Glycosylphosphatidylinositol is involved in the membrane attachment of proteins in granules of chromaffin cells.

Incubation at 37 degrees C or treatment of granule membranes of chromaffin cells with Staphylococcus aureus phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C converted from an amphiphilic to a hydrophilic form two proteins with molecular masses of 82 and 68 kDa respectively. Their release is time- and enzyme-concentration-dependent. We showed that they were immunoreactive with an anti-(cross-reacting determinant) antibody known to be revealed only after removal of a diacylglycerol anchor. Furthermore, the action of HNO2 suggests the presence of a non-acetylated glucosamine residue in the determinant. This is one of the first reports suggesting that a glycosylphosphatidylinositol anchor might exist in membranes other than the plasma membrane. We showed that the 68 kDa protein is probably not the subunit of dopamine (3,4-dihydroxyphenethylamine) beta-hydroxylase, an enzyme present in granules in both soluble and membrane-associated forms.