Interaction between heart rate and calcium concentration in the control of contractile strength of the frog heart.

1. The changes in twitch tension during the ascending and descending staircase of the frog heart have been examined under various experimental conditions including the hypodynamic and prehypodynamic state.2. The descending staircase resembles the tension change after reduction of external calcium concentration in showing two consecutive phases, an initial rapid and later slow phase of tension decline.3. The time course of the ascending staircase depends on the condition of the heart; it is slow after, and rapid before, development of the hypodynamic state. It is also rapid when elicited after conditioning periods of increased heart rate.4. The tension transients in response to brief concentration steps of external calcium concentration were examined at various levels of heart rate. The results indicate that at high heart rates the sensitivity of heart cells to external calcium is increased.5. The results are interpreted along the lines of a previous hypothesis relating tension development to the cooperative action of two intracellular calcium compounds. The additional assumption is made that an intermediary exists which facilitates calcium movements in heart cells to an extent depending on the level of heart rate.