Effects of calcium and phosphate on catecholamines, ATP and dopamine beta-hydroxylase of chromaffin medullary granules.

Isolated bovine chromaffin granules lost their catecholamines to a significantly higher degree when incubated in isotonic sucrose-buffer of pH 7.4 containing 10 and 25 mM sodium phosphate, respectively, than during incubatation in sucrose with 4 mM sodium phosphate. 2. In 4mM sodium phosphate-sucrose, CaCl(2) in a final concentration of 1 and 2 mM, respectively, produced only traces of an amorphous precipitate of calcium phosphate which increased the efflux of catecholamines only to a small degree. The same concentrations of CaCl(2) in 10 and 25 mM sodium phosphate containing sucrose solutions caused larger amounts of calcium phosphate precipitate and simultaneously a very high efflux of catecholamines. Small amounts of exogenous ATP (1 mM) and MgCl(2) (0.3 mM) effectively antagonized the efflux of catecholamines from the granules evolked by calcium phosphate...