Stimulation of phosphatidate synthesis in endothelial cells in response to P2-receptor activation. Evidence for phospholipase C and phospholipase D involvement, phosphatidate and diacylglycerol interconversion and the role of protein kinase C.

To investigate the stimulation of phosphatidic acid formation in bovine aortic endothelial cells by P2-purinergic agonists, we labelled AG4762 cells with [32P]P1 and stimulated in the presence of butanol. Under these conditions phospholipase D generated [32P]phosphatidylbutanol, whereas the [32P]phosphatidic acid from phospholipase C and diacylglycerol kinase was unchanged. The action of various purinergic agonists on both [32P]phosphatidic acid and [32P]phosphatidylbutanol was consistent with the presence of a P2Y receptor. The stimulation of phospholipase D was dependent on extracellular Ca2+ and was mostly transient (completed within 3 min), whereas the initial stimulation of phospholipase C was independent of extracellular Ca2+, followed by a Ca(2+)-dependent phase. The agonist stimulation of phospholipase D was dependent on protein kinase C, as judged by its sensitivity to the relatively selective protein kinase C inhibitor Ro 31-8220. These results show that purinergic-receptor-mediated stimulation of phosphatidic acid has three phases: an initial Ca(2+)-independent stimulation of phospholipase C, an early but transient Ca(2+)- and protein kinase C-dependent stimulation of phospholipase D, and a sustained Ca(2+)-dependent stimulation of phospholipase C. Using propranolol to inhibit phosphatidate phosphohydrolase, we provide evidence that phosphatidic acid derived from purinergic-receptor-mediated stimulation of the phospholipase C/diacylglycerol kinase route can itself be converted back into diacylglycerol.