretagogues were very similar. The membrane potential changes occurred as early as 0.1 min and were dose dependent in both onset and extent of depolarization.     

The relationship between membrane potential and ATP content in rat liver during ischemia

Summary Both ischemia and ethionine decreased the membrane potential and ATP content in rat liver. In ethioninetreated rat liver, ischemia brought about a further decrease in membrane potential without significant decrease in ATP content.     

Contributions of cellular electrophysiology to the understanding of the electrocardiogram

The understanding of cardiac action potential and membrane currents has broadened the theoretical foundation and enhanced the clinical usefulness of the electrocardiogram. An improved understanding of the morphology of the electrocardiographic waveform has resulted from: correlations between Vmax of depolarization and QRS complex, plateau of the ventricular action potential and S-T segment, terminal repolarization and T-wave, from definitions of action potential differences responsible for the T-wave, and recordings of action potential alternans. Cellular electrophysiology has contributed to the understanding of certain mechanisms of cardiac standstill. Many disturbances of conduction and refractoriness associated with ventricular arrhythmias can be attributed to the following derangements at the cellular level: slowing of terminal repolarization, development of diastolic depolarization in fibers with stable resting membrane potential, after-depolarizations, currents of injury resulting from non-uniform polarization, increased dispersion of action potential durations, and co-existence of slow conduction and short premature action potentials.     

Contributions of cellular electrophysiology to the understanding of the electrocardiogram

Summary The understanding of cardiac action potential and membrane currents has broadened the theoretical foundation and enhanced the clinical usefulness of the electrocardiogram. An improved understanding of the morphology of the electrocardiographic waveform has resulted from: correlations between V_max of depolarization and QRS complex, plateau of the ventricular action potential and S-T segment, terminal repolarization and T-wave, from definitions of action potential differences responsible for the T-wave, and recordings of action potential alternans. Cellular electrophysiology has contributed to the understanding of certain mechanisms of cardiac standstill. Many disturbances of conduction and refractoriness associated with ventricular arrhythmias can be attributed to the following derangements at the cellular level: slowing of terminal repolarization, development of diastolic depolarization in fibers with stable resting membrane potential, afterdepolarizations, currents of injury resulting from non-uniform polarization, increased dispersion of action potential durations, and co-existence of slow conduction and short premature action potentials.     

Adrenocorticotrophic hormone and cyclic adenosine monophosphate effect on mouse adrenal cortical cell membrane potential

Summary Adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) and cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) both caused a rapid and transient depolarization of the resting membrane potential of superfused rat adrenal cortical cells. The membrane depolarization to both secretagogues were very similar. The membrane potential changes occurred as early as 0.1 min and were dose dependent in both onset and extent of depolarization.The author gratefully acknowledges the generous financial support of the E.G. Schlieder Educational Foundation, the American Heart Association of Louisiana and the American Heart Association.     

On reversible changes in the steady state ion-conductance of the Ranvier node membrane under low frequency sound fields.

The influence of sound waves on the stationary membrane conductivity of the axon membrane in myelinated nerve was investigated. Sound fields with frequencies within the auditory limit shift the transition voltage Vtr and correspondingly the threshold voltage of the action potential in polarisation direction. The results indicate that these changes of the electrical membrane behavior are due to a direct mechanical interaction between low frequency sound fields and membrane structure.     

The action of cycloheximide on the action potential and protein synthesis in medullatedXenopus axons

Summary Cycloheximide depresses maximum rate of change in membrane potential observed during the rising phase of the action potential in single medullated axons ofXenopus. Time course of depression is independent of cycloheximide concentration over a range that almost completely inhibits leucine incorporation into axonal proteins.     

Die Wirkung von Adrenalin auf das Ruhepotential von Myokardfasern des Vorhofs

Summary Dog auricle fibres were impaled by 2 intracellular electrodes. The first electrode measured the effect of adrenaline on the resting potential, and through the second one electrotonic impulses were applied.Adrenaline increases the resting potential by 1–35 mV. The polarisation is higher at a low resting potential and increases with the dose.Small polarisations were not accompanied by a detectable change of the membrane resistance. During higher polarisations, the membrane resistance was reduced to 50%.

---

---

Ausgeführt mit Unterstützung der deutschen Forschungsgemeinschaft.     

Contribution of the Na+/K+-pump to the membrane potential

The inward movement of sodium ions and the outward movement of potassium ions are passive and the reverse movements against the electrochemical gradients require the activity of a metabolism-driven Na+/K+-pump. The activity of the Na+/K+-pump influences the membrane potential directly and indirectly. Thus, the maintenance of a normal electrical function requires that the Na+/K+-pump maintain normal ionic concentrations within the cell. The activity of the Na+/K+-pump also influences the membrane potential directly by generating an outward sodium current that is larger when the Na+/K+-pump activity is greater. The activity of the Na+/K+-pump is regulated by several factors including the intracellular sodium concentration and the neuromediators norepinephrine and acetylcholine. The inhibition of the Na+/K+-pump can lead indirectly to the development of inward currents that may cause repetitive activity. Therefore, the Na+/K+-pump modifies the membrane potential in different ways both under normal and abnormal conditions and influences in an essential way many cardiac functions, including automaticity, conduction and contraction. Key words. Active transport of ions; cardiac tissues; electroneutral and electrogenic Na+/K/-pump; control of Na+/K+-pump; normal and abnormal electrical events.     

Ba++ induced square-shaped potential waves in molluscan neurones

Summary Rhythmic slow square-shaped potential waves lasting 20–50 sec are induced in Aplysia neurones when Ca⁺⁺ is replaced by Ba⁺⁺. During the plateau, the membrane is highly permeable to Ba⁺⁺ ions, whereas in the inter-wave period the membrane resistance increases by 60 times. Analysis with slow current ramps suggests that the membrane properties of Ba-treated neurones and normally burst-generating neurones are similar.     

Resting potential of excitable neuroblastoma cells in weak magnetic fields

The mechanism by which static and low-frequency magnetic fields are transduced into biological signals responsible for reported effects on brain electrical activity is not yet ascertained. To test the hypothesis that fields can cause a subthreshold change in the resting membrane potential of excitable cells, we measured changes in transmembrane current under voltage clamp produced in SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells, using the patch-clamp method in the whole-cell configuration. In separate experiments, cells were exposed to static fields of 1, 5, and 75 G, to time-varying fields of 1 and 5 G, and to combined static and time-varying fields tuned for resonance of Na+, K+, Ca2+, or H+. To increase sensitivity, measurements were made on cells connected by gap junctions. For each cell, the effect of the field was evaluated on the basis of 100 trials consisting of a 5-s exposure immediately followed by a 5-s control period. In each experiment, the field had no discernible effect on the transmembrane current in the vicinity of zero current (- 50 mV voltage clamp). The sensitivity of the measuring system was such that we would have detected a current corresponding to a change in membrane potential as small as 38 microV. Consequently, if sensitivity of mammalian cells to magnetic fields is mediated by subthreshold changes in membrane potential, as in sensory transduction of sound, light, and other stimuli, then the ion channels responsible for the putative changes are probably present only in specialized sensory neurons or neuroepithelial cells. A change in transmembrane potential in response to magnetic fields is not a general property of excitable cells in culture.     

The biogenesis and function of eukaryotic porins.

Like most other mitochondrial proteins porin is synthesized in the cytosol and imported posttranslationally into the outer mitochondrial membrane. This transport follows the general rules for mitochondrial protein import with a few aberrations: a) porin contains an uncleaved NH2-terminal signal sequence, b) also its carboxyterminus might be involved in the import process, and c) this transport does not seem to require a membrane potential delta psi, although it is ATP-dependent. Most likely the actual import step occurs at contact sites between the outer and the inner mitochondrial membrane and involves at least one receptor protein. Although porin is known to be the major gate through the outer mitochondrial membrane, its absence only causes transient respiratory problems in yeast cells. This could mean a) that there is a bypass for some mitochondrial functions in the cytosol and/or b) that there are alternative channel proteins in the outer membrane. The first idea is supported by the overexpression of cytosolic virus-like particles in yeast cells lacking porin and the second by the occurrence of residual pore activity in mitochondrial outer membrane purified from porinless mutant cells.     

On reversible changes in the steady state ion-conductance of the Ranvier node membrane under low frequency sound fields

Summary The influence of sound waves on the stationary membrane conductivity of the axon membrane in myelinated nerve was investigated. Sound fields with frequencies within the auditory limit shift the transition voltage V_tr and correspondingly the threshold voltage of the action potential in polarisation direction. The results indicate that these changes of the electrical membrane behavior are due to a direct mechanical interaction between low frequency sound fields and membrane structure.     

Permeability of the isolated human amniotic membrane to divalent cations]

Membrane potential and resistance recordings, in vitro, show that Mg++ does not pass through the amnion from the inside of the amniotic compartment to the outside of the amniotic membrane. Mg++ may become fixed on the surface or in the midst of the amniotic membrane. However, Mg++ diffuses in the opposite direction. Ca++, Ba++, Sr++ diffuse in both directions across the amniotic membrane.     

Effects of intracellular or extracellular application of tetraethylammonium on the action potential in cultured chick embryonic heart muscle cell

Summary The effects of tetraethylammonium (TEA) on the action potential in cultured chick embryonic heart muscle cells were investigated. The onset of prolongation of the action potential occurred within 10 min following intracellular iontophoretic application of TEA, but after more than 50 min following extracellular application. These facts suggest that the major site of action of TEA is on the inner surface of the membrane in these cells.