The effects of Met-enkephalin on Ca
2+-dependent K + channel activity were investigated using the cell-attached patch recording technique on isolated parasympathetic neurones of rat intracardiac ganglia. Large-conductance, Ca 2+ -dependent K + channels (BK Ca ) were examined as an assay of agonist-induced changes in the intracellular free calcium ion concentration ([Ca 2+ ] i ). These BK Ca channels had a conductance of ˜200 pS and were charybdotoxin-and voltage-sensitive. Caffeine (5 mM), used as a control, evoked a large increase in BK Ca channel activity, which was inhibited by 10 μM ryanodine. Met-enkephalin (10 μM) evoked a similar increase in BK Ca channel activity, which was dependent on the presence of extracellular Ca 2+ and inhibited by either ryanodine (10 μM) or naloxone (1 μM). In Fura-2-loaded intracardiac neurones, Met-enkephalin evoked a transient increase in [Ca 2+ ] i . Metenkephalin-induced mobilization of intracellular Ca 2+ may play a role in neuronal excitability and firing behaviour in mammalian intracardiac ganglia.Keywords: Parasympathetic ganglia; Intracellular Ca 2+ ; Caffeine; Ryanodine; Opioid receptor; CaIndex Terms: heart innervation Endogenous opioid peptides have been found in the extrinsic and intrinsic innervation of the rat heart [7] and vagal transmission to the heart has been shown to be inhibited by exogenous opioid substances [11,18] channels via a Pertussis toxin-sensitive G-protein [1]. However, the action potential after-hyperpolarization due to a Ca 2+ -dependent K + conductance(s) in these neurones was unaltered in the presence of Met-enkephalin. In the present study, the actions of Met-enkephalin and caffeine, a known intracellular Ca 2+ mobilizing agent, on intracellular Ca 2+ mobilization and activation of the large conductance Ca 2+ -dependent K + channels (BK Ca ) were investigated.Parasympathetic neurones from neonatal rat intracardiac ganglia were isolated as previously described [19]. The dissociated neurones were plated onto glass coverslips coated with laminin, incubated at 37°C in 95% O 2 -5% CO 2 atmosphere and used for experiments within 36-72 h. At the time of experiments, the neuroneplated glass coverslips were transferred to a recording chamber (0.5 ml volume) and mounted on the stage of an inverted phase contrast microscope. Unitary current recordings were obtained using the cell-attached patch recording configuration of the patch clamp technique [6]. In the cell-attached configuration, K + currents in the membrane patch follow the relationship i K =γ(V m −V h −E K ). When the cells were bathed in a depolarizing external solution (V m ˜0 mV) and V h was held at 0 mV, the membrane potential in the patch was close to 0 mV. Unitary currents were recorded using an Axopatch 200B patch clamp amplifier (Axon Instruments, Foster City, CA), filtered at 5 kHz, and stored on digital tape using a DAT digital recorder (DTR-1204, Biologic Science Instruments, Claix, France). Records were transferred to a Pentium computer using an analogue-to-digit...