In cystic fibrosis (CF) airways, abnormal epithelial ion transport likely initiates mucus stasis, resulting in persistent airway infections and chronic inflammation. Mucus clearance is regulated, in part, by activation of apical membrane receptors coupled to intracellular calcium (Ca-i(2+)) mobilization. We have shown that Ca-i(2+) signals resulting from apical purinoceptor (P2Y(2)-R) activation are increased in CF compared with normal human airway epithelia. The present study addressed the mechanism for the larger apical P2Y(2)-R-dependent Ca-i(2+) signals in CF human airway epithelia. We show that the increased Ca-i(2+) mobilization in CF was not specific to P2Y(2)-Rs because it was mimicked by apical bradykinin receptor activation, and it did not result from a greater number of P2Y(2)-R or a more efficient coupling between P2Y(2)-Rs and phospholipase C-generated inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate. Rather, the larger apical P2Y(2)-R activation-promoted Ca-i(2+) signals in CF epithelia resulted from an increased density and Ca2+ storage capacity of apically confined endoplasmic reticulum (ER) Ca2+ stores. To address whether the ER upregulation resulted from ER retention of misfolded Delta F508 CFTR or was an acquired response to chronic luminal airway infection/inflammation, three approaches were used. First, ER density was studied in normal and CF sweat duct human epithelia expressing high levels of Delta F508 CFTR, and it was found to be the same in normal and CF epithelia. Second, apical ER density was morphometrically analyzed in airway epithelia from normal subjects, Delta F508 homozygous CF patients, and a disease control, primary ciliary dyskinesia; it was found to be greater in both CF and primary ciliary dyskinesia. Third, apical ER density and P2Y(2)-R activation-mobilized Ca-i(2+), which were investigated in airway epithelia in a long term culture in the absence of luminal infection, were similar in normal and CF epithelia. To directly test whether luminal infection/inflammation triggers an up-regulation of the apically confined ER Ca2+ stores, normal airway epithelia were chronically exposed to supernatant from mucopurulent material from CF airways. Supernatant treatment expanded the apically confined ER, resulting in larger apical P2Y(2)-R activation-dependent Ca-i(2+) responses, which reproduced the increased Ca-i(2+) signals observed in CF epithelia. In conclusion, the mechanism for the larger Ca-i(2+) signals elicited by apical P2Y(2)-R activation in CF airway epithelia is an expansion of the apical ER Ca2+ stores triggered by chronic luminal airway infection/inflammation. Greater ER-derived Ca-i(2+) signals may provide a compensatory mechanism to restore, at least acutely, mucus clearance in CF airways.

Live cell imaging methods were used to characterize goblet cells expressing a MUC5AC domain fused to enhanced green fluorescent protein that labels the granule lumen. Golgi complex and endosome/lysosome elements largely resided in the periphery of the granular mass. On the contrary, a tubular meshwork of endoplasmic reticulum (ER) was in close contact with the mucin granules. This meshwork could be identified in fixed native human bronchial goblet cells labeled with an anti-calreticulin antibody. The potential biological significance of this ER network for mucin secretion is discussed.

Hyperinflammatory responses to infection have been postulated as a component of cystic fibrosis (CF) lung disease. Studies have linked intracellular calcium (Ca-i(2+)) mobilization with inflammatory responses in several systems. We have reported that the pro-inflammatory mediator bradykinin (BK) promotes larger Ca-i(2+) signals in CF compared with normal bronchial epithelia, a response that reflects endoplasmic reticulum (ER)/Ca2+ store expansion induced by chronic luminal airway infection/inflammation. The present study investigated whether CF airway epithelia were hyperinflammatory and, if so, whether the hyperinflammatory CF phenotype was linked to larger Ca2+ stores in the ER. We found that Delta F508 CF bronchial epithelia were hyperinflammatory as defined by an increased basal and mucosal BK-induced interleukin (IL)-8 secretion. However, the CF hyperinflammation expressed in short-term ( 6 - 11-day-old) primary cultures of Delta F508 bronchial epithelia was lost in long-term ( 30 - 40-day-old) primary cultures of Delta F508 bronchial epithelia, indicating this response was independent of mutant cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator. Exposure of 30 - 40-day-old cultures of normal airway epithelia to supernatant from mucopurulent material (SMM) from CF airways reproduced the increased basal and mucosal BK-stimulated IL-8 secretion of short-term CF cultures. The BK-triggered increased IL-8 secretion in SMM-treated cultures was mediated by an increased Ca-i(2+) mobilization consequent to an ER expansion associated with increases in protein synthesis ( total, cytokines, and antimicrobial factors). The increased ER-dependent, Ca-i(2+)-mediated hyperinflammatory epithelial response may represent a general beneficial airway epithelial adaptation to transient luminal infection. However, in CF airways, the Ca-i(2+)-mediated hyperinflammation may be ineffective in promoting the eradication of infection in thickened mucus and, consequently, may have adverse effects in the lung.

ABSTRACT The role of the actin-based cytoskeleton in the internalization process of Burkholderia multivorans by well-differentiated human airway epithelia was investigated by immunohistology and confocal microscopy. Our data suggest that an intact actin cytoskeleton is required for biofilm formation but not single cell entry or paracytosis.

The localization of viral receptors to the basolateral surface of airway epithelia is an obstacle to the effectiveness of luminal viral-mediated gene transfer to the lung. The tight junction (TJ) serves as a rate-limiting barrier to the penetration of viral vectors. We have previously identified the sodium salt of the medium chain fatty acid (MCFA) capric acid (C10) as an agent that can enhance the ability of adenoviral vectors to transduce well differentiated (WD) primary human airway epithelial (HAE) cells. Previous studies have suggested that intracellular calcium (Cai2+) levels may play a central role in the long-term C10-mediated increases in junctional permeability. In this study, we investigated the effects of C10 and lauric acid (C12) on Cai2+ in WD primary HAE cells and determined whether these effects were necessary for the acute MCFA-induced reduction in transepithelial resistance (RT) and increased permeability. In addition, we characterized the effects of C10 and C12 on components localized to the TJ, including ZO-1, junctional adhesion molecule (JAM), and the claudin family of transmembrane proteins. In addition to rapidly decreasing RT, C10 and C12 increased cellular and paracellular permeability. C10 induced a rapid, sustained increase in Cai2+. However, buffering Cai2+ did not block the effects of C10 onRT. Both C10 and C12 caused reorganization of claudins-1, -4, JAM, and β-catenin, but not ZO-1. These data suggest that C10 and C12 exert their acute effects on airway TJs via a Ca2+-independent mechanism of action and may alter junctional permeability via direct effects on the claudin family of TJ proteins.

Extracellular nucleotides regulate transepithelial ion secretion via multiple receptors. The P2Y(2) receptor is the predominant transducer of chloride transport responses to nucleotides in the airways, but the P2 receptors that control ion transport in gastrointestinal epithelia have not been identified. UTP and UDP promote chloride secretion in mouse jejuna and gallbladder epithelia, respectively, and these responses were unaffected by P2Y(2) receptor gene disruption. Pharmacological data suggested the involvement of P2Y(4) and P2Y(6) receptors in gastrointestinal responses. To identify the P2Y receptors responsible for the gastrointestinal actions of UTP and UDP, we have cloned the murine P2Y(4) and P2Y(6) receptors and have stably expressed each in a null cell line to examine the nucleotide-promoted inositol phosphate formation and intracellular Ca(2+) mobilization. The (m)P2Y(4) receptor was potently, but not selectively, activated by UTP (UTP > or = ATP >ITP > GTP > CTP), and it was not activated by UDP or ADP. The (m)P2Y(6) receptor was highly selective for UDP (UDP >> ADP = GDP). The nucleotide selectivities observed with the recombinant (m)P2Y(4) and (m)P2Y(6) receptors resemble those for nucleotide-promoted chloride transport in murine P2Y(2)(-/-) jejuna and gallbladder epithelial cells, respectively. Ion transport responses to nucleotide additions were examined in freshly excised tissues from cystic fibrosis transmembrane regulator-deficient mice. Although the effect of UTP on jejunal short-circuit current (I(sc)) was impaired in the CF mouse, UDP-promoted I(sc) changes were not affected in CF gallbladder epithelium, suggesting that the P2Y(6) receptor is a target for treatment of CF gallbladder disease.

Airway epithelia are confronted with distinct signals emanating from the luminal and/or serosal environments. This study tested whether airway epithelia exhibit polarized intracellular free calcium (Ca(2+)(i)) and anion secretory responses to 5' triphosphate nucleotides (ATP/UTP), which may be released across both barriers of these epithelia. In both normal and cystic fibrosis (CF) airway epithelia, mucosal exposure to ATP/UTP increased Ca(2+)(i) and anion secretion, but both responses were greater in magnitude for CF epithelia. In CF epithelia, the mucosal nucleotide-induced response was mediated exclusively via Ca(2+)(i) interacting with a Ca(2+)-activated Cl(-) channel (CaCC). In normal airway epithelia (but not CF), nucleotides stimulated a component of anion secretion via a chelerythrine-sensitive, Ca(2+)-independent PKC activation of cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator. In normal and CF airway epithelia, serosally applied ATP or UTP were equally effective in mobilizing Ca(2+)(i). However, serosally applied nucleotides failed to induce anion transport in CF epithelia, whereas a PKC-regulated anion secretory response was detected in normal airway epithelia. We conclude that (1) in normal nasal epithelium, apical/basolateral purinergic receptor activation by ATP/UTP regulates separate Ca(2+)-sensitive and Ca(2+)-insensitive (PKC-mediated) anion conductances; (2) in CF airway epithelia, the mucosal ATP/UTP-dependent anion secretory response is mediated exclusively via Ca(2+)(i); and (3) Ca(2+)(i) regulation of the Ca(2+)-sensitive anion conductance (via CaCC) is compartmentalized in both CF and normal airway epithelia, with basolaterally released Ca(2+)(i) failing to activate CaCC in both epithelia.

In human embryonic kidney (HEK) cells stably transfected with green fluorescent protein targeted to the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), elevation of intracellular Ca2+ ([Ca2+]i) altered ER morphology, making it appear punctate. Electron microscopy revealed that these punctate structures represented circular and branched rearrangements of the endoplasmic reticulum, but did not involve obvious swelling or pathological fragmentation. Activation of protein kinase C with phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA), prevented the effects of ionomycin on ER structure without affecting the elevation of [Ca2+]i. These results suggest that protein kinase C activation alters cytoplasmic or ER components underlying the effects of high [Ca2+]i on ER structure. Treatment of HEK cells with PMA also reduced the size of the thapsigargin-sensitive Ca2+ pool and inhibited Ca2+ entry in response to thapsigargin. Thus, protein kinase C activation has multiple actions on the calcium storage and signalling function of the endoplasmic reticulum in HEK cells: (1) reduced intracellular Ca2+ storage capacity, (2) inhibition of capacitative Ca2+ entry, and (3) protection of the endoplasmic reticulum against the effects of high [Ca2+]i.

Treatment of NIH 3T3 cells with cytochalasin D (10 μm, 1 h at 37 °C) disrupted the actin cytoskeleton and changed the cells from a planar, extended morphology, to a rounded shape. Calcium mobilization by ATP or by platelet-derived growth factor was abolished, while the ability of thapsigargin (2 μm) to empty calcium stores and activate calcium influx was unaffected. Similar experiments with nocodazole to depolymerize the tubulin network yielded identical results. Platelet-derived growth factor induced an increase in inositol phosphates, and this increase was undiminished in the presence of cytochalasin D. Therefore, the blockade of agonist responses by this drug does not result from decreased phospholipase C. Injection of inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP3) released calcium to the same extent in control and cytochalasin D-treated cells. Confocal microscopic studies revealed a significant rearrangement of the endoplasmic reticulum after cytochalasin D treatment. Thus, disruption of the cytoskeleton blocks agonist-elicited [Ca2+] i mobilization, but this effect does not result from a lower calcium storage capacity, impaired function of the IP3 receptor, or diminished phospholipase C activity. We suggest that cytoskeletal disruption alters the spatial relationship between phospholipase C and IP3 receptors, impairing phospholipase C-dependent calcium signaling. Capacitative calcium entry was not altered under these conditions, indicating that the coupling between depletion of intracellular calcium stores and calcium entry does not depend on a precise structural relationship between intracellular stores and plasma membrane calcium channels.

The Ca2+-ATPase inhibitor, thapsigargin, activated Ca2+ entry into pancreatic acinar cells, a process known as capacitative calcium entry. In cells loaded with the calcium chelator BAPTA, the transient Ca2+ release was blunted and the rise of [Ca2+]i on readdition of Ca2+ was slowed. However, the steady-state [Ca2+]i due to Ca2+ entry was substantially augmented compared with control cells. This indicates that [Ca2+]i exerts a negative feedback on Ca2+ entry from a compartment buffered by BAPTA and separated from the bulk of cytoplasmic Ca2+. This interaction probably occurs close to the calcium channel where [Ca2+] is higher than in the bulk of the cytoplasm. In support of this interpretation, the slower Ca2+ chelator, EGTA, also blunted the release of Ca2+ and slowed the rise of the sustained [Ca2+]i phase but failed to augment steady-state [Ca2+]i. In contrast, Ca2+ entry in NIH 3T3 cells was characterized by a transient rise of [Ca2+]i that decays to near prestimulus levels. This decay in Ca2+ entry also results from negative feedback by Ca2+ because the decrease in Ca2+ entry was reversed by incubation in a Ca2+-deficient medium. However, unlike its effects in acinar cells, BAPTA neither augmented steady-state [Ca2+]i nor prevented the inactivation of entry. Rather, in BAPTA-loaded cells, [Ca2+]i failed to increase substantially suggesting that negative regulation by Ca2+ may occur at a site distinct from the cytoplasmic compartment and inaccessible to cytoplasmic BAPTA. These two distinct types of feedback behavior may indicate subtypes of store-operated calcium channels expressed in different cells or a single type of channel which is differentially regulated in a cell type-specific manner.

In NIH 3T3 cells, treatment with phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) reduced the release of Ca2+ by thapsigargin, but did not activate Ca2+ entry; Ca2+ influx was triggered after the residual pool was emptied by thapsigargin, and this Ca2+ influx was similar to that induced by thapsigargin in control cells. The effect of PMA was due to decreased Ca2+ storage because 1) Ca2+ release by ionomycin was similarly affected by PMA, and in both control and PMA-treated cells, ionomycin did not release Ca2+ following thapsigargin treatment; 2) PMA reduced 45Ca2+ accumulation; and 3) studies with Ca2+ indicator compartmentalized into the endoplasmic reticulum indicated that stored Ca2+ was reduced by PMA. Although PMA did not itself activate Ca2+ entry, PMA potentiated Ca2+ entry with low concentrations of cyclopiazonic acid. With a somewhat higher concentration of cyclopiazonic acid, PMA had no effect on calcium entry. Thus, protein kinase C has two apparent actions on calcium signaling in NIH 3T3 cells: 1) reduced intracellular Ca2+ storage capacity and 2) augmented calcium entry with submaximal intracellular Ca2+ pool depletion. These actions indicate a complex and potentially important role for the protein kinase C system in calcium homeostasis in this cell type.