ISSN:
1432-136X
Keywords:
Na+ channels
;
Amiloride
;
Benzamil
;
Noise analysis
;
Leech, Hirudo medicinalis
Source:
Springer Online Journal Archives 1860-2000
Topics:
Biology
,
Medicine
Notes:
Abstract The dorsal skin of the leech Hirudo medicinalis was used for electrophysiological measurements performed in Ussing chambers. The leech skin is a tight epithelium (transepithelial resistance = 10.5±0.5 kΩ· cm-2) with an initial short-circuit current of 29.0±2.9 μA·cm-2. Removal of Na+ from the apical bath medium reduced short-circuit current about 55%. Ouabain (50μmol·l-1) added to the basolateral solution, depressed the short-circuit current completely. The Na+ current saturated at a concentration of 90 mmol Na+·l-1 in the apical solution (K M=11.2±1.8 mmol·l-1). Amiloride (100 μmol·l-1) on the apical side inhibited ca. 40% of the Na+ current and indicated the presence of Na+ channels. The dependence of Na+ current on the amiloride concentration followed Michaclis-Menten kinetics (K i=2.9±0.4 μmol·l-1). The amiloride analogue benzamil had a higher affinity to the Na+ channel (K i=0.7±0.2 μmol·l-1). Thus, Na+ channels in leech integument are less sensitive to amiloride than channels known from vertebrate epithelia. With 20 mmol Na+·l-1 in the mucosal solution the tissue showed an optimum amiloride-inhibitable current, and the amiloride-sensitive current under this condition was 86.8±2.3% of total short-circuit current. Higher Na+ concentrations lead to a decrease in amiloride-blockade short-circuit current. Sitmulation of the tissue with cyclic adenosine monophosphate (100 μmol·l-1) and isobutylmethylxanthine (1 mmol·l-1) nearly doubled short-circuit current and increased amiloride-sensitive Na+ currents by 50%. By current fluctuation analysis we estimated single Na+ channel current (2.7±0.9 pA) and Na+ channel density (3.6±0.6 channels·μm-2) under control conditions. After cyclic adenosine monophosphate stimulation Na+ channel density increased to 5.4±1.1 channels·μm-2, whereas single Na+ channel current showed no significant change (1.9±0.2 pA). These data present a detailed investigation of an invertebrate epithelial Na+ channel, and show the similarities and differences to vertebrate Na+ channels. Whereas the channel properties are different from the classical vertebrate Na+ channel, the regulation by cyclic adenosine monophosphate seems similar. Stimulation of Na+ uptake by cyclic adenosine monophosphate is mediated by an increasing number of Na+ channels.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/BF00263601
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