2-Butoxyethanol and Dimethyl Sulfoxide influence potentiation by changing the efflux of Calcium from the presynaptic terminal in the crayfish neuromuscular junction

Abstract

Past research by Mayahara et al. (1982) has shown that 2-butoxyethanol increases and dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) decreases the efflux of calcium from the sarcoplasmic reticulum, which releases calcium when the voltage changes across the membrane. Based on this result, we hypothesized that, when applied extracellularly, those two chemicals would have the same effect on the outer cell membrane and therefore would influence potentiation. We maintained high-potassium depolarization in the crayfish neuromuscular junction and measured excitatory post-synaptic potentials (EPSPs) in each experiment with 2-butoxyethanol and DMSO. Our results show that 2-butoxyethanol decreases and DMSO increases potentiation during high-potassium depolarization, which suggests that our hypothesis is true.