Duchenne muscular dystrophy: 45Ca exchange in cultured skin fibroblasts and the effect of calcium ionophore A23187.

Calcium exchange was studied in skin fibroblasts cultured from eight subjects with Duchenne muscular dystrophy, four with Limb Girdle dystrophy and eight normal controls using 45Ca. No difference was found in the time course of calcium exchange between the groups, nor in the level of 45Ca when maximal exchange had occurred. Treatment of the cultures with the calcium ionophore A23187 resulted in higher levels of calcium exchange over a 2-H period. The increase was similar in the cultures from the 3 patient groups studied.