Contrasting effects of intracellular redox couples on the regulation of maxi‐K channels in isolated myocytes from rabbit pulmonary artery.

The effects of intracellular redox couples were investigated on the activation by voltage, Ca2+ and NS 1619 of maxi-K channels in enzymatically isolated smooth muscle cells from large pulmonary arteries of rabbits. 2. In inside-out membrane patches, maxi-K channels were characterized by a single-channel conductance of 266 pS in symmetrical 140 mM KCl solutions. The relationship between the open-state probability (Po) and the membrane potential could be fitted to the Boltzmann equation. The activating action of intracellular Ca2+ was reversible, concentration dependent, and was manifested as the reduction in the voltage necessary to half-activate the channel (V1/2) with no change in the slope factor. NS 1619 also predisposed the maxi-K channel to open at more hyperpolarized membrane potentials. 3. The oxidizing agent 5,5'-dithio-bis(2-nitrobenzoic acid) (DTNB, 1 mM) activated maxi-K channels by inducing a negative shift of the activity-voltage curve, while the reducing agent 2-hydroxy-1-ethanethiol (beta-mercaptoethanol) (BME, 1 mM) had no effect. DTNB increased the efficacy of Ca2+ in activating maxi-K channels. The action of DTNB was not reversible upon wash-out, but could be counteracted by BME. 4. Maxi-K channel activity was unaffected by other oxidizing agents, such as NAD (2 mM) and glutathione disulphide (GSSG, 5 mM), or by their reduced forms (NADH and GSH). Mg-ATP (0.1 and 1 mM) increased the channel activity in a dose-dependent manner, while guanine nucleotides (100 microM GTP gamma S, 500 microM GDP and 200 microM GDP beta S) had no effect. 5. Our data suggest that a change in the intracellular redox state, which would be expected during acute hypoxia, does not alter the activity of maxi-K channels of large pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells. The sulfhydryl-specific redox reagents (DTNB and BME) must act through another regulatory mechanism.