Beneficial effect of fluorocarbon emulsion media on the function of neuromuscular preparations in vitro

The effects of liquid fluorocarbons as bathing media were determined by use of in vitro neuromuscular preparations. Rat hemidiaphragms were bathed in either oxygenated fluorocarbon (FC) emulsion or standard oxygenated Krebs solution. Contractile force in response to simple supramaximal nerve stimuli as well as to high frequency stimulation was greater, while twitch:tetanus ratio was smaller in FC emulsion. With such medium, post-tetanic potentiation of contraction was also more consistently observed. Indirectly stimulated diaphragms survived longer in FC emulsion. After cessation of oxygenation, oxygen tension (ρO(2)) of the medium declined more rapidly with Krebs than with FC emulsion; ρO(2) directly correlated with force of contraction. Similarly, in the chick biventer cervicis preparation, FC emulsion enhanced nerve-stimulated force of contraction; returning the preparation to standard Krebs solution reversed this phenomenon. Dose-resonse curves of muscle contraction in response to acetycholine and KCl administration were shifted upward during FC emulsion superfusion. Frequency of miniature endplate potentials was lower in FC emulsion than that observed in Krebs solution, measured from the same cell of the rat diaphragm. Resting membrane potentials were also greater in muscle cells sampled from FC emulsion-bathed preparations. These data suggest that FC emulsion is superior to standard Krebs solution as a bathing medium for in vitro neuromuscular preparations by virtue of the high solubility of oxygen in it.     

Mechanisms of respiratory response to isoproterenol in glomectomized cats

Effects of intravenous isoproterenol (2-3 micrograms) on arterial pressure, end-tidal CO2 partial pressure (PCO2), medullary extracellular fluid (ECF) pH, and phrenic activity were studied in 13 anesthetized paralyzed cats whose vagi and carotid sinus nerves were cut. The cats were servo-ventilated to keep PCO2 relatively constant. Injections of Ringer solution were without effect. Isoproterenol caused arterial pressure to fall, a transient small (1 Torr) increase of PCO2, increased venous CO2 return to the lungs, a medullary ECF acidosis, and a stimulation of respiration that continued to be elevated after arterial pressure, PCO2, and medullary ECF pH had returned to control. We show that the ECF acidosis is minimally due to the hypotension and to the small transient rise of PCO2. We also show that the respiratory response cannot be explained solely by the ECF acidosis. We conclude that, in addition to its known stimulation of peripheral chemoreceptors, isoproterenol causes medullary ECF to become acidic probably due to metabolic effects on neural tissue and has a separate direct stimulating effect on neurons in the brain.     

Effects of inhibition gastric acid secretion on arterial acid-base status during digestion in the toad Bufo marinus

Digestion affects acid-base status, because the net transfer of HCl from the blood to the stomach lumen leads to an increase in HCO3(-) levels in both extra- and intracellular compartments. The increase in plasma [HCO3(-)], the alkaline tide, is particularly pronounced in amphibians and reptiles, but is not associated with an increased arterial pH, because of a concomitant rise in arterial PCO2 caused by a relative hypoventilation. In this study, we investigate whether the postprandial increase in PaCO2 of the toad Bufo marinus represents a compensatory response to the increased plasma [HCO3(-)] or a state-dependent change in the control of pulmonary ventilation. To this end, we successfully prevented the alkaline tide, by inhibiting gastric acid secretion with omeprazole, and compared the response to that of untreated toads determined in our laboratory during the same period. In addition, we used vascular infusions of bicarbonate to mimic the alkaline tide in fasting animals. Omeprazole did not affect blood gases, acid-base and haematological parameters in fasting toads, but abolished the postprandial increase in plasma [HCO3(-)] and the rise in arterial PCO2 that normally peaks 48 h into the digestive period. Vascular infusion of HCO3(-), that mimicked the postprandial rise in plasma [HCO3(-)], led to a progressive respiratory compensation of arterial pH through increased arterial PCO2. Thus, irrespective of whether the metabolic alkalosis is caused by gastric acid secretion in response to a meal or experimental infusion of bicarbonate, arterial pH is being maintained by an increased arterial PCO2. It seems, therefore, that the elevated PCO2, occuring during the postprandial period, constitutes of a regulated response to maintain pH rather than a state-dependent change in ventilatory control.     

Impact of dietary allelochemicals on gypsy moth (Lymantria dispar) caterpillars: importance of midgut alkalinity

Midgut pH of gypsy moth larvae was depressed artificially with buffered diet to examine the impact of alkalinity on the caterpillars' ability to tolerate a dietary polyphenol and a quinone. A 2x3 factorial design was used, with 2 levels of succinate buffer and 3 dietary amendments (tannic acid, juglone, or control). Development was monitored during the third and fourth instars, with consumption, food passage rates, midgut pH, and midgut redox potential (Eh) measured in the fourth instar. Diet buffering successfully depressed midgut pH to hypothetically suboptimal acidic levels without reductions in survivorship, but it did reduce larval growth and impede development. Buffering dramatically reduced survivorship of fourth instar larvae eating diets containing tannic acid or juglone. Growth increased on unbuffered diet amended with tannic acid, but not with juglone. Caterpillars passed food through the gut more slowly when feeding on buffered tannic acid diet or on unbuffered juglone diet. These results indicate that maintenance of midgut alkalinity is critical to tolerance of dietary tannic acid and juglone, and that these allelochemicals have very different activities in the caterpillar gut.     

Ventilatory response to chronic metabolic acidosis and alkalosis in the dog

Systematic data are not available with regard to the anticipated appropriate responses of arterial PCO2 to primary alterations in plasma bicarbonate concentration. In the present study, we attempted to rigorously characterize the ventilatory response to chronic metabolic acid-base disturbances of graded severity in the dog. Animals with metabolic acidosis produced by prolonged HCl feeding and metabolic alkalosis of three different modes of generation, i.e., diuretics (ethacrynic acid or chlorothiazide), gastric drainage, and administration of deoxycorticosterone acetate (alone or in conjunction with oral sodium bicarbonate), were examined. The results indicate the existence of a significant and highly predictable ventilatory response to chronic metabolic acid-base disturbances. Moreover, the magnitude of the ventilatory response appears to be uniform throughout a wide spectrum of chronic metabolic acid-base disorders extending from severe metabolic acidosis to severe metabolic alkalosis; on average, arterial PCO2 is expected to change by 0.74 Torr for a 1-meq/l chronic change in plasma bicarbonate concentration of metabolic origin. Furthermore, the data suggest that the ventilatory response to chronic metabolic alkalosis is independent of the particular mode of generation.     

The effect of acid--base changes on skeletal muscle twitch tension.

The effects of acid--base alterations produced by changing bicarbonate (metabolic type), carbon dioxide tension (respiratory type), or both bicarbonate and carbon dioxide tension (compensated type) on skeletal muscle twitch tension, intracellular pH, and intracellular potassium were studied in vitro. Hemidiaphragm muscles from normal rats and rats fed a potassium-deficient diet were used. Decreasing the extracellular pH by decreasing bicarbonate or increasing CO2 in the bathing fluid produced a decrease in intracellular pH, intracellular K+, and muscle twitch tension. However, at a constant extracellular pH, an increase in CO2 (compensated by an increase in bicarbonate) produced an increase in intracellular K+ and twitch tension in spite of a decrease in intracellular pH. The effect on twitch tension of the hemidiaphragms showed a rapid onset, was reversible, persisted until the buffer composition was changed, and was independent of synaptic transmission. It is concluded that the twitch tension of the skeletal muscle decrease with a decrease in intracellular K+. The muscle tension also decreases with an increase in the ratio of intracellular and extracellular H+ concentration. However, there is no consistent relationship between muscle tension and extracellular or intracellular pH. The muscle tension of the diaphragms taken from K+-deficient rats is more sensitive to variations in CO2, PH, and bicarbonate concentration of the medium than that of the control rat diaphragms.     

Hormonal and purinergic stimulation of bicarbonate secretion in oviducts of rhesus monkey

Because an increase in the HCO(3)(-) concentration of oviductal liquid at midcycle is believed to markedly enhance fertility, we have studied active secretion of HCO(3)(-) across highly differentiated cultures of monkey oviductal epithelium. Cultured cell sheets were mounted in Ussing chambers and bathed in medium containing 25 mM HCO(3)(-). Purinergic agents potently stimulated short-circuit current (I(sc)) with an initial transient response declining within approximately 2 min to a sustained response. The potency sequence of ATP approximately UTP > ADP > AMP suggested that the I(sc) response was mediated mainly by P2Y(2) receptors. Acetazolamide, an inhibitor of carbonic anhydrase, had little or no effect on baseline I(sc) or the transient response to ATP but abolished the sustained response to ATP. Similar results were obtained on sheets of native epithelium. In pH-stat experiments, the abluminal medium of cell cultures was bathed in HCO(3)(-)-CO(2) medium, and the pH of the unbuffered luminal medium was maintained at approximately 7.4 by addition of strong acid or base. ATP stimulated base secretion, and this was inhibited by acetazolamide. Furthermore, these changes in secretion of base were in good quantitative agreement with the I(sc) responses. When phenol red (an estrogen) was removed from the culture medium, ATP-dependent HCO(3)(-) secretion was markedly reduced but could be restored by treatment with estradiol. Estrogens also markedly increased ciliation of the cultures. These results suggest that the midcycle increase in the HCO(3)(-) concentration of oviductal liquid may be mediated by the effects of estradiol on purinergic pathways or on ATP secretion.     

Acid-base balance and plasma glutamine concentration in man

Plasma glutamine concentrations were measured in chronic metabolic acidosis and alkalosis in healthy male volunteers. Metabolic acidosis resulted in a significant drop in glutamine concentration while metabolic alkalosis significantly elevated glutamine levels. These changes in glutamine concentration correlated with both the bicarbonate and PCO2 levels. To determine whether bicarbonate or PCO2 levels influence the glutamine concentrations, respectively acidosis was induced by respiring 5% CO2. This resulted in a significant elevation in both PCO2 and glutamine while bicarbonate levels remained unchanged. The results demonstrate an effect of acid-base alterations upon plasma glutamine concentration mediated by PCO2.     

The fusicoccin-stimulated phosphorylation of a 33 KDa polypeptide in cells of Acer pseudoplatanus as influenced by extracellular and intracellular pH

Abstract In a previous study, it was shown that the fungal toxin fusicoccin (FC) is able to stimulate the in vivo phosphorylation of a 33 KDalton polypeptide (33 KP) independently of protein synthesis. Here we show that the stimulation by FC of both proton efflux and 33 KP phosphorylation are strongly enhanced when the external medium contains K⁺ or Na⁺, suggesting that the two phenomena are related. The stimulatory effect of FC is higher in unbuffered than in buffered media; moreover, in the absence of FC, 33 KP is more phosphorylated at an acidic than at a basic pH of the medium, suggesting that the effect of FC may depend, to a certain extent, on the acidification of the free space caused by FC-promoted proton efflux. Treatments reported to alter the intracellular pH influence 33 KP phosphorylation even more strongly than the external pH does. The acidifying agents isobutyric acid and trimethylacetic acid decrease 33 KP phosphorylation, while the alkalinizing agents, ammonia and procaine, increase it. FC partially counteracts the inhibition by the weak acids, whereas the stimulatory effect of FC is not additive with that of the weak bases. The results indicate that 33 KP phosphorylation senses both the external and internal pH. The stimulatory effect of cytoplasm-alkalinizing treatments, which mimics that of FC, agrees with the reported capacity of FC to cause cytoplasmic alkalinization, following activation of the plasmalemma proton pump.     

Bicarbonate abolishes intracellular alkalinization in mitogen-stimulated 3T3 cells

An increase in intracellular pH (pHi) following mitogenic stimulation has been reported in a variety of mammalian cells (W. Moolenaar, Annu. Rev. Physiol., 48:363-376, 1986; E. Rozengurt, Science, 234:161-166, 1986). This increase is currently believed to constitute a "permissive" signal in the process of cell activation (A.E. Lagarde and J.M. Pouyssegur, Cancer Biochem. Biophys. 9:1-14, 1986). Since the majority of studies of this phenomenon have been conducted in the nonphysiological milieu of bicarbonate-free solutions, we have undertaken a study of the effects of bicarbonate and CO2 on mitogen-induced intracellular alkalinization in NIH 3T3 cells. Using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and novel 31P NMR pH indicators (2-amino-phosphono-carboxylic acids) we found that mitogen induces an increase in pHi of 0.16 units only in cells bathed in medium containing low concentrations of bicarbonate (less than 1 mM) and not in cells bathed in medium containing physiological levels of bicarbonate (10-30 mM). In addition to abolishing the mitogen-induced alkalinization, bicarbonate stabilizes pHi at 7.25 units as the external pH (pHe) is varied from 7.0 to 7.6. In contrast, in a bicarbonate-free medium pHi increases from 6.9 to 7.3 over the same range of external pHs. At a constant external pH, increasing the bicarbonate/CO2 concentration results in an increase in pHi from 6.9 in bicarbonate-free solution to 7.25 in a bicarbonate-buffered medium. This relationship is hyperbolic with half-maximal effect occurring at a concentration of 0.4 mM bicarbonate at pH 7.05 and 37 degrees C. Our results suggest that the observations of mitogen-induced alkalinization may be due to the use of nonphysiological bicarbonate-free media. Since this increase in pHi is not observed in physiological media where bicarbonate concentrations are usually greater than 20 mM, we conclude that an increase in pHi is not an obligatory or usual part of the cellular response to growth factors in vivo.     

Rapid-growth responses of corn root segments: Effect of auxin on elongation

The effect of indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) on the elongation rates of 2 mm corn (Zea mays L.) root segments induced by citrate-phosphate buffer (or unbuffered) solutions of pH 4.0 and 7.0 was studied. At pH 7.0, auxin initially reduced the elongation rate in both buffered and unbuffered solutions. Only in buffer at pH 7.0 was auxin at a concentration of 0.1 M found to promote the elongation rate though briefly. THis promoted rate represented only ca. 20% of the rate achieved with only buffer at pH 4.0. Auxin in pH 4.0 buffered and unbuffered solutions only served to reduce the elongation rates of root segments. Some comparative experiments were done using 2 mm corn coleoptile segments. Auxin (pH 6.8) promoted the elongation rate of coleoptile segments to a level equal or greater than the maximal H ion-induced rate. The two responses of root segments to auxin are compared to auxin action in coleoptile growth.     

The ATP-sensitive potassium channel in pancreatic B-cells is inhibited in physiological bicarbonate buffer

The effects of bicarbonate buffer (HCO3-/CO2) on the activity of the two K+ channels proposed by some to control the pancreatic B-cell membrane response to glucose were studied. Single K+-channel records from membrane patches of cultured B-cells dissociated from adult rat islets exposed to a glucose- and bicarbonate-free medium (Na-Hepes in place of bicarbonate) exhibit the activity of both the ATP-sensitive as well as the [Ca2+]i-activated K+ channels. However, in the presence of bicarbonate-buffered Krebs solution, the activity of the ATP-sensitive K+ channel is inhibited leaving the activity of the K+ channel activated by intracellular [Ca2+]i unaffected. In the absence of bicarbonate (Hepes/NaOH in place of bicarbonate), lowering the external pH from 7.4 to 7.0 also has differential effects on the two K+ channels. While the K+ channel sensitive to ATP is inhibited, the K+ channel activated by a rise in [Ca2+]i is not affected. To determine whether the response of the B-cell in culture to bicarbonate is also present when the B-cell is functioning within the islet syncytium, the effects of bicarbonate removal on membrane potential of B-cells from intact mouse islets were compared. These studies showed that glucose-evoked electrical activity is also blocked in bicarbonate-free Krebs solution. Furthermore, in the absence of bicarbonate and presence of glucose (11 mM), electrical activity was recovered by lowering the pHo from 7.4 to 7.0. The ATP-sensitive K+-channel activity is greatly reduced by physiologically buffered solutions in pancreatic B-cells in culture. The most likely explanation for the bicarbonate effects is that they are mediated by cytosolic pH changes. Removal of bicarbonate (keeping the external pH at 7.4 with Hepes/NaOH as buffer) would increase the pHi. Since the activity of the [Ca2+]i-dependent K+ channels is not affected by the removal of the bicarbonate buffer, our patch-clamp data in cultured B-cells indicate an involvement of [Ca2+]i-activated K+ channels in the control of the membrane potential. For the B-cell in the islet, we propose that the burst pattern of electrical activity (Ca2+ entry) is controlled, at least in part, by the [Ca2+]i-activated K+ channel.     

Use of amine buffers for in vitro studies of bone resorption

Summary Responses of cultured fetal rat bones to parathyroid hormone (PTH) were compared in media gassed with 5% CO₂ and buffered with bicarbonate or in media buffered with the amine buffers HEPES (N-2-hydroxyethylpiperazine-N′-2-ethanesulfonic acid), TES (N-tris(hydroxymethyl)methyl-2-aminoethanesulfonic acid), PIPES (piperazine-N,N′-bis(2-ethanesulfonic acid)), Tris (tris(hydroxymethyl)aminomethane), or glycylglycine. PTH-induced bone resorption was markedly reduced in media buffered with the amine buffers and cultured in air in the absence of added bicarbonate. When the amine buffers were added to bicarbonate-buffered media, they decreased the responses of the bones to submaximal concentrations of PTH. But the response to supramaximal concentrations of PTH was usually not impaired. The results confirm our earlier studies indicating a CO₂ and/or bicarbonate requirement for optimal bone resorption. They also demonstrate that the amine buffers can inhibit the responses of bone to PTH even in the presence of CO₂ and bicarbonate. Supported by NIH research Grant #AM 11262. Supported by NIH Research Career Development Award #AM 70210.     

Bacterial counts in canine duodenal fluid after exposure to saline, sodium bicarbonate and hypertonic dextrose solutions used to maintain patency of chronically implanted catheters

Flushing of intestinal vascular access ports (VAPs) is commonly performed to prevent the problems of blockage and infection, and in this study four different flushing solutions were compared. The growth of bacteria from canine duodenal contents was compared in: 0.9% saline, 50% dextrose, 8.4% sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3) and 0.01 M phosphate buffered saline (PBS). Duodenal contents from three laboratory beagles were serially diluted in these four solutions, spread plated onto agar at 24 h periods for 7 days and bacterial counts were performed. Immediately after the duodenal juices were added, no significant differences could be seen in bacterial counts with any of the solutions. Over the 7 day period, bacterial numbers greatly increased in saline and phosphate buffered saline, but greatly decreased in dextrose and sodium bicarbonate solutions. Dextrose and sodium bicarbonate appeared to be the most promising flushing solutions tested to minimize infections of associated intestinal VAPs.     

Metabolic component of intestinal PCO(2) during dysoxia.

The adequacy of intestinal perfusion during shock and resuscitation might be estimated from intestinal tissue acid-base balance. We examined this idea from the perspective of conventional blood acid-base physicochemistry. As the O(2) supply diminishes with failing blood flow, tissue acid-base changes are first "respiratory, " with CO(2) coming from combustion of fuel and stagnating in the decreasing blood flow. When the O(2) supply decreases to critical, the changes become "metabolic" due to lactic acid. In blood, the respiratory vs. metabolic distinction is conventionally made using the buffer base principle, in which buffer base is the sum of HCO(3)(-) and noncarbonate buffer anion (A(-)). During purely respiratory acidosis, buffer base stays constant because HCO(3)(-) cannot buffer its own progenitor, carbonic acid, so that the rise of HCO(3)(-) equals the fall of A(-). During anaerobic "metabolism," however, lactate's H(+) is buffered by both A(-) and HCO(3)(-), causing buffer base to decrease. We quantified the partitioning of lactate's H(+) between HCO(3)(-) and A(-) buffer in anoxic intestine by compressing intestinal segments of anesthetized swine into a steel pipe and measuring PCO(2) and lactate at 5- to 10-min intervals. Their rises followed first-order kinetics, yielding k = 0. 031 min(-1) and half time = approximately 22 min. PCO(2) vs. lactate relations were linear. Over 3 h, lactate increased by 31 +/- 3 mmol/l tissue fluid (mM) and PCO(2) by approximately 17 mM, meaning that one-half of lactate's H(+) was buffered by tissue HCO(3)(-) and one-half by A(-). The data were consistent with a lumped pK(a) value near 6.1 and total A(-) concentration of approximately 30 mmol/kg. We conclude that the respiratory vs. metabolic distinction could be made in tissue by estimating tissue buffer base from measured pH and PCO(2).     

Specific carotid body chemostimulation is sufficient to elicit phrenic poststimulus frequency decline in a novel in situ dual-perfused rat preparation

Time-dependent ventilatory responses to hypoxic and hypercapnic challenges, such as posthypoxic frequency decline (PHxFD) and posthypercapnic frequency decline (PHcFD), could profoundly affect breathing stability. However, little is known about the mechanisms that mediate these phenomena. To determine the contribution of specific carotid body chemostimuli to PHxFD and PHcFD, we developed a novel in situ arterially perfused, vagotomized, decerebrate rat preparation in which central and peripheral chemoreceptors are perfused separately (i.e., a nonanesthetized in situ dual perfused preparation). We confirmed that 1) the perfusion of central and peripheral chemoreceptor compartments was independent by applying specific carotid body hypoxia and hypercapnia before and after carotid sinus nerve transection, 2) the PCO(2) chemoresponse of the dual perfused preparation was similar to other decerebrate preparations, and 3) the phrenic output was stable enough to allow investigation of time-dependent phenomena. We then applied four 5-min bouts (separated by 5 min) of specific carotid body hypoxia (40 Torr PO(2) and 40 Torr PCO(2)) or hypercapnia (100 Torr PO(2) and 60 Torr PCO(2)) while holding the brain stem PO(2) and PCO(2) constant. We report the novel finding that specific carotid body chemostimuli were sufficient to elicit several phrenic time-dependent phenomena in the rat. Hypoxic challenges elicited PHxFD that increased with bout, leading to progressive augmentation of the phrenic response. Conversely, hypercapnia elicited short-term depression and PHcFD, neither of which was bout dependent. These results, placed in the context of previous findings, suggest multiple physiological mechanisms are responsible for PHxFD and PHcFD, a redundancy that may illustrate that these phenomena have significant adaptive advantages.     

Design and response characteristics of an enzyme electrode for measurement of penicillin in fermentation broth

A principle for the construction of an autoclavable enzyme electrode is presented. Some characteristics of a penicillin electrode constructed according to this principle are given. The response time is ˜1 min. The response to increasing concentrations of penicillin is linear in buffered samples but logarithmic in unbuffered samples. The reason for the linearity is discussed. A local pH decrease in the enzyme, which is a is a consequence of the enzymatic reaction, reduces the buffering capacity within the electrode and thus increases the sensitivity. It is suggested that this increased sensitivity eliminates the logarithmic response predicted by the Nernst equation for a pH-based enzyme electrode.     

Respiratory alkalosis does not alter NOx concentrations in human plasma and erythrocytes

To test the hypothesis that NOx (NO and NO, metabolites of NO) accumulates in red blood cells (RBC) in response to changes in PCO(2) and bicarbonate (HCO) concentration in blood, we examined the effect of changes in PCO(2) and HCO induced by hyperventilation in healthy adults on partitioning of NOx in whole blood. NOx in hemolysate was measured by a high-performance liquid chromatography-Griess system equipped with a C(18) reverse phase column to trap hemoglobin, which enables determination of whole blood NOx concentration and calculation of NOx concentration in RBC with high accuracy and reproducibility. NOx concentration in RBC was lower than that in plasma, and equilibrium between plasma and RBC was achieved rapidly after addition of NO. Changes in PCO(2) and HCO by hyperventilation failed to influence NOx concentrations in both plasma and RBC. Plasma NOx concentrations correlated with whole blood NOx and RBC NOx concentrations. Our results indicate that changes in PCO(2) or HCO induced by hyperventilation do not influence NOx compartmentalization in plasma and RBC.     

Effect of hypercapnic acidosis on induction of arrhythmias by catecholamines in cat papillary muscles.

The effect of changes in PCO2 upon induction of arrhythmias in cat papillary muscles was studied. The average norepinephrine (NE) dose necessary to produce spontaneous contractions in muscles stimulated at rates of 10/min was higher at high PCO2. Whereas 2 100 +/- 295 X 10(-8) mol/litre of NE was necessary during acidosis, only 824 +/- 295 X 10(-8) mol/litre was necessary to produce spontaneous contractions in alkalosis. In quiescent muscles, the necessary doses in acidosis and alkalosis were 2 209 +/- 531 X 10(-8) and 518 +/- 159 X 10(-8) mol/litre respectively. With isoproterenol 458 +/- 84 X 10(-8) mol/litre was necessary to reach the end point at high PCO2, whereas only 131 +/- 52 X 10(-8) mol/litre was required at low PCO2. The lower sensitivity to catecholamine-induced arrhythmias with hypercapnic acidosis does not appear to be related to the re-uptake of the neurotransmitter by the nerve ending since it is also present with isoproterenol.     

Exchange of labeled bicarbonate and carbon dioxide with erythrocytes suspended in an elutriator

An elutriator was used to study exchange of labeled CO2 and bicarbonate with erythrocytes. Rabbit erythrocytes were suspended by centrifugation in a stream of fluid and exposed to transient injections of an extracellular indicator (125I-albumin or 22Na+), a water indicator (3H2O), and H14CO3- and/or 14CO2. Diffusion of indicators into erythrocytes was judged by comparison of initial concentrations of diffusible and extracellular indicators in the elutriator outflow. It was possible to conduct these experiments at normal hematocrits because any carbonic anhydrase released from erythrocytes by hemolysis was washed away in the elutriator flow, and ambient pH, PO2, and PCO2 were kept constant by the inflow of fresh fluid. Equilibration of HCO3- with erythrocytes was complete during the 7- to 10-s transit time through the chamber. After this exchange was irreversibly inhibited by the anion exchange inhibitor, DIDS (4,4'-diisothiocyanostilbene-2,2'-disulfonic acid), addition of carbonic anhydrase (100 mg/dl) accelerated exchange, but acetazolamide (20 mg/dl) was without effect. These observations were consistent with the absence of carbonic anhydrase on the surface of the erythrocytes.