AUTHOR=Aviner Ben , Gradwohl Gideon , Mor Aviner Merav , Levy Shiri , Grossman Yoram 

TITLE=Selective modulation of cellular voltage-dependent calcium channels by hyperbaric pressure—a suggested HPNS partial mechanism

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Cellular Neuroscience

VOLUME=8

YEAR=2014

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/cellular-neuroscience/articles/10.3389/fncel.2014.00136

DOI=10.3389/fncel.2014.00136

ISSN=1662-5102

ABSTRACT=<p>Professional deep sea divers experience motor and cognitive impairment, known as High Pressure Neurological Syndrome (HPNS), when exposed to pressures of 100 msw (1.1 MPa) and above, considered to be the result of synaptic transmission alteration. Previous studies have indicated modulation of presynaptic Ca<sup>2+</sup> currents at high pressure. We directly measured for the first time pressure effects on the currents of voltage dependent Ca<sup>2+</sup> channels (VDCCs) expressed in <italic>Xenopus</italic> oocytes. Pressure selectivity augmented the current in Ca<sub>V</sub>1.2 and depressed it in Ca<sub>V</sub>3.2 channels. Pressure application also affected the channels' kinetics, such as Ʈ<sub>Rise</sub>, Ʈ<sub>Decay</sub>. Pressure modulation of VDCCs seems to play an important role in generation of HPNS signs and symptoms.</p>