Malignant hyperthermia, environmental heat stress, and intracellular calcium dysregulation in a mouse model expressing the p.G2435R variant of RYR1.

BACKGROUND: The human p.G2434R variant of the RYR1 gene is most frequently associated with malignant hyperthermia (MH) in the UK. We report the phenotype of a knock-in mouse that expresses the RYR1 variant p.G2435R, which is isogenetic with the human variant. METHODS: We observed the general phenotype; determined the sensitivity of myotubes to caffeine-, KCl, and halothane-induced Ca2+ release; determined the in vivo response to halothane or increased ambient temperature; and determined the in vivo myoplasmic intracellular Ca2+ concentration in skeletal muscle before and during exposure to volatile anaesthetics. RESULTS: RYR1 pG2435R/MH normal (MHS-Heterozygous[Het]) or RYR1 pG2435R/pG2435R (MHS-Homozygous[Hom]) mice were fully viable under typical rearing conditions, although some male MHS-Hom mice died spontaneously. The normalised half-maximal effective concentration (95% confidence interval) for intracellular Ca2+ release in myotubes in response to KCl [MH normal, MHN, 21.4 (19.8-23.1) mM; MHS-Het 16.2 (15.2-17.2) mM; MHS-Hom 11.2 (10.2-12.2) mM] and caffeine (MHN, 5.7 (5-6.3) mM; MHS-Het 4.5 (3.9-5.0) mM; MHS-Hom 1.77 (1.5-2.1) mM] exhibited a gene dose-dependent decrease, and there was a gene dose-dependent increase in halothane sensitivity. Intact animals show a gene dose-dependent susceptibility to MH with volatile anaesthetics or to heat stroke. RYR1 p.G2435R mice had elevated skeletal muscle intracellular resting [Ca2+]i, (values are expressed as mean (SD)) (MHN 123 (3) nM; MHS-Het 156 (16) nM; MHS-Hom 265 (32) nM; P<0.001) and [Na+]i (MHN 8 (0.1) mM; MHS-Het 10 (1) mM; MHS-Hom 14 (0.7) mM; P<0.001) that was further increased by exposure to volatile anaesthetics. CONCLUSIONS: RYR1 pG2435R mice demonstrated gene dose-dependent in vitro and in vivo responses to pharmacological and environmental stressors that parallel those seen in patients with the human RYR1 variant p.G2434R.

Assessing the pathogenicity of RYR1 variants in malignant hyperthermia.

BACKGROUND: . Missense variants in the ryanodine receptor 1 gene ( RYR1 ) are associated with malignant hyperthermia but only a minority of these have met the criteria for use in predictive DNA diagnosis. We examined the utility of a simplified method of segregation analysis and a functional assay for determining the pathogenicity of recurrent RYR1 variants associated with malignant hyperthermia. METHODS: . We identified previously uncharacterised RYR1 variants found in four or more malignant hyperthermia families and conducted simplified segregation analyses. An efficient cloning and mutagenesis strategy was used to express ryanodine receptor protein containing one of six RYR1 variants in HEK293 cells. Caffeine-induced calcium release, measured using a fluorescent calcium indicator, was compared in cells expressing each variant to that in cells expressing wild type ryanodine receptor protein. RESULTS.: We identified 43 malignant hyperthermia families carrying one of the six RYR1 variants. There was segregation of genotype with the malignant hyperthermia susceptibility phenotype in families carrying the p.E3104K and p.D3986E variants, but the number of informative meioses limited the statistical significance of the associations. HEK293 functional assays demonstrated an increased sensitivity of RyR1 channels containing the p.R2336H, p.R2355W, p.E3104K, p.G3990V and p.V4849I compared with wild type, but cells expressing p.D3986E had a similar caffeine sensitivity to cells expressing wild type RyR1. CONCLUSIONS: . Segregation analysis is of limited value in assessing pathogenicity of RYR1 variants in malignant hyperthermia. Functional analyses in HEK293 cells provided evidence to support the use of p.R2336H, p.R2355W, p.E3104K, p.G3990V and p.V4849I for diagnostic purposes but not p.D3986E.

Coordinated movement of cytoplasmic and transmembrane domains of RyR1 upon gating.

Ryanodine receptor type 1 (RyR1) produces spatially and temporally defined Ca2+ signals in several cell types. How signals received in the cytoplasmic domain are transmitted to the ion gate and how the channel gates are unknown. We used EGTA or neuroactive PCB 95 to stabilize the full closed or open states of RyR1. Single-channel measurements in the presence of FKBP12 indicate that PCB 95 inverts the thermodynamic stability of RyR1 and locks it in a long-lived open state whose unitary current is indistinguishable from the native open state. We analyzed two datasets of 15,625 and 18,527 frozen-hydrated RyR1-FKBP12 particles in the closed and open conformations, respectively, by cryo-electron microscopy. Their corresponding three-dimensional structures at 10.2 A resolution refine the structure surrounding the ion pathway previously identified in the closed conformation: two right-handed bundles emerging from the putative ion gate (the cytoplasmic "inner branches" and the transmembrane "inner helices"). Furthermore, six of the identifiable transmembrane segments of RyR1 have similar organization to those of the mammalian Kv1.2 potassium channel. Upon gating, the distal cytoplasmic domains move towards the transmembrane domain while the central cytoplasmic domains move away from it, and also away from the 4-fold axis. Along the ion pathway, precise relocation of the inner helices and inner branches results in an approximately 4 A diameter increase of the ion gate. Whereas the inner helices of the K+ channels and of the RyR1 channel cross-correlate best with their corresponding open/closed states, the cytoplasmic inner branches, which are not observed in the K+ channels, appear to have at least as important a role as the inner helices for RyR1 gating. We propose a theoretical model whereby the inner helices, the inner branches, and the h1 densities together create an efficient novel gating mechanism for channel opening by relaxing two right-handed bundle structures along a common 4-fold axis.

The Mechanical Properties of in Situ Canine Skeletal Muscle.

This study was undertaken to determine if fiber arrangement was responsible for differences in the whole muscle mechanical properties. Experiments were carried out in situ in blood perfused dog skeletal muscles at approximately normal body temperature between 36° and 38°C. The following mechanical relationships were studied using a pneumatic muscle lever to measure Tension (P), length (L) and dP/dt: and dL/dt with a high frequency oscillograph (500-1000 Hz): 1.) Length:Tension; 2.) Force:Velocity; and 3.) Stress:Strain of Series Elastic. Electron microscopy and fiber typing were done as adjunctive studies. Muscles were stimulated by direct nerve stimulation with 0.1msec stimuli at a rate of 1 impulse per second for twitch contractions, or in 200 msec bursts of 100 Hz 0.1 msec stimuli for brief tetanic contractions. The pennate short fibered gastrocnemius plantaris developed 1.0 kg/g of tension during brief tetanic stimulation, at optimal length (Lo) with full stimulus voltage, while the parallel long fibered semitendinosus developed 0.5 kg/g under the same conditions. The Length:Tension relationship for these two muscles was qualitatively similar but quantitatively different. The Force:Velocity relationship (ΔL/L0 vs. P/P0) for both muscles were also qualitatively similar and could be described by the previously proposed rectangular hyperbola but a better predicted fit to the observed data could be produced by adding a descending exponential function to the rectangular hyperbola. Unlike previous studies, the Stress:Strain properties of the series elastic component measured by quick release (ΔL/Li vs. ΔP/Po) were linear and gastrocnemius was 25 per cent higher than the semitendinosus. Overall, both muscles were found to have mechanical properties that differed little from the previously reported literature for amphibian, cardiac and small mammalian muscles studied by others in vitro. The major differences that we found were in the shapes of the force:velocity curve of the contractile component, and the Stress:Strain curve of series elastic component. Equations and explanations for these differences are devised and presented.

Loss of prestin does not alter the development of auditory cortical dendritic spines.

Disturbance of sensory input during development can have disastrous effects on the development of sensory cortical areas. To examine how moderate perturbations of hearing can impact the development of primary auditory cortex, we examined markers of excitatory synapses in mice who lacked prestin, a protein responsible for somatic electromotility of cochlear outer hair cells. While auditory brain stem responses of these mice show an approximately 40 dB increase in threshold, we found that loss of prestin produced no changes in spine density or morphological characteristics on apical dendrites of cortical layer 5 pyramidal neurons. PSD-95 immunostaining also showed no changes in overall excitatory synapse density. Surprisingly, behavioral assessments of auditory function using the acoustic startle response showed only modest changes in prestin KO animals. These results suggest that moderate developmental hearing deficits produce minor changes in the excitatory connectivity of layer 5 neurons of primary auditory cortex and surprisingly mild auditory behavioral deficits in the startle response.

Internal structure and visualization of transmembrane domains of the RyR1 calcium release channel by cryo-EM.

RyR1 is an intracellular calcium channel with a central role in muscle contraction. We obtained a three-dimensional reconstruction of the RyR1 in the closed state at a nominal resolution of approximately 10 A using cryo-EM. The cytoplasmic assembly consists of a series of interconnected tubular structures that merge into four columns that extend into the transmembrane assembly. The transmembrane assembly, which has at least six transmembrane alpha-helices per monomer, has four tilted rods that can be fitted with the inner helices of a closed K(+) channel atomic structure. The rods splay out at the lumenal side and converge into a dense ring at the cytoplasmic side. Another set of four rods emerges from this ring and shapes the inner part of the four columns. The resulting constricted axial structure provides direct continuity between cytoplasmic and transmembrane assemblies, and a possible mechanism for control of channel gating through conformational changes in the cytoplasmic assembly.

Role of ryanodine receptors in the assembly of calcium release units in skeletal muscle.

In muscle cells, excitation-contraction (e-c) coupling is mediated by "calcium release units," junctions between the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) and exterior membranes. Two proteins, which face each other, are known to functionally interact in those structures: the ryanodine receptors (RyRs), or SR calcium release channels, and the dihydropyridine receptors (DHPRs), or L-type calcium channels of exterior membranes. In skeletal muscle, DHPRs form tetrads, groups of four receptors, and tetrads are organized in arrays that face arrays of feet (or RyRs). Triadin is a protein of the SR located at the SR-exterior membrane junctions, whose role is not known. We have structurally characterized calcium release units in a skeletal muscle cell line (1B5) lacking Ry1R. Using immunohistochemistry and freeze-fracture electron microscopy, we find that DHPR and triadin are clustered in foci in differentiating 1B5 cells. Thin section electron microscopy reveals numerous SR-exterior membrane junctions lacking foot structures (dyspedic). These results suggest that components other than Ry1Rs are responsible for targeting DHPRs and triadin to junctional regions. However, DHPRs in 1B5 cells are not grouped into tetrads as in normal skeletal muscle cells suggesting that anchoring to Ry1Rs is necessary for positioning DHPRs into ordered arrays of tetrads. This hypothesis is confirmed by finding a "restoration of tetrads" in junctional domains of surface membranes after transfection of 1B5 cells with cDNA encoding for Ry1R.

A transgenic myogenic cell line lacking ryanodine receptor protein for homologous expression studies: reconstitution of Ry1R protein and function.

CCS embryonic stem (ES) cells possessing two mutant alleles (ry1r-/ry1r-) for the skeletal muscle ryanodine receptor (RyR) have been produced and injected subcutaneously into severely compromised immunodeficient mice to produce teratocarcinomas in which Ry1R expression is absent. Several primary fibroblast cell lines were isolated and subcloned from one of these tumors that contain the knockout mutation in both alleles and exhibit a doubling time of 18-24 h, are not contact growth inhibited, do not exhibit drastic morphological change upon serum reduction, and possess the normal complement of chromosomes. Four of these fibroblast clones were infected with a retrovirus containing the cDNA encoding myoD and a puromycin selection marker. Several (1-2 microg/ml) puromycin-resistant subclones from each initial cell line were expanded and examined for their ability to express myoD and to form multinucleated myotubes that express desmin and myosin upon removal of mitogens. One of these clones (1B5 cells) was selected on this basis for further study. These cells, upon withdrawal of mitogens for 5-7 d, were shown by Western blot analysis to express key triadic proteins, including skeletal triadin, calsequestrin, FK506-binding protein, 12 kD, sarco(endo)plasmic reticulum calcium-ATPase1, and dihydropyridine receptors. Neither RyR isoform protein, Ry1R (skeletal), Ry2R (cardiac), nor Ry3R (brain), were detected in differentiated 1B5 cells. Measurements of intracellular Ca2+ by ratio fluorescence imaging of fura-2-loaded cells revealed that differentiated 1B5 cells exhibited no responses to K+ (40 mM) depolarization, ryanodine (50-500 microM), or caffeine (20-100 mM). Transient transfection of the 1B5 cells with the full-length rabbit Ry1R cDNA restored the expected responses to K+ depolarization, caffeine, and ryanodine. Depolarization-induced Ca2+ release was independent of extracellular Ca2+, consistent with skeletal-type excitation-contraction coupling. Wild-type Ry1R expressed in 1B5 cells were reconstituted into bilayer lipid membranes and found to be indistinguishable from channels reconstituted from rabbit sarcoplasmic reticulum with respect to unitary conductance, open dwell times, and responses to ryanodine and ruthenium red. The 1B5 cell line provides a powerful and easily managed homologous expression system in which to study how Ry1R structure relates to function.

Skeletal actin mRNA increases in the human heart during ontogenic development and is the major isoform of control and failing adult hearts.

Expression of the two sarcomeric actins, alpha-skeletal and alpha-cardiac, is regulated in the rodent heart in response to developmental, hormonal, and hemodynamic stimuli. Little is known in man, except that both isogenes were found to be coexpressed in three adult ventricles. In this report, we investigated the isoactin mRNA composition in ventricles from 21 control patients (4 fetal, 5 juvenile, 12 adult) and from 15 patients undergoing cardiac transplantation (5 idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathies, 5 ischemic myopathies with myocardial infarcts, 5 diverse etiologies) by two different and complementary techniques: RNA dot blot analysis with specific cDNA probes, and primer extensions with an oligonucleotide common to alpha-cardiac and alpha-skeletal actins. In the case of dot blot analysis, quantification of each isoform was performed by using as standards RNA transcripts obtained from cloned human alpha-actin sequences, and the total amount of sarcomeric actin mRNA was evaluated as a function of total poly(A+)RNA. We found that both isogenes are always coexpressed, and that the isoactin pattern changes during development. In utero and in neonatal hearts, alpha-skeletal actin mRNA represents less than or equal to 20% of sarcomeric actins, it increases to 48 +/- 6% during the first decade after birth and becomes the predominant isoform of adult hearts (60.4 +/- 8.5%). The 15 adult failing hearts exhibited the same isoactin pattern as the control ones (62.84 +/- 11.06%), and there was no difference in expression between patients with dilated cardiomyopathy or ischemic heart disease. These observations demonstrate that cardiac development in man, in contrast to rodent heart, is characterized by an up-regulation of the skeletal actin gene, the expression of which does not change in hypertrophied and failing hearts, and suggest that the actin and myosin heavy chain families are independently regulated in human heart.

Expression of dihydropyridine receptor (Ca2+ channel) and calsequestrin genes in the myocardium of patients with end-stage heart failure.

Cytoplasmic free calcium ions (Ca2+) play a central role in excitation-contraction coupling of cardiac muscle. Abnormal Ca2+ handling has been implicated in systolic and diastolic dysfunction in patients with end-stage heart failure. The current study tests the hypothesis that expression of genes encoding proteins regulating myocardial Ca2+ homeostasis is altered in human heart failure. We analyzed RNA isolated from the left ventricular (LV) myocardium of 30 cardiac transplant recipients with end-stage heart failure (HF) and five organ donors (normal control), using cDNA probes specific for the cardiac dihydropyridine (DHP) receptor (the alpha 1 subunit of the DHP-sensitive Ca2+ channel) and cardiac calsequestrin of sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR). In addition, abundance of DHP binding sites was assessed by ligand binding techniques (n = 6 each for the patients and normal controls). There was no difference in the level of cardiac calsequestrin mRNA between the HF patients and normal controls. In contrast, the level of mRNA encoding the DHP receptor was decreased by 47% (P less than 0.001) in the LV myocardium from the patients with HF compared to the normal controls. The number of DHP binding sites was decreased by 35-48%. As reported previously, expression of the SR Ca(2+)-ATPase mRNA was also diminished by 50% (P less than 0.001) in the HF group. These data suggest that expression of the genes encoding the cardiac DHP receptor and SR Ca(2+)-ATPase is reduced in the LV myocardium from patients with HF. Altered expression of these genes may be related to abnormal Ca2+ handling in the failing myocardium, contributing to LV systolic and diastolic dysfunction in patients with end-stage heart failure.

Altered sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2(+)-ATPase gene expression in the human ventricle during end-stage heart failure.

A decrease in the myocardial level of the mRNA encoding the Ca2(+)-ATPase of the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) has been recently reported during experimental cardiac hypertrophy and failure. To determine if such a deficit occurs in human end-stage heart failure, we compared the SR Ca2(+)-ATPase mRNA levels in left (LV) and right ventricular (RV) specimens from 13 patients undergoing cardiac transplantation (6 idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathies; 4 coronary artery diseases with myocardial infarctions; 3 diverse etiologies) with control heart samples using a rat cardiac SR Ca2(+)-ATPase cDNA probe. We observed a marked decrease in the mRNA for the Ca2(+)-ATPase relative to both the 18S ribosomal RNA and the myosin heavy chain mRNA in LV specimens of patients with heart failure compared to controls (-48%, P less than 0.01 and -47%, P less than 0.05, respectively). The LV ratio of Ca2(+)-ATPase mRNA to 18S RNA positively correlated with cardiac index (P less than 0.02). The RV ratio correlated negatively with systolic, diastolic and mean pulmonary arterial pressures (P less than 0.02, P less than 0.02, and P less than 0.01, respectively). We suggest that a decrease of the SR Ca2(+)-ATPase mRNA in the myocardium plays an important role in alterations of Ca2+ movements and myocardial relaxation reported during human end-stage heart failure.

Automated osteoporosis risk assessment by dentists: a new pathway to diagnosis.

General dental practitioners use a vast amount of panoramic radiography in their routine clinical work, but valuable information about patients' osteoporotic status is not collected. There are many reasons for this, but one of the prime reasons must be the disruption involved in clinical routine with lengthy manual radiographic assessment. We have developed computer software, based on active shape modeling that will automatically detect the mandibular cortex on panoramic radiographs, and then measure its width. Automatic or semi-automatic measurement of the cortical width will indicate the osteoporotic risk of the patient. The aim of our work was to assess the computer search technique's ability to measure the mandibular cortical width and to assess its potential for detection of osteoporosis of the hip, spine and femoral neck. Mandibular cortical width was measured using the manually initialized (semi-automatic) method and, when assessed for diagnosing osteoporosis at one of the three measurement sites, gave an area under the ROC curve (A(z))=0.816 (95% CI=0.784 to 0.845) and for the automatically initialized searches, A(z)=0.759 (95% CI=0.724 to 0.791). The difference between areas=0.057 (95% Confidence interval=0.025 to 0.089), p<0.0001. For diagnosing osteoporosis at the femoral neck, mandibular cortical width derived from the manually initialized fit gave an area under the ROC curve (A(z))=0.835 (95% CI=0.805 to 0.863) and for the automatically initialized searches A(z)=0.805 (95% CI=0.773 to 0.835). The difference in A(z) values between active shape modeling search methods=0.030 (95% CI=-0.010 to 0.070), and this was not significant, p=0.138. We concluded that measurement of mandibular cortical width using active shape modeling is capable of diagnosing skeletal osteoporosis with good diagnostic ability and repeatability.

The relationship between acetabular retroversion and osteoarthritis of the hip.

Excessive acetabular cover secondary to a retroverted acetabulum causes pincer impingement, which may cause early osteoarthritis of the hip. Our aim was to determine if there was a relationship between acetabular version and osteoarthritis of the hip. Using image processing and analysis software we studied 117 CT images of the hip in patients aged less than 65 years who had undergone a CT virtual colonoscopy. The mean CT joint space of the 18 hips with acetabular retroversion was narrower compared with the 99 hips with normal acetabular alignment (p < 0.0001). A correlation of r = 0.46 (p < 0.01) was found between right hip acetabular version and the mean right hip joint space and of r = 0.31 (p = 0.02) between left hip acetabular version and the mean left hip joint space. Acetabular retroversion is associated with radiological evidence of osteoarthritis of the hip. An understanding of the mechanical basis of osteoarthritis of the hip allows early treatment of the underlying structural abnormality and prevents progression of the degenerative condition.

1,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D3 protects human leukemic cells from tumor necrosis factor-induced apoptosis via inactivation of cytosolic phospholipase A2.

The mechanism by which tumor necrosis factor (TNF) induces death of cancer cells appears to involve the activation of cytosolic phospholipase A2 (cPLA2). U937 human leukemic cells treated with 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1,25(OH)2D3; 10(-8) M] become resistant to TNF, an effect that is independent of cell cycle status and expression of TNF receptors or BCL-2. In this study, TNF produced a dose- and time-dependent enhancement of [3H]arachidonic acid release in U937 cells. The amount of [3H]arachidonic acid release was positively associated with TNF-induced apoptosis. Both immunofluorescence microscopy and Western blotting of cell subcompartments demonstrated translocation of cPLA2 from the cytosol to the cell membrane in response to TNF. In addition, TNF up-regulated expression of cPLA2 mRNA. An antisense oligonucleotide to cPLA2 and the cPLA2 inhibitor 4-bromophenacyl bromide significantly inhibited TNF-induced cytotoxicity. Prior incubation of cells with 1,25(OH)2D3 significantly inhibited (a) TNF-induced [3H]arachidonic acid release and apoptosis, (b) TNF-induced translocation of cPLA2 to the membrane, and (c) the up-regulation of cPLA2 mRNA with TNF. Furthermore, the inhibitory effect of 1,25(OH)2D3 was not reversed by inhibitors of transcription or translation. The data suggest that activation of cPLA2 is involved in TNF-induced apoptosis of leukemic cells. 1,25(OH)2D3 directly inhibits cPLA2 translocation and mRNA up-regulation induced by TNF. Disruption of cPLA2 activation may represent a possible mechanism whereby leukemic cells can become resistant to TNF-mediated killing.

Low-frequency low-field magnetic susceptibility of ferritin and hemosiderin.

Low-frequency low-field magnetic susceptibility measurements were made on four samples of mammalian tissue iron oxide deposits. The samples comprised: (1) horse spleen ferritin; (2) dugong liver hemosiderin; (3) thalassemic human spleen ferritin; and (4) crude thalassemic human spleen hemosiderin. These samples were chosen because Mössbauer spectroscopic measurements on the samples indicated that they exemplified the variation in magnetic and mineral structure found in mammalian tissue iron oxide deposits. The AC-magnetic susceptometry yielded information on the magnetization kinetics of the four samples indicating samples 1, 2, and 3 to be superparamagnetic with values of around 10(11) s(-1) for the pre-exponential frequency factor in the Néel-Arrhenius equation and values for characteristic magnetic anisotropy energy barriers in the range 250-400 K. Sample 4 was indicated to be paramagnetic at all temperatures above 1.3 K. The AC-magnetic susceptometry data also indicated a larger magnetic anisotropy energy distribution in the dugong liver sample compared with samples 1 and 3 in agreement with previous Mössbauer spectroscopic data on these samples. At temperatures below 200 K, samples 1-3 exhibited Curie-Weiss law behavior, indicating weak particle-particle interactions tending to favor antiparallel alignment of the particle magnetic moments. These interactions were strongest for the dugong liver hemosiderin, possibly reflecting the smaller separation between mineral particles in this sample. This is the first magnetic susceptometry study of hemosiderin iron deposits and demonstrates that the AC-magnetic susceptometry technique is a fast and informative method of studying such tissue iron oxide deposits.

Kinetic studies of Ca2+ release from sarcoplasmic reticulum of normal and malignant hyperthermia susceptible pig muscles.

The time-course of Ca2+ release from sarcoplasmic reticulum isolated from muscles of normal pigs and those of pigs susceptible to malignant hyperthermia were investigated using stopped-flow spectrophotometry and arsenazo III as a Ca2+ indicator. Several methods were used to trigger Ca2+ release: (a) addition of halothane (e.g., 0.2 mM); (b) an increase of extravesicular Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+0]); (c) a combination of (a) and (b), and (d) replacement of ions (potassium gluconate with choline chloride) to produce membrane depolarization. The initial rates of Ca2+ release induced by either halothane or Ca2+ alone, or both, are at least 70% higher in malignant hyperthermic sarcoplasmic reticulum than in normal. The amount of Ca2+ released by halothane at low [Ca2+0] in malignant hyperthermic sarcoplasmic reticulum is about twice as large as in normal sarcoplasmic reticulum. Membrane depolarization led to biphasic Ca2+ release in both malignant hyperthermic and normal sarcoplasmic reticulum, the rate constant of the rapid phase of Ca2+ release induced by membrane depolarization being significantly higher in malignant hyperthermic sarcoplasmic reticulum (k = 83 s-1) than in normal (k = 37 s-1). Thus, all types of Ca2+ release investigated (a, b, c and d) have higher rates in malignant hyperthermic sarcoplasmic reticulum than normal sarcoplasmic reticulum. These results suggest that the putative Ca2+ release channels located in the sarcoplasmic reticulum are altered in malignant hyperthermic sarcoplasmic reticulum.

Mechanisms of resistance to apoptosis in human AML blasts: the role of differentiation-induced perturbations of cell-cycle checkpoints.

Alterations in the response of leukaemic cells to apoptosis-inducing stimuli may account for resistance to chemotherapy and treatment failure, either by disruption of the apoptotic pathway itself or by altered DNA repair; quiescent cells and those with disrupted cell-cycle checkpoints may also display decreased apoptosis. Quiescence can be induced by the differentiation of myeloid cells, and this led us to investigate whether the modulation of drug-induced apoptosis associated with differentiation might be a model for quiescence-associated resistance generally. We have demonstrated that resistance to idarubicin-induced apoptosis increased with greater duration of incubation of HL60 and U937 cells with ATRA and 1,25(OH)2 D3 and that this protective effect correlated with the degree of G0/G1 accumulation. In addition, the cytoprotective effects held for other classes of cytotoxic drugs with different mechanisms of action to idarubicin. Prolonged exposure to idarubicin or vinblastine was associated with diminution of the protective effect and re-entry of cells into cycle. The full cytoprotective effect was restored by resupplementation with ATRA or 1,25(OH)2 D3 during exposure to idarubicin, with concomitant persistence of G0/G1 accumulation. Differentiating agents prevented the accumulation of leukaemic cells at the G2/M checkpoint in response to low concentrations of idarubicin. Understanding how differentiating agents modulate these cell-cycle checkpoints, and how quiescent cells evade apoptosis, may allow the development of therapeutic strategies to limit such apoptosis-inhibiting effects and maximise cell kill from chemotherapy.