Colchicine stimulates the rate of contraction of heart cells in culture.

Microtubules have been demonstrated in intact heart muscle as well as in cultured myocytes. To better understand what role these filaments may be playing in the regulation of cardiac function we have used the microtubule disrupting agent colchicine and examined its effect upon the rate of beating of rat heart cells. Colchicine, but not the inactive stereoisomer lumicolchicine, increased the myocyte rate of spontaneous contraction in a dose dependent manner. This effect was clearly distinguishable from the positive chronotropic effect of isoprenaline and unlike isoprenaline was not blocked by propranolol. Colchicine was without effect on the in vitro activity of adenylate cyclase assayed in a myocyte homogenate. The binding of 3H-colchicine to cultured heart cells increased with a time course consistent with the increase in heart rate. Subcellular distribution and sephadex gel chromatography demonstrated that approximately 30% of the cell associated colchicine comigrated with tubulin. Measurements of total myocyte tubulin by 3H-colchicine binding indicated that tubulin represents about 0.04% of the total heart cell protein.