Effect of sodium on transmembrane calcium movement in the cat ileal longitudinal muscle

To get a better insight into the exxistence and the role of a Na-Ca exchange mechanism in smooth muscle, the effect of Na substitution with sucrose on tension development, cellular Ca uptake and $^{45}Ca$ efflux was investigated using isolated cat ileal longitudinal muscle strips. Experimental results were summarized as follows;1) Exposure of the cat ileal longitudinal muscle to Na-free solution induced a contraction, and the magnitude of the contraction increased after incubation of the muscle strips with ouabain ($2{\times10^{-}5}$M) for 1hr. 2) Cellular Ca uptake in Na-free solution increased with an increase in Na content of the Na-loading media, and a linear relationship existed between tissue Na content and cellular Ca uptake for 10 min 3) After tissues were equilibrated in PSS containing $^{45}Ca$ for 2hr, cellular Ca uptake decreased with rising the external Na concentration. 4)Removal of medium Na or inhibition of the Na-K pump decreased the rate of $^{45}Ca$ efflux. These results strongly suggested that Na substitution increases cellular Ca uptake and decreases the rate of $^{45}Ca$ efflux via a Na-Ca exchange mechanism.