| Abstract: | Voltage clamp experiments were made on ezymically isolated and internally perfused rat cardiac cells. The effect of a diethylamine analog of ethmozine (DAAE) on sodium current (INa) was tested when the drug was applied inside or outside the cell. It was found that the effect of DAAE (8 X 10(-6) g/ml) on INa was asymmetrical: after DAAE addition outside the cell, the amplitude of INa was effectively suppressed. Thus, 5 minutes after DAAE action the maximal value of INa in a voltage-current relationship was 20% of the control value without significant changes in the kinetics of INa. When the DAAE was added inside the cell preferentially, the inactivation time constant was increased without significant changes in the amplitude of the maximal INa. The same results were obtained with pronase (1 mg/ml) added inside the cell. It was supposed that as compared to ethmozine, the DAAE possesses a supplementary binding site on the cardiac cell membrane possibly linked to the structures responsible for inactivation processes. |
