Ca2+ dependence of positive inotropic responses of guinea pig isolated cardiac preparations to cAMP-generating and cAMP-independent agonists.

The effects of procedures which diminish Ca2+ influx into myocardial cells on responses of isolated cardiac preparations to cAMP-independent histamine H1 receptor stimulation and cAMP-generating beta-receptor stimulation were measured. The histamine response of guinea pig left atria, which appears to be primarily mediated by H1 receptors, was depressed to a greater extent than was the response of this preparation to isoproterenol by decreasing the extracellular Ca2+ concentration, and by the Ca2+ influx blocker D-600. Similarly, while the H1 agonist 2-pyridylethylamine dihydrochloride (PEA) produced increases in tension of a similar magnitude as the partial beta-agonist salbutamol in both left atria and in papillary muscles, responses of both preparations to PEA were depressed to a significantly greater extent by decreasing the extracellular Ca2+ concentration than were responses to salbutamol. Overall, both the basal developed force of papillary muscles and the responses of these preparations to H1 and beta-receptor stimulation appeared to be less depressed by decreasing the extracellular Ca2+ concentration than were those of left atria. These results indicate that responses mediated via cAMP-independent H1 receptors, like those arising from alpha-receptor stimulation, are more sensitive to procedures which diminish Ca2+ influx than are responses arising from stimulation of cAMP-generating beta-receptors. This may reflect differences in the mechanisms by which stimulation of H1, alpha-, and beta-receptors give rise to positive inotropic responses. In addition, left atria may be more dependent than papillary muscles on extracellular Ca2+ for the support of contraction.