Cardiac myosin filaments are directly regulated by calcium

Classically, striated muscle contraction is initiated by calcium (Ca(2+))-dependent structural changes in regulatory proteins on actin-containing thin filaments, which allow the binding of myosin motors to generate force. Additionally, dynamic switching between resting off and active on myosin states has been shown to regulate muscle contractility, a recently validated mechanism by novel myosin-targeted therapeutics. The molecular nature of this switching, however, is not understood. Here, using a combination of small-angle x-ray fiber diffraction and biochemical assays with reconstituted systems, we show that cardiac thick filaments are directly Ca(2+)-regulated. We find that Ca(2+) induces a structural transition of myosin heads from ordered off states close to the thick filament to disordered on states closer to the thin filaments. Biochemical assays show a Ca(2+)-induced transition from an inactive super-relaxed (SRX) state(s) to an active disordered-relaxed (DRX) state(s) in synthetic thick filaments. We show that these transitions are an intrinsic property of cardiac myosin only when assembled into thick filaments and provide a fresh perspective on nature’s two orthogonal mechanisms to regulate muscle contraction through the thin and the thick filaments.