The effect of cAMP on ion transport in Fallopian tube epithelial cells in vitro

The coupled movement of ions and water across epithelia determines the composition and volume of fluid present in the lumen of organs. The second messenger cAMP is important in effecting electrolyte and water transport in many transporting epithelia; however, its role in Fallopian tube transport is uncertain. We have conducted electrophysiological studies on Fallopian tube epithelial cell monolayers in Ussing chambers and have demonstrated that exogenously added cAMP and agents that generate its intracellular production results in an increase in short-circuit current consistent with the transport of net electrical charge from a basal to mucosal direction. In contrast to the known effects of ATP in this tissue, the increase in short-circuit current was not explicable in terms of electrogenic chloride secretion as it was not affected by the chloride channel inhibitors, 4-acetamido-4'-isothiocyanostilbene-2,2-disulphonic acid 1 mmol/l (SITS) and frusemide. Instead the current was reduced by the sodium channel inhibitor, amiloride, and was therefore, in part, explicable in terms of electrogenic Na+ absorption. These findings will enhance our understanding of the physiological mechanisms responsible for human Fallopian tubal fluid formation and composition.