Kinetics of force redevelopment in isolated intact frog fibers in solutions of varied osmolarity

Abstract

Isolated intact frog muscle fibers, while shortening with the intrinsic maximal speed, were stretched back to the original length to measure the kinetics of force redevelopment. These kinetics give information on the attachment rate constant in the cross-bridge cycle in vivo, and a value of approximately 25.6 s-1 (0 degree C) is found in the present study. We find that these kinetics were slightly less sensitive to temperature than was the unloaded shortening speed. The effect of hyperosmolarity on force redevelopment was also measured in solutions with added sucrose or KCl. The rate constant was nearly halved with 120 mM sucrose, but there was practically no effect with isosmotic (60 mM) KCl. These results indicate that the rate constant of force redevelopment is insensitive to raised intracellular ionic strength. In sucrose, the fiber width was also compressed, and the attenuation of the rate constant of force redevelopment in this case is consequently attributed to the decrease in interfilament space. The order of magnitude of the rate constant found in this study suggests that tension transduction by a cross-bridge, during each turnover cycle, requires a series of elementary steps following the attachment.