The concentration of ouabain binding sites in biopsies of uterine muscle.

The concentration of Na, K-ATPase in biopsies of uterine muscle was determined by measurement of [3H]ouabain binding in the presence of vanadate. For this purpose a method previously described for skeletal muscle (Nørgaard et al. 1983) was modified. Biopsies were obtained from uterine muscle from pregnant women (during caesarian section), non-pregnant women (during hysterectomy) and from adult, non-pregnant guinea-pigs and rats. The ouabain binding site concentration in uterine muscle of the pregnant women averaged 72 +/- 2 pmol g-1 wet wt (n = 8), with an apparent dissociation constant (KD) for ouabain of 3 x 10(-9) mol l-1. The ouabain-binding capacity in uterine muscle of the non-pregnant women amounted to 83 +/- 9 pmol g-1 wet wt (n = 8). In uterine muscle of the guinea-pig, two populations of ouabain binding sites were observed: one with a maximum binding capacity of 230 pmol g-1 wet wt and an apparent KD of 1.6 x 10(-6) mol l-1, and one with a maximum capacity of 62 pmol g-1 wet wt and an apparent KD of 5 x 10(-8) mol l-1. Immediate freezing of the biopsies in liquid N2 and storage at -60 degrees C for up to 6 weeks caused no change in ouabain-binding capacity. The dry weight/wet weight ratio of the samples from different subjects showed values of around 20%. It is concluded that the concentration of Na-K pumps in human uterine muscle can be quantified by [3H]ouabain binding using samples weighing 5-10 mg.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)