Chloride-sensitive nature of the adrenaline-induced current in guinea-pig cardiac myocytes.

1. Ionic selectivity of an adrenaline-induced current was investigated in single guinea-pig ventricular cells by recording whole-cell currents using the patch clamp technique combined with internal perfusion. Other ionic currents and exchange currents known in ventricular cells were suppressed by appropriate inhibitors and the adrenaline-induced current was defined as a difference between currents obtained in the presence and absence of adrenaline. 2. The adrenaline-induced current was time independent and its I-V relation showed saturation of the inward current in the negative voltage range. 3. The reversal potential was approximately -20 mV with 140 mM-NaCl external solution and Cs(+)-rich internal solution containing 51 mM-Cl-. Replacing Na+ with various monovalent and divalent cations (Li+, K+, Rb+, Cs+, Ca2+, Sr2+ and Ba2+) produced no appreciable change in the reversal potential. 4. Varying the external Cl- concentration ([Cl-]o) in exchange for aspartate or benzenesulphonate greatly changed the reversal potential. The relationship between the reversal potential and log[Cl-]o indicated a slope of 59.5 or 53.6 mV per tenfold change in [Cl-]o in the presence of 51 or 102 mM-Cl- in the internal solution, respectively. 5. Anion substitutions did not appreciably affect the I-V relation before application of adrenaline, suggesting that the cell membrane had a low Cl- conductance in the control state. 6. 4.4'-Dinitrostilbene-2-2'-disulphonic acid (DNDS: 1-10 mM), a specific inhibitor of membrane chloride permeability, depressed the adrenaline-induced current without changing the reversal potential. 7. The results suggest strongly that the adrenaline-induced current is carried mainly by Cl-. However, the development of this current appears to depend also on external cations, since the magnitude of the adrenaline response varied depending on the external cations species, with no response in Tris-HCl or TEA-Cl solution. The external cations may facilitate the adrenaline response with a sequence of efficacy of Na+ greater than K+, Rb+ greater than Cs+, Li+, divalent cations.