期刊名称：Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
印刷版ISSN：0027-8424
电子版ISSN：1091-6490
出版年度：1999
卷号：96
期号：14
页码：8259-8264
DOI：10.1073/pnas.96.14.8259
语种：English
出版社：The National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
摘要：Activity of cardiac pacemaker cells is caused by a balanced interplay of ion channels. However, it is not known how the rhythmic beating is initiated during early stages of cardiomyogenesis, when the expression of ion channels is still incomplete. Based on the observation that early-stage embryonic stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes continuously contracted in high extracellular K+ solution, here we provide experimental evidence that the spontaneous activity of these cells is not generated by transmembrane ion currents, but by intracellular [Ca2+]i oscillations. This early activity was clearly independent of voltage dependent L-type Ca2+ channels and the interplay between these and ryanodine sensitive Ca2+ stores. We also show that intracellular Ca2+ oscillations evoke small membrane depolarizations and that these can trigger L-type Ca2+ channel driven action potentials.
