Calcium modulates the lipid dynamics of rat hepatocyte plasma membranes by direct and indirect mechanisms.

Calcium ion decreases the motional freedom of lipid molecules in isolated rat hepatocyte plasma membranes and in sonicated dispersions (liposomes) of the membrane lipid. The decrease in lipid fluidity was monitored by estimation of the fluorescence polarization of 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene. At least two processes are involved in the mode of action of the cation. The first is direct, i.e., observed on addition of calcium to the liposomes, relatively rapid, with a half-time of 10-15 at 37 degrees C, proportional to the calcium concentration in the range 0-4 mM, and readily reversed on addition of excess EDTA. The second mechanism is indirected and requires the presence of the membrane proteins. It occurs relatively slowly, with a half-time of 75 min at 37 degrees C, tends to plateau with a calcium half-saturation concentration of approximately 1 mM, is of greater magnitude than the direct effect, and cannot be reversed on chelation of calcium by EDTA. Moreover, the indirect effect is specific for Ca2+ as compared to other divalent cations and it results in changes in the lipid composition. Stimulation of phospholipase A activity is likely but does not account for the change in fluidity. The direct action of calcium is ascribed to binding to the lipid bilayer, whereas the indirect action probably results from modulation of membrane-bound enzymes which can alter the lipid composition. The effects of calcium on the membrane lipid fluidity may underly certain of its regulatory actions on membrane functions.

Effect of stimulation with light on synthesis and release of acetylcholine by an isolated mammalian retina.

1. Acetylcholine synthesis and release were studied in rabbit retinas isolated from the eye and incubated under conditions in which their electrophysiological function is maintained. ACh synthesized from exogenous [14C] choline appeared in the retina at an initial rate of 16 nmol/g wet wt-h. Incorporation of labeled choline into ACh was accelerated by stimulation of the retina with light. 2. Retinas incubated for 40 min in the presence of labeled choline and then superfused with a medium containing an anticholinesterase released radioactive ACh into the perfusate. The rate of release increased approximately fourfold during stimulation with light. 3. When retinas were incubated with labeled choline and then superfused with medium containing no pharmacological agents, stimulation with light caused an increased release of choline into the perfusate. The recovery of labeled choline following stimulation was enhanced by hemicholinium 3. 4. Neither the light-induced release of ACh (in perfusate containing anticholinesterase) nor the light-induced release of choline (in perfusate containing no anticholinesterase) occurred if the perfusate contained 20 mM Mg2+ and 0.2 mM Ca2+. 5. Synthesis of ACh by the retina at a high rate, acceleration of choline incorporation by stimulation, and Ca2+-dependent release of ACh by stimulation are each presumptive evidence that the retina contains a cholinergic synapse. If this presumption is correct, one such synapse may be of an amacrine or bipolar cell since these cells can depolarize during illumination, whereas the predominant response of receptor and horizontal cells is hyperpolarization.

Lipid dynamics and lipid-protein interactions in rat hepatocyte plasma membranes.

Rat hepatocyte plasma membranes were isolated and examined by differential scanning calorimetry and by steady state fluorescence polarization of 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene, 12-anthroyl stearate, and 2-anthroyl stearate. Calorimetry of the intact membranes revealed a reversible lipid thermotropic transition with lower and upper critical temperatures of 18 degrees and 31 degrees C, respectively. The transition was also observed in lipid extracts of the membrane, both dried and rehydrated. The transition enthalpies estimated for intact membranes, dried membrane lipids, and rehydrated lipids, respectively, were approximately 0.3, 1.2 to 1.4, and 0.5 to 0.7 cal/g of lipid. The transition observed in the native membranes is broad and of low enthalpy, owing in part to the relatively high cholesterol content and to protein-lipid interactions. Fluorescence polarization studies detect the lower critical temperature of the transition in the membranes and in sonicated dispersions of the membrane lipid. Arrhenius studies of membrane 5'-nucleotidase and alkaline phosphatase give two-slope plots with breakpoints, respectively, of approximately 17 degrees and 26 degrees C. These break points and others reported for a number of hepatocyte membrane protein activities cluster uniformly at either the lower or the upper critical temperature of the lipid transition observed by differential scanning calorimetry.