ABSTRACT. In the present study, we have characterized muscarinic receptor subtypes that mediate carbachol-induced Ca 2+ sensitization of contraction in intestinal smooth muscle, using mutant mice lacking M 2 or M 3 muscarinic receptors or both receptor subtypes. In -toxinpermeabilized muscle strips from wild-type (WT) mice, isometric tension responses to Ca 2+ applied cumulatively (pCa 7.0-5.0) were increased when the muscarinic agonist carbachol (100 M) was added to the medium, as judged from shifts of pCa-tension curves in both 50% effective concentration (EC 50 ) and maximum response (E max ) of pCa-tension curve. In preparations from M 2 -knockout (KO) mice, pCa-tension curves were also shifted by carbachol (100 M), and the extents of the EC 50 and E max changes resembled those observed in preparations from WT mice. In preparations from M 3 -KO or M 2 /M 3 -double KO mice, however, no significant changes in pCa-tension curves were obtained after carbachol application. ] c to increase the MLCK/ MLCP activity ratio, resulting in enhanced contractions compared to those without receptor activation [21].In intestinal smooth muscles, acetylcholine and its derivatives such as carbachol, activate muscarinic receptors, inducing Ca 2+ sensitization as well as cytosolic Ca 2+ mobilization and contraction [6,29]. Among the five muscarinic receptor subtypes (M 1 -M 5 ), the M 2 and M 3 are predominantly expressed in intestinal smooth muscles [2]. By using muscarinic receptor antagonists with limited subtype selectivity, Murthy et al. [14] suggested that acetylcholineinduced Rho kinase activation and PKC activation in rabbit intestinal smooth muscles is mediated by the M 3 subtype, leading to Ca 2+ sensitization. However, such pharmacological studies often remain inconclusive because of the poor subtype selectivity of available muscarinic antagonists. For example, pharmacological studies suggested that carbacholevoked contractions are exclusively mediated by M 3 receptors, whereas recent studies using muscarinic receptor knockout mice implicated both M 3 and M 2 receptors in this response [30,31].Therefore, in the present study, using M 2 -knockout (KO) or M 3 -KO or M 2 /M 3 -double KO mice and wild type (WT) mice, we examined the activity of carbachol in inducing Ca 2+ sensitization in -toxin-permeabilized smooth muscles of the small intestine. In general, M 2 and M 3 muscarinic receptors are coupled preferentially with G i/o -and G q/11 -type G-proteins, respectively. We also examined whether the carbacholinduced Ca 2+ sensitization was affected by YM-254890, a selective inhibitor of G q/11 -type G-protein activity [23,26].