Abstract
BACKGROUND light reduces the gain of phototransduction in retinal rods so that the ability to register changes in light intensity is not prevented by saturation of the cell's response1,2. The gain is reduced by a light-induced fall in the intracellular calcium concentration which results from blockage of Ca2+ entry through the channels closed by light and continued Ca2+ extrusion by the Na:Ca,K exchanger3–7. Calcium seems to exert several coordinated effects on the cyclic GMP cascade: a fall in [Ca2 + ] stimulates cGMP synthesis8,9, increases the affinity of the cGMP-gated channel for cGMP10 and accelerates rhodopsin deactivation by phosphorylation11. We now report that lowering intracellular [Ca2+ ] reduces the catalytic rhodopsin activity produced by light. The effect is operationally equivalent to a fourfold reduction in the number of rhodopsin molecules available for activation. The reduction in gain is cooperative and half-maximal at about 35 nM Ca2+ , suggesting that it is mediated by a specific Ca2+-binding protein. Reduced rhodopsin activity in low Ca2+ should contribute to adaptation in background light.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Matthews, H. R., Murphy, R. L., Fain, G. L. & Lamb, T. D. Nature 334, 67–69 (1988).
Nakatani, K. & Yau, K.-W. Nature 334, 69–71 (1988).
Yau, K.-W. & Nakatani, K. Nature 313, 579–582 (1985).
McNaughton, P. A., Cervetto, L. & Nunn, B. J. Nature 322, 261–263 (1986).
Cervetto, L., Lagnado, L., Perry, R. J., Robinson, D. W. & McNaughton, P. A. Nature 337, 740–743 (1989).
Lagnado, L., Cervetto, L. & McNaughton, P. A. J. Physiol., Lond. 455, 111–142 (1992).
Lagnado, L. & Baylor, D. A. Neuron 8, 995–1002 (1992).
Lolley, R. N. & Racz, E. Vision Res. 22, 1481–1486 (1982).
Koch, K. W. & Stryer, L. Nature 334, 64–66 (1988).
Hsu, Y.-T. & Molday, R. S. Nature 361, 76–79 (1993).
Kawamura, S. Nature 362, 855–857 (1993).
Lamb, T. D., McNaughton, P. A. & Yau, K.-W. J. Physiol., Lond. 319, 463–496 (1981).
Fain, G. L. J. Physiol., Lond. 261, 71–101 (1976).
Lamb, T. D. & Pugh, E. N. J. Physiol., Lond. 449, 719–757 (1992).
Baylor, D. A. & Hodgkin, A. L. J. Physiol., Lond. 242, 729–758 (1974).
McCarthy, S. T. thesis, Univ. California, Berkeley (1993).
Younger, J. P., McCarthy, S. T. & Owen, W. G. Invest. Ophthal. Vis. Sci. 33, 1104 (1992).
Kawamura, S. & Murakami, M. Nature 349, 420–423 (1991).
Hodgkin, A. L., McNaughton, P. A. & Nunn, B. J. J. Physiol., Lond. 372, 54P (1986).
Persechini, A., Moncrief, N. D. & Kretsinger, R. H. Trends Neurosci. 12, 462–467 (1989).
Dizhoor, A. M. et al. Science 251, 915–918 (1991).
Nakatani, K. & Yau, K.-W. J. Physiol., Lond. 395, 731–753 (1988).
Baylor, D. A., Lamb, T. D. & Yau, K.-W. J. Physiol., Lond. 288, 589–611 (1979).
Hodgkin, A. L., McNaughton, P. A. & Nunn, B. J. J. Physiol., Lond. 358, 447–468 (1985).
Fabiato, A. & Fabiato, J. J. Physiol., Paris 75, 463–505 (1979).
Wilden, U., Hall, S. W. & Kuhn, H. Proc. natn. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 83, 1174–1178 (1986).
Lamb, T. D., Matthews, H. R. & Torre, V. J. Physiol., Lond. 372, 315–349 (1986).
Koch, K.-W., Eckstein, F. & Stryer, L. J. biol. Chem. 265, 9659–9663 (1990).
Gordon, S. E., Brautigan, D. L. & Zimmerman, A. L. Neuron 9, 739–748 (1992).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Lagnado, L., Baylor, D. Calcium controls light-triggered formation of catalytically active rhodopsin. Nature 367, 273–277 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1038/367273a0
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/367273a0
This article is cited by
-
G-protein deactivation is rate-limiting for shut-off of the phototransduction cascade
Nature (1997)
-
The nose leads the eye
Nature (1997)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.