CONICET | Buscador de Institutos y Recursos Humanos

Arachidonic acid (AA) is a polyunsaturated fatty acid involved in modulation of several ion channels activity. Previously, we reported that 10 µM AA activates the high conductance Ca2+- and voltage-dependent K+ channel (BK) in human vascular smooth muscle cells where the α subunit of BK is expressed together with the accessory β1-subunit (β1) [1]. In this work, we studied in depth the action mechanism of AA using the patch-clamp technique on BK channel heterologously expressed with β1. 10 µM AA activated BK only in presence of β1, changing the voltage dependence of activation (left shift on G-V curve, ΔV1/2= -55.2 mV ± 4,4; n=3; p