Fig. 2.
Voltage-gated calcium channels (VGCC) and large conductance calcium-activated potassium (BK) current activities in renal VSMCs from β-epithelial Na+ channel (βENaC)+/+ vs. βENaCm/m. A: for VGCC current activity, there is no significant difference in the activation profiles of VGCC in renal VSMCs from βENaC+/+ vs. βENaCm/m. I-V relationships for VGCC were obtained by using Ba2+ as a surrogate for Ca2+. Currents were activated by 1-s voltage steps from a holding potential of −80 mV every 15 s from −80 to +60 mV in 10-mV increments. The maximum current from each voltage step was used for plotting the activation I-V relationship (n = 6 per group). B: for BK current activity, I-V relationships were determined by a series of voltage steps ranging from −80 to +120 mV in 20-mV increments (n = 6 cells per group).