The inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor (IP 3 R) is an intracellular Ca 2+ channel that is for the largest part expressed in the endoplasmic reticulum. Its precise subcellular localization is an important factor for the correct initiation and propagation of Ca 2+ signals. The relative position of the IP 3 Rs, and thus of the IP 3 -sensitive Ca 2+ stores, to mitochondria, nucleus or plasma membrane determines in many cases the physiological consequences of IP 3 -induced Ca 2+ release. Most cell types express more than one IP 3 R isoform and their subcellular distribution is cell-type dependent. Moreover, it was recently demonstrated that depending on the physiological status of the cell redistribution of IP 3 Rs and/or of IP 3 -sensitive Ca 2+ stores could occur. This indicates that the cell must be able to regulate not only IP 3 R expression but also its distribution. The various proteins potentially determining IP 3 R localization and redistribution will therefore be discussed.

Abstract. The plasma membrane of Paramecium is underlain by a continuous layer of membrane vesicles known as cortical alveoli, whose function was unknown but whose organization had suggested some resemblance with muscle sareoplasmic reticulum. The occurrence of antimonate precipitates within the alveoli first indicated to us that they may indeed correspond to a vast calcium storage site. To analyze the possible involvement of this compartment in calcium sequestration more directly, we have developed a new fractionation method, involving a Percoll gradient, that allows rapid purification of the surface layer (cortex) of Paramecium in good yield and purity and in which the alveoli retain their in vivo topological orientation.This fraction pumped calcium very actively in a closed membrane compartment, with strict dependence on ATP and Mg 2÷. The pumping activity was affected by anti-calmodulin drugs but no Triton-soluble calmodulin binding protein could be identified, using gel overlay procedures. The high affinity of the pump for calcium (Km = 0.5 t~M) suggests that it plays an important role in the normal physiological environment of the cytosol. This may be related to at least three calcium-regulated processes that take place in the immediate vicinity of alveoli: trichocyst exocytosis, ciliary beating and cytoskeletal elements dynamics during division.

The effects of the Ca2+-mobilizing hormones noradrenaline, vasopressin and angiotensin on the unidirectional influx of Ca2+ were investigated in isolated rat liver cells by measuring the initial rate of 45Ca2+ uptake. The three hormones increased Ca2+ influx, with EC50 values (concentrations giving half-maximal effect) of 0.15 microM, 0.44 nM and 0.8 nM for noradrenaline, vasopressin and angiotensin respectively. The actions of noradrenaline and angiotensin were evident within seconds after their addition to the cells, whereas the increase in Ca2+ influx initiated by vasopressin was slightly delayed (by 5-15s). The activation of Ca2+ influx was maintained as long as the receptor was occupied by the hormone. The measurement of the resting and hormone-stimulated Ca2+ influxes at different external Ca2+ concentrations revealed Michaelis-Menten-type kinetics compatible with a saturable channel model. Noradrenaline, vasopressin and angiotensin increased both Km and Vmax. of Ca2+ influx. It is proposed that the hormones increase the rate of translocation of Ca2+ through a common pool of Ca2+ channels without changing the number of available channels or their affinity for Ca2+.

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The effect of the interaction between the Ca2+-mobilizing hormone adrenaline, used as alpha-adrenergic agonist, and cyclic AMP-dependent hormones, including beta-adrenergic agonists and glucagon, on the initial 45Ca2+ uptake rate and polyphosphoinositide metabolism were investigated in isolated rat hepatocytes. Each hormone alone increased the initial 45Ca2+ uptake rate. When adrenaline was added without inhibitor, it induced a rise in the initial 45Ca2+ uptake rate larger than the sum of the rises elicited by its alpha and beta components singly. Similarly, when adrenaline was used as an alpha-agonist and added together with glucagon, it enhanced the initial 45Ca2+ uptake rate synergistically. Kinetic analysis of the initial 45Ca2+ uptake rate measured at different Ca2+ concentrations suggested that the increased influx elicited by the combination of adrenaline as alpha-adrenergic agonist and glucagon reflects an activation of the rate of Ca2+ transport via a homogeneous population of Ca2+ channels or carriers. Dose-response curves for the alpha-adrenergic action of adrenaline or glucagon applied in the presence of increasing doses of glucagon or adrenaline showed that each hormone increases the maximal response to the other without affecting its ED50. Measurement of polyphosphoinositide hydrolysis and of the inositol phosphates formed in the presence of adrenaline or vasopressin and/or glucagon showed that Ca2+-mobilizing hormones and glucagon had no synergistic effects on inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate production. It is therefore proposed that the synergistic action of glucagon and Ca2+-mobilizing hormones on Ca2+ influx occurs at a step that takes place close to the Ca2+ channels or carriers themselves. The Ca2+ gating involved might be mainly controlled by two products, one of them arising from the polyphosphoinositide metabolism, and the other from the increase in internal cyclic AMP.

Inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (InsP3) is involved in the mobilization of Ca2+ from intracellular non-mitochondrial stores. In rat liver, it has been shown that the InsP3-binding site co-purifies with the plasma membrane. This suggests that in the liver the InsP3 receptor (InsP3R) associates with plasma membrane. We studied the subcellular distribution of the liver InsP3R by measuring the maximal binding capacity of [3H]InsP3 and using antibodies against the 14 C-terminal residues of the type 1 InsP3R. The antibodies recognized a large amount of an InsP3R protein of 260 kDa in a membrane fraction which is also enriched with [3H]InsP3-binding sites and with markers of the basal, the lateral and the bile-canalicular membrane and the plasma-membrane Ca2+ pump (PMCA). The fractions enriched in markers of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and the Ca2+ pump of the ER (SERCA2b) contained low levels of InsP3 receptors. The immunofluorescent labelling of cultured hepatocytes with anti-InsP3R antibodies indicated that the receptor is concentrated in the perinuclear area and in some regions near the plasma membrane. The fraction enriched with InsP3R is also contaminated with markers of the ER and with SERCA2b. It was exposed to alkaline medium (pH 10.5) to extract endogenous actin and membrane-associated proteins before being subfractionated by Percoll-gradient centrifugation. The alkaline treatment allowed partial separation of the markers of the ER from the markers of the plasma membrane. The InsP3R was recovered in the heavy subfraction, which was also enriched with markers for the ER and with the SERCA2b and contained low levels of markers of the plasma membrane. These data indicate that the InsP3R is neither localized on the plasma membrane itself nor homogeneously distributed on the ER membrane. This supports the view that part of the receptor is localized on a specialized sub-region of the ER which interacts with the plasma membrane.

The subcellular localization of inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate(InsP3)-induced Ca2+ signals is important for the activation of many physiological functions. In epithelial cells the spatial distribution of InsP3 receptor is restricted to specific areas, but little is known about the relationship between the receptor's distribution and cell polarity. To investigate this relationship, the best known polarized cell model, MDCK, was examined. This cell line is characterized by a strong expression of the type 3 InsP3 receptor and the subcellular localization of this receptor was followed during cell polarization using immunofluorescence and confocal analysis. In non-polarized cells, including ras transformed f3 MDCK cells, the type 3 InsP3 receptor was found to co-localize with markers of the endoplasmic reticulum in the cytoplasm. In contrast, in polarized cells, this receptor was mostly distributed at the apex of the lateral plasma membrane with the markers of tight junctions, ZO-1 and occludin. The localization of the type 3 InsP3 receptor in the vicinity of tight junctions was confirmed by immunogold electron microscopy. The culture of MDCK cells in calcium-deprived medium, led to disruption of cell polarity and receptor redistribution in the cytoplasm. Addition of calcium to these deprived cells induced the restoration of polarity and the relocalization of the receptor to the plasma membrane. MDCK cells were stably transfected with a plasmid coding the full-length mouse type 1 InsP3 receptor tagged with EGFP at the C-terminus. The EGFP-tagged type 1 receptor and the endogenous type 3 co-localized in the cytoplasm of non-polarized cells and at the tight junction level of polarized cells. Thus,the localization of InsP3 receptor in MDCK depends on polarity.

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