Monitoring transient Ca2+ dynamics with large-conductance Ca2+-dependent K+ channels at active zones in frog saccular...

Neurotransmitter release from the basolateral surface of auditory and vestibular hair cells is mediated by Ca(2+) influx through voltage-gated Ca(2+) channels. Co-localization of large-conductance Ca(2+)-activated K(+) (BK) channels at the active zones of these cells affords them with an optimal location to act as reporters of the Ca(2+) concentration changes at active zones of transmitter release. In this report we use BK channels in frog (Rana pipiens) hair cells to monitor dynamic changes in intracellular Ca(2+) concentration during transient influxes of Ca(2+), showing that BK current magnitude and delay to onset are correlated with the rate and duration of Ca(2+) entry through Ca(2+) channels. We also show that BK channels exhibit a much higher Ca(2+) binding affinity in the open state than in the closed state.