Glucocorticoids increase Ca2+ uptake and [3H]dihydropyridine binding in A7r5 vascular smooth muscle cells

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Abstract
Increased levels of corticosteroids result in the development of hypertension in vivo. To investigate whether corticosteroids modulate calcium handling in vascular smooth muscle cells, we studied 45Ca2+ uptake and binding of [methyl-3H]PN 200-110, a potent dihydropyridine Ca2+ antagonist, in A7r5 vascular smooth muscle cells. Forty-eight-hour treatment with 100 nM dexamethasone increased the unidirectional 45Ca2+ uptake during a 2-min period, and the 30-min 45Ca2+ uptake of dexamethasone-treated cells was 95% greater than that of nontreated cells. The lag time for the dexamethasone effect on Ca2+ uptake was approximately 8 h. The effect of dexamethasone was blocked by the glucocorticoid antagonist RU 38486, whereas it was not affected by the mineralocorticoid antagonist RU 26752. After cessation of the dexamethasone treatment, 45Ca2+ uptake returned to the control level by 24 h. The effect of dexamethasone was completely blocked by nifedipine in a dose-dependent manner. Scatchard plots of [methyl-3H]PN 200-110 binding revealed two binding sites (Kd; 0.02 and 1 nM), and dexamethasone increased the number of the higher affinity binding sites. These results indicate that glucocorticoids increase Ca2+ uptake possibly mediated by an increase in the number of dihydropyridine-sensitive Ca2+ channels.