Ligand binding and G protein coupling of muscarinic receptors in airway smooth muscle

Ligand binding properties of muscarinic receptors were examined in membranes and isolated cells prepared from bovine trachea. The binding of the muscarinic antagonist [3H]quinuclidinyl benzilate (QNB) to both membranes and isolated cells was saturable, reversible, and of high affinity [dissociation constant (KD) = 100-200 pM]. The binding constants of three selective antagonists, pirenzepine, AF-DX 116, and 4-DAMP, were examined, and the results indicate that the smooth muscle cells contain at least two receptor subtypes. The majority of receptors exhibit binding constants for these selective antagonists similar to those of the M2-subtype. AF-DX 116 binding curves indicated the presence of a small population of receptors with binding constants similar to those reported for the M3-subtype. These findings suggest that the smooth muscle cells may contain both M2- and M3-receptors and are in agreement with evidence of the presence of mRNAs coding for these two subtypes in tracheal extracts (A. Maeda, T. Kubo, M. Mishina, and S. Numa. FEBS Lett. 239: 339-342, 1988). [3H]QNB displacement curves of the muscarinic agonist oxotremorine were best described as a sum of binding to high- and low-affinity sites with KD values of 3.8 nM and 2.2 microM. Guanosine 5'-O-(3-thiotriphosphate) (GTP gamma S) shifted the high-affinity sites to low affinity, suggesting that the high-affinity sites may represent receptors coupled to G proteins. Pertussis toxin catalyzed the ADP ribosylation of a 40- to 41-kDa protein band present in the membranes but had no significant effect on high-affinity agonist binding, suggesting that most of the receptors are coupled to G proteins in a toxin-insensitive manner.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS) </jats:p

Rat supraoptic magnocellular neurones show distinct large conductance, Ca2+-activated K+ channel subtypes in cell bodies versus nerve endings

Large conductance, Ca2+-activated K+ (BK) channels were identified in freshly dissociated rat supraoptic neurones using patch clamp techniques.The single channel conductance of cell body BK channels, recorded from inside-out patches in symmetric 145 mM K+, was 246.1 pS, compared with 213 pS in nerve ending BK channels (P < 0.01).At low open probability (Po), the reciprocal of the slope in the ln(NPo)-voltage relationship (N, number of available channels in the patch) for cell body and nerve ending channels were similar: 11 vs. 14 mVper e-fold change in NPo, respectively.At 40 mV, the [Ca2+]i producing half-maximal activation was 273 nM, as opposed to > 1.53 μM for the neurohypophysial channel, indicating the higher Ca2+ sensitivity of the cell body isochannel.Cell body BK channels showed fast kinetics (open time constant, 8.5 ms; fast closed time constant, 1.6 and slow closed time constant, 12.7 ms), identifying them as ‘type I’ isochannels, as opposed to the slow gating (type II) of neurohypophysial BK channels.Cell body BK activity was reduced by 10 nM charybdotoxin (NPo, 37 % of control), or 10 nM iberiotoxin (NPo, 5 % of control), whereas neurohypophysial BK channels are insensitive to charybdotoxin at concentrations as high as 360 nM.Whilst blockade of nerve ending BK channels markedly slowed the repolarization of evoked single spikes, blockade of cell body channels was without effect on repolarization of evoked single spikes.Ethanol reversibly increased neurohypophysial BK channel activity (EC50, 22 mM; maximal effect, 100 mM). In contrast, ethanol (up to 100 mM) failed to increase cell body BK channel activity.In conclusion, we have characterized BK channels in supraoptic neuronal cell bodies, and demonstrated that they display different electrophysiological and pharmacological properties from their counterparts in the nerve endings