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Bcl-2 protects against apoptosis in neuronal cell line caused by thapsigargin-induced depletion of intracellular calcium stores.

The toxicity of thapsigargin, a selective inhibitor of endoplasmic reticular Ca2+-ATPase, was investigated in GT1-7 cells, a murine hypothalamic cell line. Treatment of these cells with 50 or 100 nM thapsigargin greatly reduced cell viability at 24 and 48 h. These doses of thapsigargin induced a rapid rise in free cytosolic Ca2+ ([Ca2+]i), followed by a sustained increase. Addition of EGTA to chelate extracellular Ca2+ diminished somewhat the size of the initial increase of [Ca2+]i caused by thapsigargin, and abolished the sustained increase. The sustained increase could also be abolished by addition of La3+ and by SKF 96365, a drug selective for receptor-mediated calcium entry, but not by verapamil or flunarizine. Pretreatment with 50 microM BAPTA/AM, a cytosolic Ca2+ chelator, inhibited the peak [Ca2+]i caused by thapsigargin but did not inhibit the sustained elevation of [Ca2+]i. Neither EGTA nor BAPTA/AM inhibited the cell death induced by thapsigargin. The cell death was characterized by DNA fragmentation ("laddering"), nuclear condensation and fragmentation, and was inhibited by protein synthesis inhibitor cycloheximide, all characteristic of apoptotic cell death. Overexpression of the protooncogene bcl-2 in GT1-7 cells inhibited significantly DNA fragmentation, nuclear condensation and fragmentation, and cell death induced by thapsigargin. However, Bcl-2 did not alter either basal [Ca2+]i or the elevation of [Ca2+]i induced by thapsigargin. Our results suggest that abnormal Ca2+ release from endoplasmic reticulum caused by thapsigargin induces GT1-7 death by apoptosis and that this effect does not depend on Ca2+ influx from the extracellular space. Bcl-2 inhibited apoptosis induced by thapsigargin, but the mechanism is unlikely to be inhibition of endoplasmic reticular Ca2+ release in GT1-7 neuronal cells.

Animals↗

Luminal Ca2+ protects against thapsigargin inhibition in neuronal endoplasmic reticulum.

Thapsigargin is a specific and potent inhibitor of sarco/endoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-ATPases. However, in whole rat brain microsomes, 1 microM thapsigargin had no significant effect on the 10-min time course of ATP-dependent Ca2+ uptake in the absence of the luminal Ca2+ chelator oxalate. In contrast, 50 mM oxalate resolved a thapsigargin-sensitive Ca2+ uptake rate (IC50 approximately 1 nM thapsigargin) five times that of a thapsigargin-insensitive rate. This remaining approximately 20% of the total ATP-dependent accumulation was insensitive to thapsigargin (up to 10 microM), slightly less sensitive to vanadate inhibition, and unresponsive to 5 microM inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate or 10 mM caffeine. Measuring both 12-min Ca2+ uptake and initial Ca2+ uptake rates, the apparent thapsigargin sensitivity increased as oxalate concentrations increased from 10 to 50 mM, corresponding to a range of luminal free Ca2+ concentrations of approximately 300 down to 60 nM. Addition of oxalate during steady-state 45Ca accumulation rapidly resolved the aforementioned thapsigargin sensitivity. These results strongly suggest that luminal Ca2+ may protect a large portion of neuronal endoplasmic reticulum Ca2+ pumps against thapsigargin inhibition. Although high [Ca2+] has been previously shown to protect against thapsigargin inhibition in several reticular membrane preparations, our results suggest that luminal Ca2+ alone is responsible for mediating this effect in neurons.

Animals↗

Unravelling the interaction of thapsigargin with the conformational states of Ca(2+)-ATPase from skeletal sarcoplasmic reticulum.

Preincubation of thapsigargin with sarcoplasmic reticulum vesicles in the presence of high Ca(2+) or the addition of high Ca(2+) to microsomal vesicles preincubated with thapsigargin in the absence of Ca(2+) allowed full enzyme phosphorylation by ATP. However, the enzyme activity was not protected by high Ca(2+) even when the samples were subjected to gel filtration before ATP addition. Our data indicate that: (i) the enzyme in the Ca(2+)-bound conformation can be stabilized in the presence of thapsigargin; (ii) the conformational transition from the Ca(2+)-free to the Ca(2+)-bound state can be elicited by Ca(2+) when thapsigargin is present; (iii) thapsigargin binding occurs whether or not the enzyme is in the presence of Ca(2+), and so a ternary complex enzyme-Ca(2+)-thapsigargin may be formed; (iv) thapsigargin can be dissociated from the enzyme with a slow kinetics after dilution under drastic conditions; (v) the kinetics of Ca(2+) binding is clearly slowed down by thapsigargin; and (vi) thapsigargin does not affect the hydrolysis rate of phosphorylating substrates when measured in the absence of Ca(2+), indicating that thapsigargin specifically inhibits the Ca(2+)-dependent activity.

Animals↗

Thapsigargin potentiates histamine-stimulated HCl secretion in gastric parietal cells but does not mimic cholinergic responses.

The role of calcium in control of HCl secretion by the gastric parietal cell was examined using a recently available intracellular calcium-releasing agent, thapsigargin, which has been shown, in some cell types, to induce sustained elevation of intracellular calcium ([Ca2+]i), an action that appears to be independent of inositol lipid breakdown and protein kinase C activation and to be mediated, at least partially, by selective inhibition of endoplasmic reticulum Ca2(+)-ATPase. Using the calcium-sensitive fluorescent probe, fura-2, in combination with digitized video image analysis of single cells as well as standard fluorimetric techniques, we found that thapsigargin induced sustained elevation of [Ca2+]i in single parietal cells and in parietal cells populations. Chelation of medium calcium led to a transient rise and fall in [Ca2+]i, indicating that the sustained elevation in [Ca2+]i in response to thapsigargin was due to both intracellular calcium release and influx. Although thapsigargin appeared to affect the same calcium pool(s) regulated by the cholinergic agonist, carbachol, and the pattern of thapsigargin-induced increases in [Ca2+]i were similar to the plateau phase of the cholinergic response, thapsigargin did not induce acid secretory responses of the same magnitude as those initiated by carbachol (28 vs 600% of basal). The protein kinase C activator, 12-O-tetradecanoyl phorbol-13-acetate (TPA) potentiated the secretory response to thapsigargin but this combined response also did not attain the same magnitude as the maximal cholinergic response. In the presence but not the absence of medium calcium, thapsigargin potentiated acid secretory responses to histamine, which elevate both cyclic AMP (cAMP) and [Ca2+]i in parietal cells, as well as forskolin and cAMP analogues but had no effect on submaximal and an inhibitory effect on maximal cholinergic stimulation. Furthermore, thapsigargin did not fully mimic potentiating interactions between histamine and carbachol, either in magnitude or in the pattern of temporal response. Assuming that the action of thapsigargin is specific for intracellular calcium release mechanisms, these data suggest that 1) sustained influx of calcium is necessary but not sufficient for cholinergic activation of parietal cell HCl secretion and for potentiating interactions between cAMP-dependent agonists and carbachol; 2) mechanisms in addition to elevated [Ca2+]i and protein kinase C activation may be involved in cholinergic regulation; and 3) increases in [Ca2+]i in response to histamine are not directly involved in the mechanism of histamine-stimulated secretion.

Aminopyrine↗

The calcium-mobilizing agent, thapsigargin, inhibits progesterone production in rat luteal cells by a calcium-independent mechanism.

In rat luteal cells, an increase in intracellular [Ca]i impairs luteal function similar to that of prostaglandin F2a (PGF2a). However, calcium per se is not the mediator of the antigonadotropic action of PGF2a. Thapsigargin, a plant sesquiterpene lactone, increases intracellular calcium concentration concentration ([Ca]i) in several cell types by a mechanism that involves specific inhibition of the endoplasmic reticulum Ca2(+)-ATPase. To further investigate the antigonadotropic role of [Ca]i and the mechanism of action of PGF2a in rat luteal cells, the action of thapsigargin on cellular functional responses was examined in the absence and presence of PGF2a. Thapsigargin dose dependently increased [Ca]i and inhibited cAMP accumulation and progesterone production in response to LH. The inhibitory effect of thapsigargin on cAMP accumulation was calcium dependent but in contrast, inhibition of LH-stimulated progesterone production was independent of calcium mobilization by thapsigargin. Steroidogenesis stimulated by (Bu)2cAMP was also inhibited by thapsigargin. Thus, thapsigargin mimicked some effects of PGF2a with inhibitory sites of action on both cAMP accumulation and progesterone production. Thapsigargin also blocked the mobilization of [Ca]i by PGF2a, but when coincubated with PGF2a an additive effect on inhibition of LH-stimulated progesterone production occurred. However, no additive effects of thapsigargin and PGF2a on gonadotropin-sensitive cAMP accumulation were evident. In conclusion, although thapsigargin and PGF2a may share some similar actions, their antigonadotropic effects are mediated differently.

1-Methyl-3-isobutylxanthine↗

Identification of intracellular calcium pools. Selective modification by thapsigargin.

Recent studies have identified inositol 1,4,5-tris-phosphate(InsP3)-sensitive and -insensitive Ca2+ pools and a GTP-dependent mechanism that transfers Ca2+ between them. Here, the Ca2+ pump-inhibitory sesquiterpene lactone, thapsigargin, is shown to distinguish these two Ca2+ pools and identify a third Ca2+ pumping pool unresponsive to InsP3 or GTP. Using saponin-permeabilized DDT1MF-2 smooth muscle cells, approximately 75% of total intracellular ATP-dependent Ca2+ accumulation is blocked by thapsigargin with an IC50 of 30 nM. In contrast, 1 mM vanadate or 5 microM A23187 block 100% of Ca2+ accumulation. The thapsigargin-responsive Ca2+ pool corresponds exactly to that released by 10 microM InsP3 in the presence of 10 microM GTP. Indeed, addition of InsP3 with GTP has no effect on Ca2+ accumulated in the presence of 3 microM thapsigargin whereas A23187 releases all the remaining Ca2+. Added after maximal Ca2+ uptake, thapsigargin induces only slow Ca2+ release consistent with blockade of pumping activity. Unlike InsP3, the action of thapsigargin is entirely heparin insensitive. The large increment in Ca2+ uptake caused by 12 mM oxalate is completely reversed by thapsigargin, indicating that thapsigargin functions on an oxalate-permeable pool. Moreover, the still larger uptake induced by GTP in the presence of oxalate is also completely reversed by either thapsigargin or InsP3. The results indicate that thasigargin blocks Ca2+ uptake into two discrete pools: the InsP3-sensitive, oxalate-permeable Ca2+ pool and the InsP3-insensitive, oxalate-impermeable Ca2+ pool that can be "recruited" into the InsP3-sensitive pool by GTP-dependent Ca2+ translocation (Ghosh, T. K., Mullaney, J.M., Tarazi, F.I., and Gill, D.L. (1989) Nature 340, 236-239). Additionally, a third Ca2+ pool is defined, unreleasable by InsP3 or GTP, and containing a thapsigargin-insensitive Ca2+ pump.

Animals↗

Activation of calcium entry by the tumor promoter thapsigargin in parotid acinar cells. Evidence that an intracellular calcium pool and not an inositol phosphate regulates calcium fluxes at the plasma membrane.

The depletion of an inositol 1, 4,5-trisphosphate-sensitive intracellular Ca2+ pool has been proposed to be the signal for Ca2+ entry in agonist-activated cells. Consistent with this idea, thapsigargin, which releases intracellular Ca2+ without inositol phosphate formation, has been reported to activate Ca2+ entry in certain cells. We now report the effects of thapsigargin on Ca2+ entry in parotid acinar cells. In fura-2-loaded parotid acinar cells, thapsigargin caused a sustained elevation of [Ca2+], but did not increase inositol phosphate formation. In the absence of extracellular Ca2+, the increase in [Ca2+], was transient, suggesting that thapsigargin activates both the release of Ca2+ from intracellular stores and the entry of Ca2+ from the extracellular space. In the absence of extracellular Ca2+, pretreatment with methacholine, an agonist believed to mobilize Ca2+ through the production of inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate, inhibited but did not completely block the response to thapsigargin; likewise, pretreatment with thapsigargin inhibited the response to methacholine. In permeabilized cells, thapsigargin gradually released Ca2+, whereas inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate caused a rapid and transient discharge of Ca2+. The simultaneous addition of thapsigargin with inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate evoked a maximum Ca2+ release similar to that for inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate alone, but the reuptake seen with inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate alone was abolished. In intact cells, methacholine and thapsigargin together produced a greater initial release of Ca2+ than either alone, but they were not additive in the sustained phase of Ca2+ mobilization. These results demonstrate that the mechanisms for activation of Ca2+ entry by thapsigargin and methacholine are the same and are consistent with the idea that entry is initiated by the depletion of the intracellular inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate-sensitive Ca2+ pool. The results also indicate that, in contrast to previously proposed models, Ca2+ entry into agonist-activated cells occurs directly across the plasma membrane to the cytoplasm rather than through a cycle of uptake and release by the intracellular Ca2+ pool.

Animals↗

Intracellular Ca2+ signals activate apoptosis in thymocytes: studies using the Ca(2+)-ATPase inhibitor thapsigargin.

The endoplasmic reticular Ca(2+)-ATPase inhibitor, thapsigargin, was used to study the role of an increase in cytosolic free calcium concentration ([Ca2+]i) as a signal for the activation of thymocyte apoptosis. Treatment of rat thymocytes with thapsigargin resulted in an early sustained increase in [Ca2+]i followed by extensive DNA fragmentation. Agarose gel electrophoresis revealed that the pattern of DNA fragments was typical of endonuclease-mediated internucleosomal cleavage. In addition, confocal microscopy studies showed the formation of apoptotic nuclei in thapsigargin-treated thymocytes. The concentrations of thapsigargin required to induce DNA fragmentation and [Ca2+]i increase in thymocytes were identical and so were the kinetics of thapsigargin-induced DNA fragmentation and formation of apoptotic nuclei. The lowest concentration of thapsigargin needed to activate apoptosis was 1 nM. Thapsigargin-induced [Ca2+]i increase and thymocyte apoptosis were inhibited in cells incubated in nominally Ca(2+)-free medium or pretreated with the intracellular Ca2+ chelator, bis-(o-aminophenoxy)ethane-N,N,N',N'-tetraacetic acid/acetoxymethyl ester. Removal of extracellular free Ca2+ with 5 mM EGTA at different time points after thapsigargin addition revealed a time dependency of about 2 h for the sustained increase in [Ca2+]i to trigger apoptosis in thymocytes. Thus, we conclude that the signal provided by the thapsigargin-induced [Ca2+]i increase is sufficient to activate thymocyte apoptosis.

Animals↗

Effect of signal transduction pathways on the action of thapsigargin on rat mast cells. Crosstalks between cellular signalling and cytosolic pH.

Thapsigargin elicits histamine release on rat mast cells, and this effect is increased if cells are pretreated with thapsigargin before the addition of external calcium. Okadaic acid does not modify the response of mast cells to thapsigargin, while sodium fluoride or the phorbol ester 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA) increases several fold the sensitivity of cells to thapsigargin. On the other hand, pertussis and cholera toxins inhibit the response to thapsigargin. Thapsigargin increases the activity of the Na(+)-H+ exchanger, this effect being blocked by fluoride and not modified by TPA. The metals cadmium and lanthanum completely block the effect of TPA or thapsigargin on the Na(+)-H+ exchanger. The influx of 45Ca in rat mast cells is not modified by thapsigargin, but if cells are treated with thapsigargin before the addition of calcium, the influx is markedly increased in the first 2 min before returning to normal. Our results indicate that exocytosis is modulated by crosstalks between intracellular calcium, cytosolic pH and external calcium.

Animals↗

The inflammatory and tumor-promoting sesquiterpene lactone, thapsigargin, activates platelets by selective mobilization of calcium as shown by protein phosphorylations.

We have studied the activation of human blood platelets by the inflammatory and tumor-promoting sesquiterpene lactone, thapsigargin. The effect of thapsigargin was compared with other common agonists (calcium ionophore A23187, phorbol ester TPA and thrombin). Platelet aggregation, serotonin release, raised cytoplasmic free calcium level and phosphorylation of platelet proteins was examined in platelet-rich plasma and washed platelet suspension. In contrast to A23187 and thrombin, the platelet activation induced by thapsigargin developed slowly, with maximal response obtained after 2-3 min. Both the thapsigargin- and the A23187-induced serotonin releases were synergistically increased by TPA. Studies of the phosphorylation of platelet proteins revealed that thapsigargin and A23187 equally well induced a selective phosphorylation of two proteins with apparent molecular masses of 20 kDa and 47 kDa. These proteins, which are substrates of myosin light-chain kinase and protein kinase C respectively, are known to be involved in platelet activation. The thapsigargin-induced platelet aggregation and serotonin release was completely inhibited by class I (nimodipine), class II (verapamil) and class III (diltiazem) calcium-channel blockers. The inhibitory activity of nimodipine was abolished by the corresponding 1,4-dihydropyridine calcium-channel agonist, BAY K 8644. These results shows that the thapsigargin-induced platelet activation is mediated by an increase in the cytoplasmic free calcium level, presumably obtained by stimulation of the passive calcium transport through specific channels. These thapsigargin-sensitive channels should predominantly be located in the membranes of intracellular calcium stores rather than in the plasma membrane, because removal of extracellular calcium by EGTA had only an insignificant effect on the thapsigargin-induced rise in cytoplasmic free calcium level.

Blood Platelets↗

A study on thapsigargin-induced calcium ion and cation influx pathways in vascular endothelial cells.

To investigate Ca2+/cation entry pathway in vascular endothelial cells, we examined the effects of thapsigargin on [Ca2+]i and Mn2+ entry in cultured porcine aortic endothelial cells. Thapsigargin inhibits the activity of endoplasmic reticulum (ER, intracellular Ca2+ pool) Ca(2+)-ATPase, and stimulates Ca2+ entry from extracellular space by depleting intracellular Ca2+ pool. Cultured endothelial cells were loaded with fura-2/AM, and [Ca2+]i was measured by the ratios of fluorescence at 340/380 nm excitation, and Mn2+ entry was observed by the quenching of fluorescence at 360 nm excitation. Thapsigargin elevated [Ca2+]i in a time- and dose-dependent manner. The increase in [Ca2+]i caused by thapsigargin was lowered in Ca(2+)-free solution containing 3 mM EGTA. Verapamil (10(-5) M) and equimolar replacement of extracellular NaCl by LiCl had no effects on the maximum elevation of [Ca2+]i by thapsigargin. The increase in [Ca2+]i by thapsigargin was significantly inhibited by either NiCl2 (10(-3) M) or membrane depolarization using 50 mM KCl. Thapsigargin stimulated Mn2+ entry concomitantly with the increase in [Ca2+]i. Mn2+ entry was augmented in Ca(2+)-free solution. These results suggested that (1) the increase in [Ca2+]i by thapsigargin consisted of both Ca2+ release from ER and Ca2+ entry from extracellular space, and (2) thapsigargin also stimulated Mn2+ entry, which was interfered with in the presence of extracellular Ca2+.

Animals↗

Thapsigargin-induced apoptosis was prevented by glycogen synthase kinase-3 inhibitors in PC12 cells.

Uncontrolled calcium stress has been linked causally to a variety of neurodegenerative diseases, including ischemia, excitotoxicity and Alzheimer's disease. Thapsigargin, which increases [Ca2+]i, induces apoptotic cell death (chromatin condensation and DNA fragmentation) accompanied by caspase-3 activation in PC12 cells. We examined whether GSK-3 is involved in thapsigargin-induced cell death by using GSK-3 inhibitors in PC12 cells. Cells treated with 0.1 microM thapsigargin for 24h shrank. The injured cells underwent chromatin condensation and nuclear fragmentation, indicating apoptotic cell death. We assayed the effects of selective GSK-3 inhibitors, SB216763, azakenpaullone and alsteropaullone on thapsigargin-induced apoptosis. These inhibitors completely protected cells from thapsigargin-induced apoptosis. Alsterpaullone did not reduce the GRP78 protein expression induced by thapsigargin, suggesting that GSK-3 activation is not involved in induction of GRP78. In addition, GSK-3 inhibitors inhibited caspase-3 activation accompanied by thapsigargin-induced apoptosis. We showed in this report that thapsigargin-induced apoptosis is prevented by GSK-3 inhibitors, suggesting that thapsigargin induces caspase-dependent apoptosis mediated through GSK-3 activation in PC12 cells.

Animals↗

Thapsigargin binds to and inhibits the cloned vanilloid receptor-1.

We investigated the effect of thapsigargin, a well-known sarcoplasmic reticulum ATPase (SERCA) inhibitor, on the non-specific Ca2+ channel vanilloid receptor-1 (VR1) in CHO-VR1 cells. We found that thapsigargin inhibited the VR-1 mediated (45)Ca2+ uptake of CHO-VR1 cells (IC50=6.4+/-1.9 microM) and the [3H]RTX binding to VR1 (IC50=4.0+/-1.3 microM). Further analysis revealed that thapsigargin is a mixed-type inhibitor, suggesting both direct and indirect interactions between thapsigargin and the capsaicin binding site of VR1. Thapsigargin alone transiently elevated the [Ca2+]i in CHO-VR1 cells (EC50=44 nM). However, 45Ca2+ uptake was not detected after thapsigargin treatment, indicating that the emptying of the thapsigargin sensitive intracellular pools of Ca2+ was responsible for the elevated [Ca2+]i level rather than the activation of VR-1. We conclude that thapsigargin represents a new prototype of a VR1 inhibitor and that caution should be exercised in interpreting the effects of thapsigargin, especially when it is used in the micromolar range to inhibit SERCA activity.

Animals↗

D609-phosphatidylcholine-specific phospholipase C inhibitor attenuates thapsigargin-induced sodium influx in human lymphocytes.

Previously, we reported that the phosphatidylcholine-specific phospholipase C (PC-PLC) inhibitor tricyclodecan-9-yl xanthogenate (D609) potentiates thapsigargin-induced Ca(2+) influx in human lymphocytes. In the present study we examined the effect of D609 on the thapsigargin-induced Na(+) entry. We found that the early phase of the thapsigargin-induced increase in the intracellular Na(+) concentration (approx. 1-2 min after stimulation) was attenuated after preincubation of lymphocytes with D609. By contrast, thapsigargin-induced Na(+) influx was not affected in the presence butan-1-ol, which inhibits phosphatidylcholine-specific phospholipase D (PC-PLD). The thapsigargin-induced Na(+) influx could be mimicked by PC-PLC exogenously added to the lymphocyte suspension, whereas addition of PC-PLD had no effect. In addition, thapsigargin stimulated formation of the physiological PC-PLC products, diacylglycerol. Cell-permeable diacylglycerol analogue, dioctanoyl-glycerol (DOG), produced time- and concentration-dependent increase in the intracellular Na(+) concentration. Both thapsigargin- and DOG-induced Na(+) increases were not affected in the presence of Na(+)/H(+) antiport inhibitor, HOE609, or Na(+)/Ca(2+) antiport inhibitor, dimethylthiourea, as well as in the presence of Co(2+) and Ni(2+), which block store-operated Ca(2+) entry. By contrast, markedly reduced thapsigargin- and DOG-induced Na(+) influx were noted in the presence of flufenamic acid, which blocks the non-selective cation current (I(CRANC)). In conclusion, our results suggest that diacylglycerol released due to the PC-PLC activation contributes to the thapsigargin-induced Na(+) entry.

Biological Transport↗

Pharmacological comparison of UTP- and thapsigargin-induced arachidonic acid release in mouse RAW 264.7 macrophages.

1. Although stimulation of mouse RAW 264.7 macrophages by UTP elicits a rapid increase in intracellular free Ca2+ ([Ca2+]i), phosphoinositide (PI) turnover, and arachidonic acid (AA) release, the causal relationship between these signalling pathways is still unclear. In the present study, we investigated the involvement of phosphoinositide-dependent phospholipase C (PI-PLC) activation, Ca2+ increase and protein kinase activation in UTP-induced AA release. The effects of stimulating RAW 264.7 cells with thapsigargin, which cannot activate the inositol phosphate (IP) cascade, but results in the release of sequestered Ca2+ and an influx of extracellular Ca2+, was compared with the effects of UTP stimulation to elucidate the multiple regulatory pathways for cPLA2 activation. 2. In RAW 264.7 cells UTP (100 microM) and thapsigargin (1 microM) caused 2 and 1.2 fold increases, respectively, in [3H]-AA release. The release of [3H]-AA following treatment with UTP and thapsigargin were non-additive, totally abolished in the Ca2+-free buffer, BAPTA (30 microM)-containing buffer or in the presence of the cPLA2 inhibitor MAFP (50 microM), and inhibited by pretreatment of cells with pertussis toxin (100 ng ml(-1)) or 4-bromophenacyl bromide (100 microM). By contrast, aristolochic acid (an inhibitor of sPLA2) had no effect on UTP and thapsigargin responses. 3. U73122 (10 microM) and neomycin (3 mM), inhibitors of PI-PLC, inhibited UTP-induced IP formation (88% and 83% inhibition, respectively) and AA release (76% and 58%, respectively), accompanied by a decrease in the [Ca2+]i rise. 4. Wortmannin attenuated the IP response of UTP in a concentration-dependent manner (over the range 10 nM-3 microM), and reduced the UTP-induced AA release in parallel. RHC 80267 (30 microM), a specific diacylglycerol lipase inhibitor, had no effect on UTP-induced AA release. 5. Short-term treatment with PMA (1 microM) inhibited the UTP-stimulated accumulation of IP and increase in [Ca2+]i, but had no effect on the release of AA. In contrast, the AA release caused by thapsigargin was increased by PMA. 6. The role of PKC in UTP- and thapsigargin-mediated AA release was shown by the blockade of these effects by staurosporine (1 microM), Ro 31-8220 (10 microM), Go 6976 (1 microM) and the down-regulation of PKC. 7. Following treatment of cells with SK&F 96365 (30 microM), thapsigargin-, but not UTP-, induced Ca2+ influx, and the accompanying AA release, were down-regulated. 8. Neither PD 98059 (100 microM), MEK a inhibitor, nor genistein (100 microM), a tyrosine kinase inhibitor, had any effect on the AA responses induced by UTP and thapsigargin. 9. We conclude that UTP-induced cPLA2 activity depends on the activation of PI-PLC and the sustained elevation of intracellular Ca2+, which is essential for the activation of cPLA2 by UTP and thapsigargin. The [Ca2+]i-dependent AA release that follows treatment with both stimuli was potentiated by the activity of protein kinase C (PKC). A pertussis toxin-sensitive pathway downstream of the increase in [Ca2+]i was also shown to be involved in AA release.

Animals↗

Participation of mitogen-activated protein kinase in thapsigargin- and TPA-induced histamine production in murine macrophage RAW 264.7 cells.

1. Stimulation of the murine macrophage cell line RAW 264.7 with thapsigargin, an endomembrane Ca(2+)-ATPase inhibitor, induced histamine production in a time- and concentration-dependent manner. 2. The protein kinase C activator, 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol 13-acetate (TPA), also enhanced histamine production. 3. alpha-Fluoromethylhistidine, a suicide substrate of L-histidine decarboxylase (HDC), suppressed the thapsigargin (30 nM)- and TPA (30 nM)-induced histamine production. 4. Both thapsigargin (30 nM) and TPA (30 nM) induced phosphorylation of p44/p42 MAP kinase and p38 MAP kinase. 5. PD98059, a specific inhibitor of MEK-1 which phosphorylates p44/p42 MAP kinase, strongly suppressed both the thapsigargin (30 nM)- and TPA (30 nM)-induced histamine production, whereas SB203580, a specific inhibitor of p38 MAP kinase, inhibited them only partially. 6. The other MEK-1 inhibitor, U-0126, also inhibited both the thapsigargin- and TPA-induced histamine production in a concentration-dependent manner. 7. Thapsigargin (30 nM) and TPA (30 nM) increased the levels of HDC mRNA at 4 h, but PD98059 suppressed both the thapsigargin- and TPA-induced increases in the HDC mRNA level. 8. These findings indicate that thapsigargin and TPA induce histamine production in RAW 264.7 cells by increasing the level of HDC mRNA, and that both the thapsigargin- and TPA-induced histamine production are regulated largely by p44/p42 MAP kinase and partially by p38 MAP kinase.

Animals↗

Two classes of agonist-sensitive Ca2+ stores in platelets, as identified by their differential sensitivity to 2,5-di-(tert-butyl)-1,4-benzohydroquinone and thapsigargin.

In the absence of extracellular Ca2+, extensive Ca2+ release from the platelet intracellular stores [monitored as an increase of intracellular Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i)] is produced by the combined action of the endomembrane Ca(2+)-ATPase inhibitor thapsigargin and 2 nM ionomycin. The titration of Ca2+ unloading with thapsigargin (plus ionomycin) shows that a substantial fraction of the store-associated Ca2+ is released by 8-10 nM thapsigargin, but that 100-200 nM thapsigargin is required for the complete release. The store depletion obtained in similar conditions with a different endomembrane Ca(2+)-ATPase inhibitor, 2,5-di-(tert-butyl)-1,4-benzohydroquinone (TBHQ), is always incomplete. It is completed by thrombin or by 10 nM thapsigargin. We conclude that two different types of Ca2+ pumps exist in platelets, one sensitive to TBHQ and to high thapsigargin, the other insensitive to TBHQ and sensitive to low thapsigargin. They are distributed separately in discrete subpopulations of the agonist-sensitive stores. The influx of external Ca2+ is maximal when both types of stores are Ca(2+)-depleted, either by high thapsigargin or by the combined action of low thapsigargin and TBHQ.

Antioxidants↗

Kinetics of thapsigargin-Ca(2+)-ATPase (sarcoplasmic reticulum) interaction reveals a two-step binding mechanism and picomolar inhibition.

Thapsigargin is a high affinity inhibitor of sarco- and endoplasmic reticulum (SERCA) type ATPases. We have used kinetics to determine the dissociation constant of thapsigargin-sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca(2+)-ATPase interaction in the absence and presence of non-ionic detergent. The observed "off" rate constant was measured as 0.0052 s-1 at 26 degrees C by the kinetics of inhibition of ATPase activity following transfer from an inactivated thapsigargin-ATPase complex to native ATPase. Inactive ATPase was produced by cross-linking the active site with glutaraldehyde. The observed dissociation rate constant was increased 7-fold by 0.1% Triton X-100, indicating that perturbation of the transmembrane and stalk region by detergent altered the binding parameters of the inhibitor. In addition, thapsigargin stabilized the ATPase against inactivation caused by detergent in the absence of Ca2+. The observed "on" rate constant of thapsigargin was measured at 26 degrees C as 25 s-1 irrespective of thapsigargin concentration, by the kinetics of thapsigargin- induced change in intrinsic fluorescence. An Arrhenius plot showed a temperature dependence of this rate constant, indicative of a conformational change in the protein with an activation energy of 9.5 kcal/mol for thapsigargin binding. The affinity of the Ca(2+)-ATPase for thapsigargin was calculated to be greater than 2 pM at pH 7.0 and 26 degrees C.

Animals↗