The oxygen dependence of mitochondrial respiration was investigated using suspensions of mitochondria and quiescent ventricular myocytes isolated from adult rat hearts. A new optical method was used to determine oxygen concentration in the suspending media. The P50 for respiration for coupled mitochondria at a high [ATP]/[ADP].[Pi] ratio and oxidizing glutamate/malate was 0.45 +/- 0.03 microM but was increased to 0.57 +/- 0.02 microM by the addition of succinate to the substrate mixture. This value was decreased to less than 0.06 +/- 0.01 microM when the ATP/ADP.Pi ratio was decreased with the uncoupler, carbonyl cyanide p-trifluoromethoxyphenylhydrazone. The P50 value in resting myocytes was 2.23 +/- 0.13 microM at a Vmax of 13.22 +/- 1.38 nmol of O2/g, dry weight/min. During resting conditions, the creatine phosphate/creatine and ATPfree/ADPfree ratios were high in these cells, 6.81 +/- 1.11 and 1131 +/- 185, respectively. Addition of 1 mM Ca2+ to the suspending media increased the P50 by 50% whereas respiration rose by only 10%. Respiratory rate was increased up to about 10-fold by uncoupling the cells, but the P50 increased by less than 3-fold. When these uncoupled cells were inhibited with Amytal to lower the rate of oxygen consumption to that of resting cells, the P50 fell to 1.25 +/- 0.14 microM. Diffusion models indicate that in resting myocytes, the oxygen concentration difference from sarcolemma to cell core was approximately 1.84 microM with an additional difference of about 0.27 microM attributed to the unstirred layer of media surrounding each cell. The intracellular oxygen diffusivity coefficient in myocytes was calculated to be 0.30 x 10(-5) cm2/s. The results show that the oxygen dependence of respiration is modulated by the cellular metabolic state. At near maximal levels of respiration or on recovery from hypoxic episodes, oxygen diffusion may become an important determinant of the oxygen dependence of myocardial respiration.