Intracellular calcium and the regulation of sodium transport in the frog skin

Abstract

Exposure of frog skins to Na-free solutions on the basal border causes a reduction in transepithelial Na transport. Since Na-free solutions produce an increase in cell Ca concentration in some cell types, we have explored whether such increase plays a rôle in their inhibitory effects on transepithelial transport. Measurements of ⁴⁵Ca uptake in isolated epithelia showed that Na-free solutions caused a threefold stimulation of Ca uptake; nearly all the increased uptake occurred through the basal border. The reduction in transepithelial Na transport caused by Na-free solutions was absent when Ca was also eliminated from the basal solution. These findings suggest that the reduction in transepithelial Na-free solutions is caused by increased cytoplasmic calcium levels. We also found that during the action of metabolic inhibitors, Ca efflux from the epithelium was increased markedly. Since such as increase in efflux is probably due to increased (Ca) in the cytoplasm, we suggest that the reduced epithelial Na permeability observed during metabolic inhibition may be due to increased cytoplasmic calcium.