Depletion of Ca(2+) from the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) results in activation of plasma membrane Ca(2+) entry channels. This 'store-operated' process requires translocation of a transmembrane ER Ca(2+) sensor protein, stromal interaction molecule 1 (STIM1), to sites closely apposed to Ca(2+) channels at the cell surface. However, it is not known whether a reduction in Ca(2+) stores is coupled to other signalling pathways by this mechanism. We found that lowering the concentration of free Ca(2+) in the ER, independently of the cytosolic Ca(2+) concentration, also led to recruitment of adenylyl cyclases. This resulted in enhanced cAMP accumulation and PKA activation, measured using FRET-based cAMP indicators. Translocation of STIM1 was required for efficient coupling of ER Ca(2+) depletion to adenylyl cyclase activity. We propose the existence of a pathway (store-operated cAMP signalling or SOcAMPS) in which the content of internal Ca(2+) stores is directly connected to cAMP signalling through a process that involves STIM1.

Mitochondria have a well-established capacity to detect cytoplasmic Ca2+ signals resulting from the discharge of ER Ca2+ stores. Conversely, both the buffering of released Ca2+ and ATP production by mitochondria are predicted to influence ER Ca2+ handling, but this complex exchange has been difficult to assess in situ using conventional measurement techniques. Here we have examined this interaction in single intact BHK-21 cells by monitoring intraluminal ER [Ca2+] directly using trapped fluorescent low-affinity Ca2+ indicators. Treatment with mitochondrial inhibitors (FCCP, antimycin A, oligomycin, and rotenone) dramatically prolonged the refilling of stores after release with bradykinin. This effect was largely due to inhibition of Ca2+ entry pathways at the plasma membrane, but a significant component appears to arise from reduction of SERCA-mediated Ca2+ uptake, possibly as a consequence of ATP depletions in a localized subcellular domain. The rate of bradykinin-induced Ca2+ release was reduced to 51% of control by FCCP. This effect was largely overcome by loading cells with BAPTA-AM, highlighting the importance of mitochondrial Ca2+ buffering in shaping the release kinetics. However, mitochondria-specific ATP production was also a significant determinant of the release dynamic. Our data emphasize the localized nature of the interaction between these organelles, and show that competent mitochondria are essential for generating explosive Ca2+ signals.

Agonist-evoked, intracellular Ca2+-signalling events are associated with active extrusion of Ca2+ across the plasma membrane, implying a local increase in Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]) at the extracellular face of the cell. The possibility that these external [Ca2+] changes may have specific physiological functions has received little consideration in the past. Here we show that, at physiological ambient [Ca2+], Ca2+ mobilization in one cell produces an extracellular signal that can be detected in nearby cells expressing the extracellular Ca2+-sensing receptor (CaR), a cell-surface receptor for divalent cations with a widespread tissue distribution. The CaR may therefore mediate a universal form of intercellular communication that allows cells to be informed of the Ca2+-signalling status of their neighbours.

The primary cilium permits compartmentalization of specific signaling pathways, including elements of the Hedgehog (Hh) pathway. Hh transcriptional activity is thought to be negatively regulated by constitutively high ciliary cAMP maintained by the Gα(s)-coupled GPCR, GPR161. However, cilia also sequester many other Gα(s)-coupled GPCRs with unknown potential to regulate Hh. Here we used biosensors optimized for ciliary cAMP and strategies to isolate signals in the cilium from the cell body and neighboring cells. We found that ciliary cAMP was not elevated relative to cellular cAMP, inconsistent with constitutive cAMP production. Gα(s)-coupled GPCRs (e.g., the 5-HT6 serotonin and D1R dopamine receptor) had reduced ability to generate cAMP upon trafficking to the ciliary membrane. However, activation of the Hh pathway restored or amplified GPCR function to permit cAMP elevation selectively in the cilium. Hh therefore enables its own local GPCR-dependent cAMP regulatory circuit. Considering that GPCRs comprise much of the druggable genome, these data suggest alternative strategies to modify Hh signaling.

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Under resting conditions, steady-state [Ca] in agonist-sensitive Ca stores reflects a balance between active uptake (usually mediated by a thapsigargin-sensitive Ca-ATPase of the SERCA family) and passive efflux of Ca. Even though this pump-leak cycle appears to be a common property of Ca-storing organelles, little is known about the nature of the leak pathway. Ca homeostasis in thapsigargin-sensitive internal Ca stores of single permeabilized BHK-21 fibroblasts was examined using digital image processing of compartmentalized mag-fura-2 (a low-affinity Ca indicator). It is shown here that the leak of Ca from internal stores is regulated specifically by the cytosolic ATP concentration. The rate of leak was 3.6 times slower in 0.375 mM[ATP] than in 4 mM [ATP] (Na or Mg salt). These effects were observed in the presence of 0 Ca/EGTA, thapsigargin, heparin, and ruthenium red, and therefore appear to be independent of the Ca-ATPase, the InsP(3) receptor and the ryanodine receptor. The ATP-stimulated leak was seen in a variety of cell types, including rat basophilic leukemia cells and mouse pancreatic acinar cells. Other nucleotides (ADP, GTP, CTP, and UTP) and nonhydrolyzable ATP analogs (AMP-PNP and ATPgammaS) did not reproduce the action of ATP. Changes in cellular metabolism and ensuing alterations in [ATP] will be expected to influence the filling state of internal Ca stores through effects on the passive leak pathway, potentially leading to modulation of Ca signaling and organellar function.

BackgroundWhile intracellular buffers are widely used to study calcium signaling, no such tool exists for the other major second messenger, cyclic AMP (cAMP).Methods/Principal FindingsHere we describe a genetically encoded buffer for cAMP based on the high-affinity cAMP-binding carboxy-terminus of the regulatory subunit RIβ of protein kinase A (PKA). Addition of targeting sequences permitted localization of this fragment to the extra-nuclear compartment, while tagging with mCherry allowed quantification of its expression at the single cell level. This construct (named “cAMP sponge”) was shown to selectively bind cAMP in vitro. Its expression significantly suppressed agonist-induced cAMP signals and the downstream activation of PKA within the cytosol as measured by FRET-based sensors in single living cells. Point mutations in the cAMP-binding domains of the construct rendered the chimera unable to bind cAMP in vitro or in situ. Cyclic AMP sponge was fruitfully applied to examine feedback regulation of gap junction-mediated transfer of cAMP in epithelial cell couplets.ConclusionsThis newest member of the cAMP toolbox has the potential to reveal unique biological functions of cAMP, including insight into the functional significance of compartmentalized signaling events.

Free [Ca] within organelles of permeabilized BHK-21 cells was measured using ratio imaging of compartmentalized mag-fura-2. In BHK-21 cells, this dye monitors free [Ca] in principally one type of ATP-dependent Ca-sequestering organelle in which intrastore Ca was released uniformly and entirely by 100 nM thapsigargin or removal of ATP or Ca from the bath, and was reduced by 85% upon treatment with a supramaximal dose of InsP3 (6 microM). Examination of the spatial distribution of InsP3-sensitive Ca stores showed that InsP3 released Ca throughout all regions of the cell, although we often noted a perinuclear region (which we speculate may correspond to the Golgi apparatus) with reduced responsiveness to InsP3. InsP3-induced changes of intraluminal Mg could not be detected. Cyclic ADP-ribose, ryanodine, caffeine, mitochondrial inhibitors, and GTP, agents known to influence intraorganellar Ca sequestration in other cell types, were all without effect on the mag-fura-2 ratio. In situ calibration of the mag-fura-2 ratio with Ca ionophores revealed that the average free intraorganellar [Ca] was initially 188 +/- 21 microM in the presence of 170 nM free Ca and 3 mM ATP, and was reduced to 25 +/- 5 microM upon stimulation with 6 microM InsP3. The ionic dependence of the release and reloading process was also investigated. The presence of either K, Na, or Cl could consistently support both InsP3-induced release and the refilling of stores with Ca, but physiological concentrations of HCO3 were effective in sustaining the response in only 24% of cells examined.