Lanthanum in heart cell culture. Effect on calcium exchange correlated with its localization

Correlation of the localization of La⁺⁺⁺ with its effects on Ca⁺⁺ exchange in cultured rat heart cells is examined with the use of a recently developed technique. 75% of cellular Ca⁺⁺ is exchangeable and is completely accounted for by two kinetically defined phases. The rapidly exchangeable phase has a t ½ = 1.15 min and accounts for 1 1 mmoles Ca⁺⁺/kg wet cells or 43% of the exchangeable Ca⁺⁺ (cells perfused with [Ca⁺⁺]_o = 1 mM) Phase 2 has a t ½ = 19.2 min and accounts for 1.5 mmoles Ca⁺⁺/kg wet cells or 57% of the exchangeable Ca⁺⁺. 0.5 mM [La⁺⁺⁺]_o displaces 0 52 mmoles Ca⁺⁺/kg wet cells—all from phase 1—and almost completely abolishes subsequent Ca⁺⁺ influx and efflux The presence of La⁺⁺⁺ in the washout converts the washout pattern to a single phase system with a t ½ = 124 min. The effects upon Ca⁺⁺ exchange are coincident with abolition of contractile tension but regenerative depolarization of the tissue is maintained Electron microscope localization of the La⁺⁺⁺ places it exclusively in the external lamina or basement membrane of the cells. The study indicates that negatively charged sites in the basement membrane play a crucial role in the E-C coupling process in heart muscle     

Binding of cations by microsomes from rabbit skeletal muscle

Fragmented sarcoplasmic reticulum and transverse tubular system, as isolated in the microsomal fraction from rabbit skeletal muscle, bind H⁺, Na⁺, K⁺, Ca⁺⁺, Mg⁺⁺, and Zn⁺⁺. The binding depends on a cation exchange type of interaction between these cations and the chemical components of the membranous systems of the muscle cell. The monovalent and divalent cations exchange quantitatively for each other at the binding sites on an equivalent basis. Scatchard plots of the H⁺ binding data indicate that the binding groups can be resolved into two major components in terms of their pK values. Component 1 has a pK value of 6.6 and a capacity for H⁺ binding of 2.2 meq/g N . The second component has a much higher H⁺ binding capacity (7–8 meq/g N ), but its pK value, 3.4, is non-physiological. The binding of cations other than H⁺ at a neutral pH occurs at the binding sites making up component 1. The order of affinity of the cations for the microsome binding sites is H⁺ » Zn⁺⁺ > Ca⁺⁺ > Mg⁺⁺ » Na⁺ = K⁺ as reflected by the apparent respective pK_M values: 6.6, 5.2, 4.7, 4.2, 1.3, 1.3. Caffeine, which causes contracture and potentiates the twitch of skeletal muscle, does not interfere with the binding of Ca⁺⁺ by the microsomes at neutral pH.     

Intracellular Calcium Binding and Release in Frog Heart

The capacities and affinities of intracellular calcium-binding sites have been studied in frog ventricles, in which the concentration of Ca⁺⁺ in the sarcoplasm can be controlled as a result of treatment with EDTA. The total calcium content of calcium-depleted and nondepleted muscles at rest and muscles generating considerable tension was 0.8, 1.4, and 5.4 µmol/g of muscle, respectively. Net movement of calcium into or out of the cells occurred without change in tension when the sarcoplasmic concentration of Ca⁺⁺ was either of two values, less than 10^-7 M or approximately 5 x 10^-7 M. These data can be explained by the presence of two groups of intracellular calcium sinks which compete with the contractile proteins, one with a capacity of about 0.6 µmol/g and an affinity constant greater than 10⁷ M^-1 and a second with a capacity of 4.0 µmol/g and an affinity constant of about 2 x 10⁶ M^-1. The higher affinity calcium is released by anoxia, oligomycin, or abrupt changes in sarcoplasmic Ca⁺⁺. Muscles soaked in Sr-Ringer's contain electron densities in the sarcoplasmic reticulum and to a lesser extent in the mitochondria.     

3H-mepyramine binding to histamine H1-receptors in guinea pig lung: Characteristics and regulation by ions

The antogonist [³H]-mepyramine is used to label histamine H₁-receptors in guinea pig lung. Scatchard analysis reveals two classes of binding sites. Monovalent cations decrease steady-state binding (Na⁺ > Li⁺ > K⁺), while divalent cations (Mg⁺⁺, Ca⁺⁺, Mn⁺⁺, Ba⁺⁺) exhibit a biphasic curve, increasing binding at low concentrations and decreasing it at higher levels. Na⁺ decreases both affinity and number of binding sites. Dissociation curve shows two components, and Na⁺ accelerates the rate of dissociation of the slower component. GTP does not affect the binding of the antagonist ³H-Mepyramine.     

Calcium-activated tension of skinned muscle fibers of the frog. Dependence on magnesium adenosine triphosphate concentration

The influence of MgATP on the Ga⁺⁺-activated isometric tension of skinned frog muscle fibers was examined in solutions containing: Mg⁺⁺ = 5 mM, creatine phosphate (CP) = 14.5 mM, creatinephosphokinase (CPK) = 1 mg/ml, total EGTA = 7 mM, CaCl₂, KCl, imidazole ≥ 20 mM so that ionic strength = 0.15, pH = 7.00, and MgATP = 2 mM, 0.1 mM, or 20 µM. CP and CPK were necessary for these experiments as determined experimentally by their effect on the tension-Ca⁺⁺ relation, which was saturated for CP ≥ 14.5 mM. This was interpreted to mean that sufficient CP was present to effectively buffer MgATP intracellularly. Decreasing MgATP shifts the tension-pCa curve to higher pCa (-log Ca⁺⁺) so that, for half-maximal tension: pCa_1/2 = 4.5 for MgATP = 2 mM, pCa_1/2 = 5.1 for MgATP = 0.1 mM, and pCa_1/2 = 5.8 for MgATP = 20 µM; maximum isometric tension is the same in all cases, however. If MgATP was decreased to 1 µM, tension at Ga⁺⁺ > 10^–8 M was 84% of the maximum Ca^-+-activated tension in 2 mM MgATP and increased only slightly to 90% for pCa = 4.5. Weber (1970, In The Physiology and Biochemistry of Muscle as Food, Volume 2, E. J. Briskey, R. G. Cassens, and B. B. Marsh, University of Wisconsin Press, Madison, Wis.), using similar solutions, observed similar shifts in half-maximal calcium activation of rabbit myofibril ATPase rates. In explanation, Weber and Bremel (1971, In Contractility of Muscle Cells and Related Processes, R. J. Podolsky, editor, Prentice-Hall, Inc., Englewood Cliffs, N.J.; Bremel and Weber, 1972, Nat. New Biol., 238:97) have described a mechanism whereby, at low ATP, "rigor complexes" are formed between myosin and thin filament actin and, in turn, alter the calcium affinity of one class of the two Ca⁺⁺-binding sites on troponin, so that the thin filament is "turned on" for contraction at lower Ca⁺⁺ levels. Tension data from skinned fibers substantially supports this hypothesis. A stability constant for CaEGTA of 2.62 x 10¹⁰ M^–1 was determined, with the help of F. N. Briggs, in solutions similar to those used for skinned fibers and was the same for 100 and 300 mM KCl.     

Thermodynamic and kinetic parameters of ion condensation to polynucleotides: Outer sphere complex formed by Mg++ ions

The coupling of ion binding to the single strand helix—coil transition in poly (A) and poly(C) is used to obtain information about both processes by ion titration and field-jump relaxation methods. Characterisation of the field-jump relaxation in poly(C) at various concentrations of monovalent ions leads to the evaluation of a stability constant K = 71 M^?1 for the ion binding to the polymer. The rate constant of helix formation is found to be 1.3 × 10⁷ s^?1, whereas the dissociation rate is 1.0 × 10⁶ s^?1. Similar data are presented for poly (A) and poly (dA).The interaction of Mg⁺⁺ and Ca⁺⁺ with poly (A) and poly (C) is measured by a titration method using the polymer absorbance for the indication of binding. The data can be represented by a model with independent binding “sites”. The stability constants increase with decreasing salt concentration from 2.7 × 10⁴ M^?1 at medium ionic strengths up to 2.7 × 10⁷ M^?1 at low ionic strength. The number of ions bound per nucleotide residue is in the range 0.2 to 0.3. Relaxation time constants associated with Mg⁺⁺ binding are characterised over a broad range of Mg⁺⁺ concentrations from 5 μM to 500 μM. The observed concentration dependence supports the conclusion on the number of binding places inferred from equilibrium titrations. The rate of Mg⁺⁺ and Ca⁺⁺ association to the polymer is close to the limit of diffusion control (k_R = 1 × 10¹⁰ to 2 × 10¹⁰ M^?1 s^?1). This high rate demonstrates that Mg⁺⁺ and Ca⁺⁺ ions do not form inner-sphere complexes with the polynucleotides. Apparently the distance between two adjacent phosphates is too large for a simultaneous site binding of Mg⁺⁺ or Ca⁺⁺, and inner sphere complexation at a single phosphate seems to be too weak. The data support the view that the ions like Mg⁺⁺ and Ca⁺⁺ surround the polynucleotides in the form of a mobile ion cloud without site binding.     

Binding of calcium and zinc to the acetylcholine receptor purified from Torpedo Californica

Binding of [⁶⁵Zn⁺⁺] and [⁴⁵Ca⁺⁺] to the acetylcholine (ACh)-receptor, purified from the $\text{Torpedo}$ electric organ, was studied by equilibrium dialysis. Whereas [⁶⁵Zn⁺⁺] bound to 56 nmoles of sites per mg protein with a dissociation constant of 2.5 × 10⁻⁶M, no binding of [⁴⁵Ca⁺⁺] at concentrations up to 10⁻³M could be detected with this method. However, the binding of [acetyl-³H]choline to the receptor was blocked equally by very high Zn⁺⁺ or Ca⁺⁺ concentrations, and the K_i for this low affinity binding was 7 × 10⁻³M. The high affinity binding of [⁶⁵Zn⁺⁺] to the receptor was blocked best by Cd⁺⁺ then Co⁺⁺ and Mn⁺⁺, but least by Mg⁺⁺ and Ca⁺⁺. When the purified ACh-receptor itself was analyzed for the presence of cations by atomic absorption, it was discovered that 4.7% of its weight was due to bound Ca⁺⁺ that could not be removed even by extensive dialysis. When Ca⁺⁺-free solutions (containing 1 mM EDTA) were used during purification, 0.6% of the molecular weight of the receptor was still due to bound Ca⁺⁺. This was equivalent to 15 moles of Ca⁺⁺ for each mole of ACh bound at saturation. It is suggested that the source of this Ca⁺⁺ is endogenous, and that it is tightly bound to the ACh-receptor molecule.     

Sarcoplasmic reticulum. IX. The permeability of sarcoplasmic reticulum membranes

Fragmented sarcoplasmic reticulum (FSR) membranes isolated from rabbit skeletal muscle are impermeable to inulin-¹⁴C (mol wt 5,000), and dextran-¹⁴C (mol wt 15,000–90,000) at pH 7.0–9.0, yielding an excluded space of 4–5 µl/mg microsomal protein. In the same pH range urea and sucrose readily penetrate the FSR membrane. EDTA or EGTA (1 mM) increased the permeability of microsomes to inulin-¹⁴C or dextran-¹⁴C at pH 8–9, parallel with the lowering of the FSR-bound Ca⁺⁺ content from initial levels of 20 nmoles/mg protein to 1–3 nmoles/mg protein. EGTA was as effective as EDTA, although causing little change in the Mg⁺⁺ content of FSR. The permeability increase caused by chelating agents results from the combined effects of high pH and cation depletion. As inulin began to penetrate the membrane there was an abrupt fall in the rate of Ca⁺⁺ uptake and a simultaneous rise in ATPase activity. At 40°C inulin penetration occurred at pH 7.0 with 1 mM EDTA and at pH 9.0 without EDTA, suggesting increased permeability of FSR membranes. This accords with the higher rate of Ca⁺⁺ release from FSR at temperatures over 30°C. The penetration of microsomal membranes by anions is markedly influenced by charge effects. At low ionic strength and alkaline pH acetate and Cl are partially excluded from microsomes when applied in concentrations not exceeding 1 mM, presumably due to the Donnan effect. Penetration of microsomal water space by acetate and Cl occurs at ionic strengths sufficiently high to minimize charge repulsions.     

Interactions of Schwann cells with neurites and with other Schwann cells involve the calcium-dependent adhesion molecule,N-cadherin

During embryogenesis, Schwann cells interact with axons and other Schwann cells, as they migrate, ensheath axons, and participate in organizing peripheral nervous tissues. The experiments reported here indicate that the calcium-dependent molecule, N-cadherin, mediates adhesion of Schwann cells to neurites and to other Schwann cells. Cell cultures from chick dorsal root ganglia and sciatic nerves were maintained in media containing either 2mM Ca⁺⁺ or 0.2 mM Ca⁺⁺, a concentration that inactivates calcium-dependent cadherins. When the leading lamellae of Schwann cells encountered migrating growth cones in medium with 2 mM Ca⁺⁺, they usually remained extended, and the growth cones often advanced onto the Schwann cell upper surface. In the low Ca⁺⁺ medium, the frequency of withdrawal of the Schwann cell lamella after contact with a growth cone was much greater, and withdrawal was the most common reaction to growth cone contact in medium with 2 mM Ca⁺⁺ and anti-N-cadherin. Similarly, when motile leading margins of two Schwann cells touched in normal Ca⁺⁺ medium, they often formed stable areas of contact. N-cadherin and vinculin were co-concentrated at these contact sites between Schwann cells. However, in low Ca⁺⁺ medium or in the presence of anti-N-cadherin, interacting Schwann cells usually pulled away from each other in a behavior reminiscent of contact inhibition between fibroblasts. In cultures of dissociated cells in normal media, Schwann cells frequently were aligned along neurites, and ultrastructural examination showed extensive close apposition between plasma membranes of neurites and Schwann cells. When dorsal root ganglia explants were cultured with normal Ca⁺⁺, Schwann cells migrated away from the explants in close association with extending neurites. All these interactions were disrupted in media with 0.2 mM Ca⁺⁺. Alignment of Schwann cells along neurites was infrequent, as were extended close apposition between axonal and Schwann cell plasma membranes. Finally, migration of Schwann cells from ganglionic explants was reduced by disruption of adhesive contact with neurites. The addition of antibodies against N-cadherin to medium with normal Ca⁺⁺ levels had similar effects as lowering the Ca⁺⁺ concentration, but antibodies against the neuronal adhesive molecule, L1, had no effects on interactions between Schwann cells and neurites.     

Calcium binding to the subunit c ofE. coli ATP-synthase and possible functional implications in energy coupling

The 8-kDa subunit c of theE. coli F₀ ATP-synthase proton channel was tested for Ca⁺⁺ binding activity using a⁴⁵Ca⁺⁺ ligand blot assay after transferring the protein from SDS-PAGE gels onto polyvinyl difluoride membranes. The purified subunit c binds⁴⁵Ca⁺⁺ strongly with Ca⁺⁺ binding properties very similar to those of the 8-kDa CF₀ subunit III of choloroplast thylakoid membranes. The N-terminal f-Met carbonyl group seems necessary for Ca⁺⁺ binding capacity, shown by loss of Ca⁺⁺ binding following removal of the formyl group by mild acid treatment. The dicyclohexylcarbodiimide-reactive Asp-61 is not involved in the Ca⁺⁺ binding, shown by Ca⁺⁺ binding being retained in twoE. coli mutants, Asp61Asn and Asp61Gly. The Ca⁺⁺ binding is pH dependent in both theE. coli and thylakoid 8-kDa proteins, being absent at pH 5.0 and rising to a maximum near pH 9.0. A treatment predicted to increase the Ca⁺⁺ binding affinity to its F₀ binding site (chlorpromazine photoaffinity attachment) caused an inhibition of ATP formation driven by a base-to-acid pH jump in whole cells. Inhibition was not observed when the Ca⁺⁺ chelator EGTA was present with the cells during the chlorpromazine photoaffinity treatment. An apparent Ca⁺⁺ binding constant on the site responsible for the UV plus chlorpromazine effect of near 80–100 nM was obtained using an EGTA-Ca⁺⁺ buffer system to control free Ca⁺⁺ concentration during the UV plus chlorpromazine treatment. The data are consistent with the notion that Ca⁺⁺ bound to the periplasimic side of theE. coli F₀ proton channel can block H⁺ entry into the channel. A similar effect occurs in thylakoid membranes, but the Ca⁺⁺ binding site is on the lumen side of the thylakoid, where Ca⁺⁺ binding can modulate acid-base jump ATP formation. The Ca⁺⁺ binding to the F₀ and CF₀ complexes is consistent with a pH-dependent gating mechanism for control of H⁺ ion flux across the opening of the H⁺ channel.This work was supported in part by grants from the Department of Energy and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.On leave from the Institute of Soil Science and Photosynthesis, Russian Academy of Science, Pushchino, Russia.     

Interaction of calcium and local anesthetics with skeletal muscle microsomes

The influence of Ca⁺⁺, several drugs, and pH on the binding of Ca⁺⁺ by skeletal muscle microsomes was studied in vitro. A mass-law graphic analysis revealed the presence of three distinct species of Ca⁺⁺-binding sites in the microsomes, and the binding at only one of these sites was antagonized by local anesthetics and quinidine. These drugs also decreased the maximum Ca⁺⁺-binding capacity of the microsomes. Caffeine and ouabain exerted no effect on the binding at any of the sites. Procaine was also bound by microsomes, and this binding was antagonized by Ca⁺⁺, which also decreased the maximum procaine-binding capacity of microsomes. The sites that bind procaine and Ca⁺⁺ are not identical because the maximum-binding capacities of the interacting sites are distinctly different. The influence of pH on the ability of drugs to antagonize Ca⁺⁺ binding indicates that the displacing activity increases as the percentage of the drug in the nonionized form increases. All of the data obtained in the above studies are consistent with the interpretation that quinidine and local anesthetics of the procaine type noncompetitively antagonize the binding of Ca⁺⁺ by microsomes. The pharmacological significance of a noncompetitive interaction may be related to the property of local anesthetics and quinidine to increase contractile tension in skeletal muscle rather than to their ability to stabilize the cell membrane.     

Effects of ATP on the interaction of Ca++, Mg++, and K+ with fragmented sarcoplasmic reticulum isolated from rabbit skeletal muscle

Fragmented sarcoplasmic reticulum isolated from skeletal muscle of the rabbit has a cation-binding capacity of about 350 µeq/g of protein at neutral pH. The same binding sites bind Ca, Mg, K, and H ions and, consequently, the selective binding of Ca induced by ATP releases an amount of the other cations equivalent to the Ca taken up. At pH values below 6.2, an increasing number of binding sites are associated with H⁺, and ATP induces exchange of Ca mostly for H⁺. At pH values above 6.2, the binding sites exist in the form of Mg and K, and Ca is bound in exchange for these cations. The total bound Ca + Mg + K, expressed in microequivalents of cations bound per gram of protein, is approximately constant at various pCa values, which indicates a stoichiometric exchange of Ca for the other cations. To accomplish the same degree of exchange of Ca for other cations bound, in the absence of ATP, concentrations of free Ca⁺⁺ of about 1000-fold higher than those needed in the presence of ATP are required in the medium. We cannot distinguish between a mechanism whereby Ca actively transported into a compartment of the microsomal vesicles containing also the binding sites is bound passively to these sites in exchange for Mg, K, and H and another in which ATP selectively increases the affinity of surface-binding sites for Ca. Irrespective of the mechanism of accumulation, the Ca retained does not contribute to the activity of the cation in the membrane fraction. Caffeine (10 mM) has no effect on the binding of Ca, but releases a more labile fraction of Ca, which presumably accumulates in excess of the bound Ca. Procaine (5 mM) antagonizes the effect of caffeine. Acetylcholine and epinephrine have no effect on the binding of Ca.     

Mechanisms for Intracellular Calcium Regulation in Heart : I. Stopped-Flow Measurements of Ca++ Uptake by Cardiac Mitochondria

Initial velocities of energy-dependent Ca⁺⁺ uptake were measured by stopped-flow and dual-wavelength techniques in mitochondria isolated from hearts of rats, guinea pigs, squirrels, pigeons, and frogs. The rate of Ca⁺⁺ uptake by rat heart mitochondria was 0.05 nmol/mg/s at 5 µM Ca⁺⁺ and increased sigmoidally to 8 nmol/mg/s at 200 µM Ca⁺⁺. A Hill plot of the data yields a straight line with slope n of 2, indicating a cooperativity for Ca⁺⁺ transport in cardiac mitochondria. Comparable rates of Ca⁺⁺ uptake and sigmoidal plots were obtained with mitochondria from other mammalian hearts. On the other hand, the rates of Ca⁺⁺ uptake by frog heart mitochondria were higher at any Ca⁺⁺ concentrations. The half-maximal rate of Ca⁺⁺ transport was observed at 30, 60, 72, 87, 92 µM Ca⁺⁺ for cardiac mitochondria from frog, squirrel, pigeon, guinea pig, and rat, respectively. The sigmoidicity and the high apparent K_m render mitochondrial Ca⁺⁺ uptake slow below 10 µM. At these concentrations the rate of Ca⁺⁺ uptake by cardiac mitochondria in vitro and the amount of mitochondria present in the heart are not consistent with the amount of Ca⁺⁺ to be sequestered in vivo during heart relaxation. Therefore, it appears that, at least in mammalian hearts, the energy-linked transport of Ca⁺⁺ by mitochondria is inadequate for regulating the beat-to-beat Ca⁺⁺ cycle. The results obtained and the proposed cooperativity for mitochondrial Ca⁺⁺ uptake are discussed in terms of physiological regulation of intracellular Ca⁺⁺ homeostasis in cardiac cells.     

Calcium-binding properties and ATPase activities of rat liver plasma membranes

Plasma membranes from rat liver purified according to the procedure of Neville bind calcium ions by a concentration-dependent, saturable process with at least two classes of binding sites. The higher affinity sites bind 45 nmol calcium/mg membrane protein with a K_D of 3 µM. Adrenalectomy increases the number of the higher affinity sites and the corresponding K_D. Plasma membranes exhibit a (Na⁺-K⁺)-independent-Mg²⁺-ATPase activity which is not activated by calcium between 0.1 µM and 10 mM CaCl₂. Calcium can, with less efficiency, substitute for magnesium as a cofactor for the (Na⁺-K⁺)-independent ATPase. Both Mg²⁺- and Ca²⁺-ATPase activities are identical with respect to pH dependence, nucleotide specificity and sensitivity to inhibitors. But when calcium is substituted for magnesium, there is no detectable membrane phosphorylation from [γ-³²P] ATP as it is found in the presence of magnesium. The existence of high affinity binding sites for calcium in liver plasma membranes is compatible with a regulatory role of this ion in membrane enzymic mechanisms or in hormone actions. Plasma membranes obtained by the procedure of Neville are devoid of any Ca²⁺-activated-Mg²⁺-ATPase activity indicating the absence of the classical energy-dependent calcium ion transport. These results would suggest that the overall calcium-extruding activity of the liver cell is mediated by a mechanism involving no direct ATP hydrolysis at the membrane level.     

Beta-adrenergic receptor characteristics of postnatal rat myocardial cell preparations

Summary Primary mycolardial cell cultures and freshly isolated cardiac cells in suspension resprensent two isolated, whole cell models for investigating cellular transsarcolemmal⁴⁵Ca⁺⁺ exchange in response to a receptor-coupled stimulus. Studies were performed to characterize beta-adrenergic receptor binding, beta-adrenergic receptor mediated cellular calcium (⁴⁵Ca⁺⁺) exchange, and viability in purified primary myocardial cell cultures and freshly isolated cardiac cells in suspension obtained from 3-to 3-d-old Sprague-Dawley rats. In addition, beta-adrenergic receptor binding was characterized in whole-heart crude membrane preparations. All three preparations had saturable beta-adrenergic binding sites with the antagonist [¹²⁵I]iodopindolol ([¹²⁵I]IPIN). The suspensions had a significantly lower B _max (42±6 fmol/mg protein) than the membranes and cultures (77±8 and 95±10 fmol/mg protein, respectively). The K _D of the cultures (218±2.0 pM) was significantly higher than that for the suspensions (107 ±1.3 pM) and membranes (93±1.3 pM). Viability was significantly lower in the suspensions (57%) when compared to 94% viability in myocardial cell cultures after 3 h of incubation in Kreb's Henseleit buffer. Incubation of the cultures with 5.0×10⁻⁷ M isoproterenol resulted in a significant increase in⁴⁵Ca⁺⁺ exchange as early as 15 s. In contrast,⁴⁵Ca⁺⁺ exchange into the suspensions was not increased. Although both primary cell cultures and cardiac cells in suspension possess saturable beta-adrenergic receptors, only the monolayer cultures exhibited functional beta-adrenergic receptor-mediated⁴⁵Ca⁺⁺ exchange. Of the two intact cell models investigated, these data suggest that primary myocardial cell cultures are more suitable than cell suspensions for investigating beta-adrenergic receptor binding and functions in the postnatal rat heart. This research was supported by The University of Texas Research Institute, a grant from the Texas Advanced Research Technology Program awarded to S. W. Leslie and R. E. Wilcox, and contract 223-86-2109 from the Food and Drug Administration.     

tRNA structure and binding sites for cations

Equilibrium dialysis and electronic and nuclear resonance spectroscopy show that tRNA cooperatively binds divalent metal ions at very low concentrations (free metal concentration 3 × 10 ^?6 M). The first two methods show that different purified tRNAs have a very similar behavior, including initiator tRNA_F^met. tRNAs with an extra arm in the clover-leaf model, however, appear to have a slightly different behavior. The binding can be described in terms of two classes of sites. The cooperative association of divalent ions binding first does not parallel a cooperative change in the hyperchromism of the tRNA, while the non-cooperative association of the second class of divalent ions corresponds to the concentrations needed to obtain a cooperative melting of the tRNA. The temperature dependence of the number of binding sites and of their binding constants is also presented. The nature of the divalent ion gives the following efficiency: for the cooperativity Co⁺⁺>Mg⁺⁺>Mn⁺⁺ for the weak binding sites Mn⁺⁺>Co⁺⁺>Mg⁺⁺     

Use of the coulombic interactions of the lanthanide series to identify two classes of Ca2+ binding sites in mitochondria

The degree of inhibition of respiration-dependent vs respiration-independent Ca²⁺ binding by rat liver mitochondria by different members of the lanthanide family was used to establish the existence of two different classes of Ca²⁺ binding sites. The distinction is based on the differences in cation:site interactions between the two classes of sites and the members of the lanthanide series. Lanthanide inhibition of respiration-dependent Ca²⁺ uptake suggests that the binding site is specific for the calcium ion. Those members of the lanthanide family whose ionic radii are nearer that of Ca²⁺ are the best inhibitors. The inhibition of respiration-independent Ca²⁺ binding is much different, indicating non-specific cation absorption.     

Separate effects of mercurial compounds on the ionophoric and hydrolytic functions of the (Ca+++Mg++)-ATPase of sarcoplasmic reticulum

Summary We have shown that a Ca⁺⁺-ionophore activity is present in the (Ca⁺⁺+Mg⁺⁺)-ATPase of rabbit skeletal muscle sarcoplasmic reticulum (A.E. Shamoo & D.H. MacLennan, 1974.Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. USA 71:3522). Methylmercuric chloride inhibited the (Ca⁺⁺+Mg⁺⁺)-ATPase and Ca⁺⁺ transport, but had no effect on the activity of the Ca⁺⁺ ionophore. Mercuric chloride inhibited ATPase, transport and ionophore activity. The ATPase and transport functions were more sensitive to methylmercuric chloride than to mercuric chloride. The two functions were inhibited concomitantly by methylmercuric chloride but slightly lower concentrations of mercuric chloride were required to inhibit Ca⁺⁺ transport than were required to inhibit ATPase. Methylmercuric chloride and mercuric chloride probably inhibited ATPase and Ca⁺⁺ transport by blocking essential-SH groups. However, it appears that there are no essential-SH groups in the Ca⁺⁺ ionophore and that mercuric chloride inhibited the Ca⁺⁺ ionophore activity by competition with Ca⁺⁺ for the ionophoric site. Blockage of Ca⁺⁺ transport by mercuric chloride probably occurs both at sites of essential-SH groups and at sites of ionophoric activity. These data suggest the separate identity of the sites of ATP hydrolysis and of Ca⁺⁺ ionophoric activity.     

Cytokinins regulate calcium binding to a glycoprotein from fungal cells

A glycoprotein that binds about 20 atoms of Ca per mole has been purified from the osmotic shock fluid of some unicellular coenocytic water-molds, $\text{Achlya}$ spp. and $\text{Blastocladiella emersonii}$. The binding of calcium is allosterically regulated by N⁶-(substituted)adenine derivatives, cytokinins. Pyrimidines, purine and pyrimidine nucleosides, auxins, and benzimidazole derivatives are ineffective in inhibiting calcium binding. Lysozyme partially inactivates the molecule so that a high affinity calcium binding site is destroyed. Trypsin and pronase inactivate the molecule so that Ca⁺⁺ binding to both high and low affinity sites is affected. Cytokinins inhibit calcium binding to both sites.     

Calcium binding to cardiac troponin C

The binding of Ca²⁺ to cardiac troponin C was studied by determining changes in the fluorescence and circular dichroism of the protein and by following changes in the free Ca²⁺ concentration by means of a Ca²⁺-specific electrode. Cardiac troponin C contains three Ca²⁺-binding sites which fall into two classes —two sites with a higher affinity and one with a lower affinity. The higher-affinity sites also bind Mg²⁺ which competes with the Ca²⁺.