Mechanisms of pHi control and relationships between tension and pHi in human subcutaneous small arteries

Intracellular pH (pHi) control and relationships between pHi and tension have been investigated in human subcutaneous small arteries. Isometric tension and pHi (using 2',7'-bis(carboxyethyl)- 5(6)-carboxyfluorescein) were estimated simultaneously. pHi recovery from an acute acid load was dependent on external Na+ and partially inhibited by the absence of HCO3(-) [N-2-hydroxyethylpiperazine-N'-2-ethanesulfonic acid (HEPES)-buffered solution] or by the anion transport inhibitor 4,4'-diisothiocyanostilbene-2,2'-disulfonic acid (DIDS). In an HCO3(-)-buffered physiological salt solution (PSS), pHi recovery was partially blocked by hexamethylene amiloride (HMA), an inhibitor of Na+/H+ exchange, and completely blocked by DIDS and HMA together. Intracellular Cl- depletion of arteries did not affect the rate of pHi recovery in PSS from an acid load. pHi recovery from acute alkalosis was unaffected by external Na+ removal, reduced in HEPES buffer, and abolished by removal of external Cl-. These data suggest that human small arteries maintain pHi by Na+/H+ exchange and Na(+)-dependent HCO3(-) exchange in response to an acid load, and Na(+)-independent Cl-/HCO3(-) exchange to counteract intracellular alkalosis. Norepinephrine (NE)-, endothelin-1 (ET-1)-, arginine vasopressin (AVP)-, and K(+)-induced tension did not alter pHi in PSS, but there was a small fall with angiotensin II (ANG II). In HEPES, stimulation with K+, NE, ANG II, or AVP led to a fall in pHi, but this did not occur with ET-1. It is therefore unlikely in vivo that an increase in pHi in these arteries would be involved in either tension development or growth induced by these agonists.