Determinants of transmembrane bicarbonate flux during acid-base changes

Experiments were designed to determine the contribution of increased extracellular HCO3- concentration, [HCO-3e], to the net extracellular-to-intracellular HCO3- flux observed in hearts during hypercapnia. Isolated rabbit hearts were perfused by recirculating for 15-min periods a small volume of Ringer solution in which [HCO-3e] and carbon dioxide tension (PCO2) could be independently altered. A net HCO-3 flux was evidenced by a decrease in [HCO-3e] during recirculation. [HCO-3e] was randomly increased from 19 mM over a range of 19-42 mM at a constant PCO2 of 38.7 Torr. The resulting flux increased linearly with the [HCO-3e] existing at the start of recirculation. The same relationship was observed at 95.8 Torr PCO2. The disappearance of HCO-3 from the perfusate could not be explained by dilution in the interstitium or by lactate accumulation. When PCO2 was increased from 40 Torr over a range of 40-160 Torr at a constant [HCO-3e] of 20 or 30 mM, a small flux was observed only at the highest PCO2 levels. Essentially the same results were obtained when recirculation time was prolonged to 30 min. These results suggest that the major determinant of the HCO-3 flux is a change in extracellular HCO-3 concentration.