Comparison of effects of forskolin, cAMP, and vasopressin on Pf/Pd(w) of toad urinary bladder luminal membrane.

We have reported that Pf/Pd(w) (the ratio of osmotic and diffusional water permeabilities) for the luminal membrane of toad urinary bladder is approximately 17 for tissues stimulated with either vasopressin or 8-bromoadenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (8-BrcAMP). In a recent abstract, Kachadorian and co-workers have shown that tissues stimulated with adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (cAMP) or forskolin have a lower Pf than would be anticipated from the frequency of aggregates visualized on the flat portion of the luminal membrane using freeze-fracture electron microscopy. We report here measurements of Pf/Pd(w) for the luminal membrane of tissues receiving these agents: Pf/Pd(w) for submaximally stimulated tissues was the same, regardless of whether the stimulant was vasopressin (12.7 +/- 0.3), forskolin (13.7 +/- 0.9), or cAMP (12.0 +/- 1.3). The calculated Pd(w)'s for the series barrier were also identical (6.8 +/- 0.5, 6.5 +/- 0.3, and 8.2 +/- 1.0 X 10(-4) cm/s respectively). Our data, taken together with those of Kachadorian et al. are consistent with a number of possibilities: because our methodology does not permit estimation of Pf for the series barrier, we cannot rule out the possibility of a "post-luminal barrier" that is rate-limiting for Pf, but not for Pd(w) in forskolin- and cAMP-stimulated tissues, Pf and Pd(w) of the luminal surface aggregates could decrease in parallel, so that luminal membrane Pf/Pd(w) remains constant, and there could be a diminished frequency of fused aggregate-rich aggrephores, but not of aggregates that are on the flat portion of the luminal membrane. Only the latter can be unequivocally quantitated using freeze-fracture electron microscopy.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)