SUMMARY1. We studied the effects of dihydropyridine Ca channel ligands (DHPs), mainly nitrendipine and Bay K8644, on whole cell and single channel Ca currents on single myocytes isolated from the adult guinea-pig ventricle.2. Nitrendipine had dual effects, stimulatory or inhibitory, depending upon the membrane potential. At low frequencies (less than 0 03 Hz) and negative holding potentials (-90 mV or more), nitrendipine increased the Ca currents in a dosedependent manner. The dose-response curve was best fitted by a Langmuir adsorption isotherm model which was the sum of two independent one-to-one drug-receptor sites with median effective doses (ED50s) of 1.0 x 10-9 M and 1-4 x 10-6 M respectively.3. When the membrane potential was held at -30 mV or less, nitrendipine inhibited the Ca currents, also in a dose-dependent manner. The dose-response curve was fitted by a single binding site model having a median inhibitor concentration (IC50) of 15 x 10-9 M. At holding potentials between -70 and -40 mV, nitrendipine produced mixed effects on Ca currents; an increase occurred initially and this was followed by a decrease.4. When rundown was excluded, Bay K8644 showed only stimulatory effects on the Ca currents between holding potentials of -120 and -30 mV. When the test potential was zero or + 10 mV the Ca currents reached peak values and the dose-response curve was best fitted by a single binding site model having an ED50 of 3 x 1o-8 M. When the effects were measured at negative test potentials of -30 to -10 mV, the curve was best fitted by a two-site model with ED50s of 3 x 10-9 and 9x 10-7M.5. At the single Ca channel level the stimulatory effect of nitrendipine was due to an increased probability that a Ca channel which had opened once would reopen, a reduction in records without activity and an increase in the mean open time. There were no changes in unit conductance. Inhibitory effects were due to a large increase in nulls. At lower concentrations the main effect of Bay K8644 was an increase in * Present address, to which reprint requests should be sent: