Detection and Characterization of Some New Basic Proteins in Chicken Postsynaptic Densities

Chicken brain postsynaptic density (PSD) polypeptides, obtained by treating synaptosomes with 0.5% Triton X-100 and then further purified on a sucrose gradient, are demonstrated to contain four basic proteins of 76K (pI greater than 9.2), 58K (pI 8.1-8.8, heterogeneous), 40K (pI 9.0), and 24K (pI 8.9). Nonequilibrium pH gradient-sodium dodecyl sulfate two-dimensional gels further reveal six more basic proteins with pI values higher than 9.2: 76K, 52K, 47K, 45K, 36K, and 34K. These basic proteins are a major part of the total chicken PSD polypeptides appearing on the gels. Some of these basic proteins (58K, 52K, 47K, 36K, 24K, and two at 76K) are distinguishable from those of brain mitochondria, the major contaminant. The 40K and 34K proteins may be common mitochondrial polypeptides. The 45K protein is probably a mitochondrial contaminant. A number of proteins including 76K (synapsin I-like protein) and 58K, along with some other minor ones, can be phosphorylated by endogenous protein kinase(s) in the presence of Ca2+, Mg2+, and [gamma-32P]ATP. No PSD basic proteins bind Ca2+.     

Biochemical evidence for a calcium-dependent protein kinase from Pharbitis nil and its involvement in photoperiodic flower induction

A soluble Ca(2+)-dependent protein kinase (CDPK) was isolated from seedlings of the short-day plant Pharbitis nil and purified to homogeneity. Activity of Pharbitis nil CDPK (PnCDPK) was strictly dependent on the presence of Ca(2+) (K(0,5)=4,9 microM). The enzyme was autophosphorylated on serine and threonine residues and phosphorylated a wide diversity of substrates only on serine residues. Histone III-S and syntide-2 were the best phosphate acceptors (K(m) for histone III-S=0,178 mg ml(-1)). Polyclonal antibodies directed to a regulatory region of the soybean CDPK recognized 54 and 62 kDa polypeptides from Pharbitis nil. However, only 54 kDa protein was able to catalyse autophosphorylation and phosphorylation of substrates in a Ca(2+)-dependent manner. CDPK autophosphorylation was high in 5-day-old Pharbitis nil seedlings grown under non-inductive continuous white light and was reduced to one-half of its original when plants were grown in the long inductive night. Also, the pattern of proteins phosphorylation has changed. After 16-h-long inductive night phosphorylation of endogenous target (specific band of 82 kDa) increased in the presence of calcium ions. It may suggest that Ca(2+)-dependent protein kinase is involved in this process and it is dependent on light/dark conditions.     

Protein kinase C phosphorylates the carboxyl terminus of the plasma membrane Ca(2+)-ATPase from human erythrocytes.

Purified Ca(2+)-stimulated, Mg(2+)-dependent ATPase (Ca(2+)-ATPase) from human erythrocytes was phosphorylated with a stoichiometry of about 1 mol of phosphate/mol of ATPase at both threonine and serine residues by purified rat brain type III protein kinase C. In the presence of calmodulin, the phosphorylation was markedly reduced. Labeled phosphate from [gamma-32P]ATP was retained on an 86-kDa calmodulin-binding tryptic fragment of Ca(2+)-ATPase but not on 82- and 77-kDa non-calmodulin-binding fragments. Similarly, fragmentation of the phosphorylated Ca(2+)-ATPase by calpain I revealed that calmodulin-binding fragments (127 and 125 kDa) retained phosphate label whereas a non-calmodulin-binding fragment (124 kDa) did not. The calmodulin-binding domain, located about 12 kDa from the carboxyl terminus of the Ca(2+)-ATPase, was thus located as a site of protein kinase C phosphorylation. A synthetic peptide corresponding to a segment of the calmodulin-binding domain (H2 N-R-G-L-N-R-I-Q-T-Q-I-K-V-V-N-COOH) was indeed phosphorylated at the single threonine residue within this sequence. The additional serine phosphorylation site was carboxyl terminal to the calmodulin domain. Phosphorylation by purified type III protein kinase C (canine heart) antagonized the calmodulin activation of the Ca(2+)-ATPase, particularly at lower Ca2+ concentrations (0.2-1.0 microM). By contrast, a purified but unresolved protein kinase C isoenzyme mixture from rat brain stimulated the activity of Ca(2+)-ATPase prepared in asolectin, but not glycerol, by more than 2-fold in the presence of the ionophore A23187, without increasing its Ca2+ sensitivity. The results clearly indicate that human erythrocyte Ca(2+)-ATPase is a substrate of protein kinase C, but the effect of phosphorylation on the activity of the enzyme depends on the isoenzyme form of protein kinase C used and on the lipid associated with the Ca(2+)-ATPase.     

Lipocortins are major substrates for protein kinase C in extracts of human neutrophils.

We have identified two major proteins in human neutrophils that are phosphorylated in vitro by protein kinase C (PKC) as lipocortins III and a fragment of a lipocortin-like 68-kDa protein. In electroporated cells, the 68-kDa protein was phosphorylated during stimulation of the cells with either FMLP or PMA. Lipocortins are of interest because of their Ca2(+)- and phospholipid-dependent actin binding properties and ability to inhibit phospholipase A2. Two crude fractions of enzymes and proteins exposed to [gamma-32]PATP in the presence of Ca2+, Mg2+, phosphatidylserine and 1,2-oleoyl-acetyl-rac-glycerol were analyzed by gel electrophoresis and autoradiography. A number of proteins in a detergent-free fraction, including proteins at 36 and 32 kDa, were phosphorylated in the presence of these cofactors. In contrast, only two major proteins (35 and 32 kDa) were phosphorylated in a detergent-extracted fraction. Phosphorylation of the 36, 35, and 32 kDa proteins required the presence of Ca2+, Mg2+, and phosphatidylserine in our soluble fraction and detergent extract, indicating PKC-dependent phosphorylation. The 32-kDa protein phosphorylated in both the soluble fraction and detergent extract was identified as lipocortin III by immunoprecipitation with a cross-reactive antibody that recognized lipocortin I and comparison of cyanogen bromide (CNBr) cleavage patterns of this protein with a lipocortin III standard. The 68-kDa protein was identified as a lipocortin VI-like protein by immunoprecipitation with anti-calelectrin. Additionally, the CNBr cleavage pattern of the 68-kDa protein was similar to that of the 36-kDa protein phosphorylated in our soluble fraction. Autoradiograms of the 68- and 36-kDa fragments immunoprecipitated from our soluble fraction with anticalelectrin and cleaved with CNBr showed that both of these proteins were phosphorylated in this sample. Because phosphorylation is known to change the functional characteristics of the lipocortins, the potential exists to link PKC and lipocortins in neutrophils to regulation of granulemembrane interactions or mediation of inflammation.     

Phosphorylation by protein kinase C inactivates an inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate 3-kinase purified from human platelets

An inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate 3-kinase purified from human platelets contains two major components, 53 and 36 kDa polypeptides. Each polypeptide expresses Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent enzymatic activity and is phosphorylated by an unidentified protein kinase in the enzyme preparation. The 36-kDa polypeptide may be further phosphorylated on serine residues by protein kinase C to a stoichiometry of 0.8 mole phosphate per mole of protein. Phosphorylation of the 36-kDa component is correlated with inhibition of the kinase activity; the inhibitory effect is dependent upon Ca2+ and phosphatidylserine/diolein and may be blocked by a selective peptide inhibitor of protein kinase C. Phosphorylation by protein kinase C decreases the Vmax of the enzyme from 160 to 28 nmol/mg/min; the Km (0.76 microM) is not altered. These data suggest that protein kinase C may negatively regulate inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate 3-kinase activity in the human platelet.     

A Ca2+-dependent tryptic cleavage site and a protein kinase A phosphorylation site are present in the Ca2+ regulatory domain of scallop muscle Na+-Ca2+ exchanger

Digestion of scallop muscle membrane fractions with trypsin led to release of soluble polypeptides derived from the large cytoplasmic domain of a Na(+)-Ca(2+) exchanger. In the presence of 1 mm Ca(2+), the major product was a peptide of approximately 37 kDa, with an N terminus corresponding to residue 401 of the NCX1 exchanger. In the presence of 10 mm EGTA, approximately 16- and approximately 19-kDa peptides were the major products. Polyclonal rabbit IgG raised against the 37-kDa peptide also bound to the 16- and 19-kDa soluble tryptic peptides and to a 105-110-kDa polypeptide in the undigested membrane preparation. The 16-kDa fragment corresponded to the N-terminal part of the 37-kDa peptide. The conformation of the precursor polypeptide chain in the region of the C terminus of the 16-kDa tryptic peptide was thus altered by the binding of Ca(2+). Phosphorylation of the parent membranes with the catalytic subunit of protein kinase A and [gamma-(32)P]ATP led to incorporation of (32)P into the 16- and 37-kDa soluble fragments. A site may exist within the Ca(2+) regulatory domain of a scallop muscle Na(+)-Ca(2+) exchanger that mediates direct modulation of secondary Ca(2+) regulation by cAMP.     

Calcium-dependant binding proteins associated with human placental syncytiotrophoblast microvillous cytoskeleton

Isolated human placental syncytiotrophoblast microvillous plasma membrane vesicles were extracted with Triton X-100 to yield a detergent-insoluble residue. The residue contained approx. 50% of the total membrane protein and was qualitatively different from untreated trophoblast on SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, Western blots and dot-immunobinding assay. Three major proteins, with molecular weights of 68, 36 and 34 kDa, dissociated from this non-ionic detergent-insoluble submembranous cytoskeletal fraction in the presence of calcium chelators. They were immunologically related to human lymphocyte cytoskeletal calcium-binding proteins, and the 36 kDa component reacted with antisera to the phospholipase A2 inhibitor, lipocortin II. Anti-lipocortin I sera did not recognise the 34 kDa protein, but did react with a series of trophoblast cytoskeletal proteins in the 34-37 kDa region. Incubation of epidermal growth factor with isolated trophoblast membrane vesicles stimulated the phosphorylation of a 36 kDa protein on tyrosine residues. Immunoprecipitation studies further showed there was no phosphorylation of the 34 kDa protein, but the 68 kDa protein was a major phosphorylated component of isolated syncytiotrophoblast membranes. p68 was principally phosphorylated on serine with slight tyrosine phosphorylation which showed an apparent increase after epidermal growth factor treatment. These results indicate a family of calcium-dependant binding proteins, some of which are phosphorylated, associated with the submembranous cytoskeleton of syncytiotrophoblast microvilli.     

Regulation of the sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca(2+)-release channel requires intact annexin VI.

Annexin VI has eight highly conserved repeated domains; all other annexins have four. Díaz-Mu?oz et al. (J Biol Chem 265:15894, 1990) reported that annexin VI alters the gating properties of the ryanodine-sensitive Ca(2+)-release channel isolated from sarcoplasmic reticulum. The investigate the domain structure of rat annexin VI (67 kDa calcimedin) required for this channel regulation, various proteolytic digestions were performed. In each case, protease-resistant core polypeptides were produced. Annexin VI was digested with V8 protease and two core polypeptides were purified by Ca(2+)-dependent phospholipid binding followed by HPLC. The purified fragments were shown to be derived from the N- and C-terminal halves of annexin VI, and demonstrated differential immunoreactivity with monoclonal antibodies to rat annexin VI. While both core polypeptides retained their ability to bind phospholipids in a Ca(2+)-dependent manner, they did not regulate the sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca(2+)-dependent manner, they did not regulate the sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca(2+)-release channel as did intact annexin VI.     

Protein kinase activity in Cucumis sativus cotyledons: effect of calcium and light

Light signals received by phytochromes in plants may be transduced through protein phosphorylation. Ca(2+) as second messenger was involved in phytochrome-mediated cellular events. Our experiments with Cucumis sativus cotyledons, treated with red (R) and far-red (FR) light, showed a stimulatory effect on in vitro protein phosphorylation of histone, added as exogenous substrate to the cotyledon extracts, and also modified the phosphorylation of endogenous polypeptides. The effect of light treatments was mimicked by the addition of Ca(2+) to the phosphorylation buffer, indicating phytochrome- and Ca(2+)-dependence on activity of some protein kinases (PKs). In-gel kinase assays were performed to characterize the PKs involved at the cotyledon stage of cucumber plants. Three proteins of about 75, 57 and 47kDa with PK activity were detected between M(r) markers of 94 and 45kDa. All three were able to phosphorylate histone and undergo autophosphorylation. However, only the 75 and 57kDa proteins autophosphorylated and phosphorylated the substrate in a Ca(2+)-dependent manner, and were inhibited when calmodulin (CaM) antagonists were added to the incubation buffer. Western-blot analysis with polyclonal antibodies directed against calcium-dependent protein kinase of rice (OsCDPK11) or Arabidopsis (AtCPK2) recognised 57 and 75kDa polypeptides, respectively. These results indicate the presence in cucumber cotyledons of at least two proteins (ca. 75 and 57kDa) with activity of PKs that could be calcium-dependent protein kinases (CDPKs). Both CDPKs could be modulated by phytochromes throughout FR-HIR and VLFR responses.     

A series of point mutations reveal interactions between the calcium-binding sites of calmodulin.

Calmodulin is a member of the "EF-hand" family of Ca(2+)-binding proteins. It consists of two homologous globular domains, each containing two helix-loop-helix Ca(2+)-binding sites. To examine the contribution of individual Ca(2+)-binding sites to the Ca(2+)-binding properties of CaM, a series of four site-directed mutants has been studied. In each, the glutamic acid at position 12 in one of the four Ca(2+)-binding loops has been changed to a glutamine. One-dimensional 1H-NMR has been used to monitor Ca(2+)-induced changes in the mutant proteins, and the spectral changes observed for each mutant have been compared to those for wild-type CaM. In this way, the effect of each mutation on both the mutated site and the other Ca(2+)-binding sites has been examined. The mutation of glutamate to glutamine at position 12 in any of the EF-hand Ca(2+)-binding loops greatly decreases the Ca(2+)-binding affinity at that site, yet differs in the overall effects on Ca2+ binding depending on which of the four sites is mutated. When the mutation is in site I, there is only a small decrease in the apparent Ca(2+)-binding affinity of site II, and vice versa. Mutation in either site III or IV results in a large decrease in the apparent Ca(2+)-binding affinities of the partner C-terminal site. In both the N- and C-terminal domains, evidence for altered conformational effects in the partners of mutated sites is presented. In the C-terminus, the conformational consequences of mutating site III or site IV are strikingly different.     

N-Terminal domain of annexin 2 regulates Ca(2+)-dependent membrane aggregation by the core domain: a site directed mutagenesis study

Annexin 2 binds and aggregates biological membranes in a Ca(2+)-dependent manner. This protein exists as a monomer (p36) or as a heterotetramer (p90) in which two p36 chains are associated with a dimer of p11, a member of the S100 protein family. Protein kinase C phosphorylates the protein at the level of the N-terminal tail on serines 11 and 25, thereby modifying its oligomeric structure and its properties of membrane aggregation. To analyze these effects, the properties of a series of mutants in which serines 11 and 25 were replaced by alanine and/or glutamic acid were investigated. The affinity for p11 light chain was decreased in the S11E mutants. Glutamic acid residues in positions 11 or 25 did not change membrane binding, either in the tetrameric or in the monomeric form. On the other hand, these mutations affected the aggregation properties of the two forms. For the tetramer, the aggregation efficiency was decreased but not the Ca(2+) sensitivity, whereas the latter was affected in the case of the monomer. The effects were stronger in the S11E mutants, and they were cumulative in the double mutant. They suggest a different conformation of the N-terminal domain in the mutants (and in the phosphorylated protein), a hypothesis which is supported by proteolysis experiments. This conformational change would affect aggregation by the monomer through a dimerization step.     

Association of p21ras with cellular polypeptides

p21ras specific antiserum was used to immunoprecipitate p21ras polypeptides from human A431 cells. In addition to p21ras, this antiserum precipitated a series of polypeptides with relative molecular weights of 150,000, 120,000, 105,000, and 50,000. The precipitation of these polypeptides was prevented by preincubation of the antiserum with an excess of purified Ras protein. These polypeptides do not share an epitope with p21ras, and two of them (120 and 150 kDa) copurify with a fraction of p21ras. The co-precipitation of p21ras with these polypeptides was detected in a variety of cell types. The pattern of the immunoprecipitates was consistently different in normal and ras-transformed cells. The 120- and 150-kDa polypeptides are phosphorylated on serine and threonine in A431 cells. Serum treatment resulted in a 2-fold increase in the phosphoserine content of the 120-kDa polypeptides.     

Phosphorylation of Ser166 in RGS5 by protein kinase C causes loss of RGS function

RGS5 is a member of regulators of G protein signaling (RGS) proteins that attenuate heterotrimeric G protein signaling by functioning as GTPase-activating proteins (GAPs). We investigated phosphorylation of RGS5 and the resulting change of its function. In 293T cells, transiently expressed RGS5 was phosphorylated by endogenous protein kinases in the basal state. The phosphorylation was enhanced by phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) and endothelin-1 (ET-1), and suppressed by protein kinase C (PKC) inhibitors, H7, calphostin C and staurosporine. These results suggest involvement of PKC in phosphorylation of RGS5. In in vitro experiments, PKC phosphorylated recombinant RGS5 protein at serine residues. RGS5 protein phosphorylated by PKC showed much lower binding capacity for and GAP activity toward Galpha subunits than did the unphosphorylated RGS5. In cells expressing RGS5, the inhibitory effect of RGS5 on ET-1-induced Ca(2+) responses was enhanced by staurosporine. Mass spectrometric analysis of the phosphorylated RGS5 revealed that Ser166 was one of the predominant phosphorylation sites. Substitution of Ser166 by aspartic acid abolished the binding capacity to Galpha subunits and the GAP activity, and markedly reduced the inhibitory effect on ET-1-induced Ca(2+) responses. These results indicate that phosphorylation at Ser166 of RGS5 by PKC causes loss of the function of RGS5 in G protein signaling. Since this serine residue is conserved in RGS domains of many RGS proteins, the phosphorylation at Ser166 by PKC might act as a molecular switch and have functional significance.     

Two major antigens of heart sarcolemma are Ca2(+)-binding glycoproteins that copurify with the dihydropyridine receptor.

Ca2+ binding has been studied in isolated heart sarcolemmal membranes using the 45Ca overlay technique. 45Ca bound to two sarcolemmal polypeptides of 125 kDa and 97 kDa in preparations from dog, rabbit, cow and pig. During fractionation on DEAE ion-exchange and wheat-germ lectin affinity columns, the two Ca2(+)-binding polypeptides copurified with the dihydropyridine receptor associated with the voltage gated Ca2+ channel. These polypeptides were the major proteins in the isolated fraction as judged by silver staining in SDS-PAGE. Antisera raised against purified dog heart, sarcolemma indicated that the 125 and 97 kDa polypeptides were highly antigenic components of this membrane. The antisera cross-reacted with similar polypeptides in cardiac sarcolemmal preparations from rabbit, cow and pig, but not sarcoplasmic reticulum membranes. Purified antibodies against the 125 kDa polypeptide did not cross-react with the 97 kDa polypeptide, while antibodies against the 97 kDa polypeptide did not cross-react with the 125 kDa polypeptide. Both the 125 kDa and 97 kDa polypeptides bound wheat-germ lectin, suggesting both were glycoproteins. It is unlikely that these Ca2+ binding glycoproteins represent subunits of the dihydropyridine receptor-Ca2+ channel in this membrane.     

Characterization of a CK II protein kinase from etiolated oat seedlings

Protein kinases play a central role in controlling the cellular metabolism of living organisms. A protein kinase was purified from etiolated oat seedlings by several steps of ion-exchange and affinity chromatographies. The kinase was a 150-kDa tetrameric protein and composed of three subunits of 34, 37, and 40 kDa proteins. The 34 and 40 kDa proteins had ATP binding sites, suggesting that they are catalytic subunits and that the 37-kDa protein is a regulatory subunit. In the in vitro phosphorylation of a crude oat cell extract, it intensively phosphorylated a serine residue of a 110-kDa protein. The 110-kDa protein was tentatively identified as a DNA topoisomerase I, based on an amino acid sequence homology. Phosphorylation of the 110-kDa protein by the kinase required ATP or GTP as a phosphoryl group donor. The kinase activity was inhibited by 50% at a concentration of 0.05 microg/ml heparin. These results, therefore, indicate that the purified kinase is a CK II protein kinase and may be involved in the regulation of DNA topoisomerase I activity.     

Purification of a Synaptic Membrane Na+/Ca2+ Antiporter and Immunoextraction with Antibodies to a 36-kDa Protein

The conditions for optimal solubilization and reconstitution of bovine brain synaptic plasma membrane Na+/Ca2+ exchange activity were examined and a series of chromatographic procedures were used for the isolation of a protein involved in this transport activity. The zwitterionic detergent 3-[(3-cholamidopropyl)dimethylammonio]-1-propanesulfonate in the presence of 20% (vol/vol) glycerol led to optimal solubilization, and soybean phospholipids in low-pH medium were found to produce optimal reconstitution of activity after dialysis to remove the detergent. Sequential chromatography steps involving the use of gel filtration on Sephacryl S-400 HR, ion exchange on diethylaminoethyl-Sephacel, and metal chelate chromatography on tris-(carboxymethyl)ethylenediamine loaded with LaCl3 led to the isolation of a fraction highly enriched in both Na+/Ca2+ exchange activity and two protein bands identified by denaturing electrophoresis. The estimated molecular masses of the two proteins were 50 and 36 kDa. Development of polyclonal antibodies to the 36-kDa protein permitted immunoextraction of greater than 95% of the antiporter activity from solubilized synaptic plasma membranes. These antibodies cross-reacted with the electroeluted 50-kDa protein on enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays, suggesting a close relationship between the two proteins. These results indicate that the 36-kDa protein is at least a component of the brain membrane Na+/Ca2+ antiporter.     

TGF-beta1 calcium signaling in osteoblasts

Transforming growth factor-beta1 (TGF-beta1) action is known to be initiated by its binding to multiple cell surface receptors containing serine/threonine kinase domains that act to stimulate a cascade of signaling events in a variety of cell types. We have previously shown that TGF-beta1 and BMP-2 treatment of primary human osteoblasts (HOBs) enhances cell-substrate adhesion. In this report, we demonstrate that TGF-beta1 elicits a rapid, transient, and oscillatory rise in the intracellular Ca(2+) concentration, [Ca(2+)](i), that is necessary for enhancement of cell adhesion in HOBs but does not alter the phosphorylation state of Smad proteins. This rise in [Ca(2+)](i) in HOB is not observed in the absence of extracellular calcium or when the cells are treated with the L-type Ca(2+) channel blocker, nifedipine, but is stimulated upon treatment with the L-type Ca(2+) channel agonist, Bay K 8644, or under high K(+) conditions. The rise in [Ca(2+)](i) is severely attenuated after treatment of the cells with thapsigargin, a selective endoplasmic reticulum Ca(2+) pump inhibitor. TGF-beta1 enhancement of HOB adhesion to tissue culture polystyrene is also inhibited in cells treated with nifedipine. These data suggest that intracellular Ca(2+) signaling is an important second messenger of the TGF-beta1 signal transduction pathway in osteoblast function.     

Intracellular calcium regulates the tyrosine kinase receptor encoded by the MET oncogene.

Previous work (Gandino, L., Di Renzo, M. F., Giordano, S., Bussolino, F., and Comoglio, P.M. (1990) Oncogene 5, 721-725) has shown that the tyrosine kinase activity of the receptor encoded by the MET protooncogene is negatively modulated by protein kinase C (PKC). We now show that an increase of intracellular Ca2+ has a similar inhibitory effect in vivo, via a PKC-independent mechanism. In GTL-16 cells the p145MET kinase is overexpressed and constitutively phosphorylated on tyrosine. A rapid and reversible decrease of p145MET tyrosine phosphorylation was induced by treatment with the calcium ionophores A23187 or ionomycin. Experiments performed with the ionophores in absence of extracellular calcium showed that a rise in cytoplasmic Ca2+ concentration to 450 nM (due to release from intracellular stores) resulted in a similar effect. These Ca2+ concentrations had no effect on p145MET autophosphorylation in an in vitro kinase assay. This suggests that the effect of Ca2+ on p145MET tyrosine phosphorylation is not direct but may be mediated by Ca(2+)-activated proteins(s). Involvement of Ca(2+)-dependent tyrosine phosphatases was ruled out by experiments carried out in presence of Na2VO4. In vivo labeling with [32P]orthophosphate showed that the rise of intracellular Ca2+ induces serine phosphorylation of p145MET on a specific phosphopeptide. This suggests that Ca2+ negatively modulates p145MET kinase through the phosphorylation of a critical serine residue by a Ca(2+)-activated serine kinase distinct from PKC.     

Update on vascular endothelial Ca(2+) signalling: A tale of ion channels, pumps and transporters

A monolayer of endothelial cells (ECs) lines the lumen of blood vessels and forms a multifunctional transducing organ that mediates a plethora of cardiovascular processes. The activation of ECs from as state of quiescence is, therefore, regarded among the early events leading to the onset and progression of potentially lethal diseases, such as hypertension, myocardial infarction, brain stroke, and tumor. Intracellular Ca2+ signals have long been know to play a central role in the complex network of signaling pathways regulating the endothelial functions. Notably, recent work has outlined how any change in the pattern of expression of endothelial channels, transporters and pumps involved in the modulation of intracellular Ca2+ levels may dramatically affect whole body homeostasis. Vascular ECs may react to both mechanical and chemical stimuli by generating a variety of intracellular Ca2+ signals, ranging from brief, localized Ca2+ pulses to prolonged Ca2+ oscillations engulfing the whole cytoplasm. The well-defined spatiotemporal profile of the subcellular Ca2+ signals elicited in ECs by specific extracellular inputs depends on the interaction between Ca2+ releasing channels, which arelocated both on the plasma membrane and in a number of intracellular organelles, and Ca2+ removing systems. The present article aims to summarize both the past and recent literature in the field to provide a clear-cut picture of our current knowledge on the molecular nature and the role played by the components of the Ca2+ machinery in vascular ECs under both physiological and pathological conditions.     

Dual role of calbindin-D28K in vesicular catecholamine release from mouse chromaffin cells

Calbindin-D(28K) is suggested to play a postsynaptic role in neurotransmission and in the regulation of the intracellular Ca(2+) concentration. However, it is still unclear whether calbindin-D(28K) has a role in the regulation of exocytosis, either as Ca(2+) buffer or as Ca(2+) sensor. Amperometric recordings of catecholamine exocytosis from wild-type and calbindin-D(28K) knockout mouse chromaffin cells reveal a strong reduction in the number of released vesicles, as well as in the amount of neurotransmitter released per fusion event in knockout cells. However, Ca(2+) current recordings and Ca(2+) imaging experiments, including video-rate confocal laser scanning microscopy, revealed that the intracellular Ca(2+) dynamics are remarkably similar in wild-type and knockout cells. The combined results demonstrate that calbindin-D(28K) plays an important and dual role in exocytosis, affecting both release frequency and quantal size, apparently without strong effects on intracellular Ca(2+) dynamics. Consequently, the possibility that calbindin-D(28K) functions not only as a Ca(2+) buffer but also as a modulator of vesicular catecholamine release is discussed.