Ionic basis of membrane potentials of epithelial cells in rat small intestine

1. Potentials across the mucosal and serosal membranes of the epithelial cells of rat jejunum together with transmural potentials were recorded using everted sac preparations.2. Ionic changes in either mucosal or serosal fluids affect mucosal or serosal membrane potentials respectively with comparable changes in the transmural potential. The contralateral membrane potential is relatively unaffected.3. Replacement of mucosal sodium chloride by potassium chloride or lithium chloride had little effect on potentials, but its replacement by mannitol or Tris chloride increased the negativity of the mucosal potential, giving linear relationships against log(10)[Na](m) with slopes of 41.4 and 30.7 mV respectively for tenfold change in [Na](m).4. At constant [Na](m), potassium or lithium increased the mucosal potential by 25.7 and 19.8 mV respectively for tenfold concentration changes.5. Qualitatively similar changes occurred in the serosal potential when the ionic composition of the serosal fluid was varied.6. Mucosal potential changes in response to modifications of the ionic composition of the mucosal fluid were the same in the presence and absence of galactose.7. Sodium and potassium diffusion potentials largely determine both the mucosal and serosal membrane potentials. For the mucosal membrane, P(K):P(Na) is 1.26:1, and is probably higher for the serosal membrane. Chloride makes no significant contribution to membrane potentials.8. Potentials generated by the electrogenic sodium pump are superimposed on diffusion potentials across the serosal membrane.