Maximum Rate of Depolarization of Single Muscle Fiber in Normal and Low Sodium Solutions

The values of membrane action potentials and maximum depolarization rates of single muscle fibers in normal Tyrode solution and in low sodium solutions containing as little as 20 per cent of the sodium chloride were measured with intracellular microelectrodes. Under these conditions the membrane potential remains unchanged up to 36 per cent of [Na(+)](out) concentration, whereas the overshoot of the action potential varies linearly with the logarithm of the external sodium concentration. The maximum depolarization rate is a linear function of the external sodium concentration. The results obtained support the ionic theory for sodium and the independence principle for sodium current related to the external sodium concentration.