Effect of chronic ethanol on calcium currents and calcium uptake in undifferentiated PC12 cells.

Undifferentiated pheochromocytoma (PC12) cells were chronically exposed to 200 mM ethanol for six days. Parallel cultures were maintained without ethanol. Cells chronically exposed to ethanol had significantly larger voltage-gated calcium currents than those grown in the absence of ethanol. Concurrent radioisotopic flux assays confirm that calcium influx is, indeed, increased in the chronically treated cells. However, acute exposure to ethanol at the same concentration as those used for the chronic studies greatly reduced the magnitude of the currents and net calcium influx.