Electrical and transport characteristics of skin of larval Rana catesbeiana

Abstract

Carefully dissected, mounted, and bathed with Ringer solution, the larval bullfrog skin has a resistance of about 9,000 omega.cm2 and a stable transepithelial electrical potential of about 20 mV (inside +). A short-circuit current of about 2 microA.cm-2 is generated that is comparable in magnitude to the net inward flux of Na+. At open circuit the flux ratio equation for Na+ is not satisfied. Larval skin is less sensitive to ouabain, amiloride, and ADH than adult skin. The current-voltage (C-V) relationship across the preparation is not linear; there are distinct breaks in both the hyperpolarizing and hypopolarizing regions. The former break, at about +130 mV, corresponds with a break observed in adult skin that corresponds with ENa. The shunt resistance (RS) and active pathway resistance (RA) were estimated by C-V curve analysis and by ion substitution. The two methods yielded comparable values with RS about 11 k omega.cm2 and RA about 62 k omega.cm2. It is suggested that transport is limited by the number of entry sites for sodium at the apical border of transport cells.