Discoordinate regulation of different K channels in cultured rat skeletal muscle by nerve growth factor

We investigated the effects of nerve growth factor (NGF) on expression of K+ channels in cultured skeletal muscle. The channels studied were (1) charybdotoxin (ChTx)-sensitive channels by using a polyclonal antibody raised in rabbits against ChTx, (2) Kv1.5 voltage-sensitive channels, and (3) apamin-sensitive (afterhyperpolarization) channels. Crude homogenates were prepared from cultures made from limb muscles of 1-2-day-old rat pups for identification of ChTx-sensitive and Kv1.5 channels by Western blotting techniques. Apamin-sensitive K+ channels were studied by measurement of specific [125I]-apamin binding by whole cell preparations. ChTx-sensitive channels display a fusion-related incr…