Dihydropyridine-sensitive skeletal muscle Ca channels in polarized planar bilayers. 2. Effects of phosphorylation by cAMP-dependent protein kinase.

The effects of phosphorylation on the voltage-dependent properties of dihydropyridine-sensitive Ca channels of skeletal muscle were studied. Single channel currents were recorded upon incorporation of transverse tubule membranes into planar bilayers that were kept polarized at near physiological resting potential and subjected to depolarizing pulses under voltage clamp. Studies were conducted to analyze the properties of the channels at both the single channel and macroscopic level, using methods introduced in the preceding paper (Ma et al., 1991. Biophys. J. 60: 890-901.). Addition of the catalytic subunit of cAMP-dependent protein kinase to the cis (intracellular) side of the bilayers containing channels resulted in: (a) an increase in open channel probability at all voltages above -50 mV; (b) a leftward shift (by 7 mV) in the curve describing the voltage-dependence of activation; (c) an approximate twofold decrease in the rate of inactivation; and (d) an increase in the availability of the channel. These findings provide new insights at the single channel level into the mechanism of modulation of the dihydropyridine-sensitive Ca channels of skeletal muscle by signal transduction events that involve elevation in cAMP and activation of the cAMP-dependent protein kinase.