Skip to main content
The Journal of General Physiology logoLink to The Journal of General Physiology
. 1965 Sep 1;49(1):37–45. doi: 10.1085/jgp.49.1.37

Osmotic Properties of Amphibian Muscles

Emil Bozler 1
PMCID: PMC2195469  PMID: 5862504

Abstract

Changes in the volume of fiber water in hypotonic and hypertonic Ringer's solution were determined for the sartorius, stomach, and cardiac muscle of the frog using two methods. Loss of water in hypertonic solutions was nearly the same in all muscles, but swelling in hypotonic solutions was greatest in the sartorius, smallest in the heart. For the sartorius the deviation from the properties of an osmometer can be accounted for by a loss of electrolyte and by assuming that a small part of the fiber water is bound, but this appears insufficient to explain the behavior of stomach and cardiac muscle in hypotonic solutions. In very dilute solutions of CaCl2 and MgCl2 a large difference in concentration of electrolytes is maintained between the fibers and the medium. Under these conditions divalent cations, accumulating in the fibers, produce a change in physical properties which indicates increased internal cross-linking. It is suggested, therefore, that swelling is limited as in a gel and that a considerable hydrostatic pressure may develop within the fibers.

Full Text

The Full Text of this article is available as a PDF (584.8 KB).

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. BOZLER E. DISTRIBUTION AND EXCHANGE OF CALCIUM IN CONNECTIVE TISSUE AND SMOOTH MUSCLE. Am J Physiol. 1963 Oct;205:686–692. doi: 10.1152/ajplegacy.1963.205.4.686. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. BOZLER E. Osmotic phenomena in smooth muscle. Am J Physiol. 1962 Jul;203:201–205. doi: 10.1152/ajplegacy.1962.203.1.201. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. BOZLER E. SMOOTH AND CARDIAC MUSCLE IN STATES OF STRONG INTERNAL CROSSLINKING AND HIGH PERMEABILITY. Am J Physiol. 1964 Sep;207:701–704. doi: 10.1152/ajplegacy.1964.207.3.701. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Bacon J. S., Bell D. J. Fructose and glucose in the blood of the foetal sheep. Biochem J. 1948;42(3):397–405. doi: 10.1042/bj0420397. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. HENROTTE J. G., COSMOS E., FENN W. O. Ca exchange in isolated turtle ventricle. Am J Physiol. 1960 Nov;199:779–782. doi: 10.1152/ajplegacy.1960.199.5.779. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. PAGE E., SOLOMON A. K. Cat heart muscle in vitro. I. Cell volumes and intracellular concentrations in papillary muscle. J Gen Physiol. 1960 Nov;44:327–344. doi: 10.1085/jgp.44.2.327. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. REUBEN J. P., GIRARDIER L., GRUNDFEST H. WATER TRANSFER AND CELL STRUCTURE IN ISOLATED CRAYFISH MUSCLE FIBERS. J Gen Physiol. 1964 Jul;47:1141–1174. doi: 10.1085/jgp.47.6.1141. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. REUBER J. P., LOPEZ E., BRANDT P. W., GRUNDFEST H. MUSCLE: VOLUME CHANGES IN ISOLATED SINGLE FIBERS. Science. 1963 Oct 11;142(3589):246–248. doi: 10.1126/science.142.3589.246. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. SAVITZ D., SIDEL V. W., SOLOMON A. K. OSMOTIC PROPERTIES OF HUMAN RED CELLS. J Gen Physiol. 1964 Sep;48:79–94. doi: 10.1085/jgp.48.1.79. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. TASKER P., SIMON S. E., JOHNSTONE B. M., SHANKLY K. H., SHAW F. H. The dimensions of the extracellular space in sartorius muscle. J Gen Physiol. 1959 Sep;43:39–53. doi: 10.1085/jgp.43.1.39. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from The Journal of General Physiology are provided here courtesy of The Rockefeller University Press

RESOURCES