It is thought that calcium and/or magnesium may play important roles in polymorphonuclear (PMN) leukocyte functions such as chemotaxis, adhesion and phagocytosis. Yet, a clear understanding of the biological roles of these ions has awaited the development of techniques which permit a selective alteration of intracellular ion concentrations. Recently, treatment of cells with the ionophore A23187 has been used to alter intracellular divalent cation concentrations. This ionophore is a lipid soluble antibiotic produced by Streptomyces chartreusensis that complexes with both calcium and magnesium (3) and is believed to carry these ions across biological membranes (4). Biochemical investigations of human PMN leukocytes demonstrate that cells treated with A23187 and extracellular calcium release their lysosomal enzymes into the extracellular medium without rupturing and releasing their soluble cytoplasmic enzymes (5,6). The aim of the present study and and a companion report (7) was to investigate the structural changes that occur in leukocytes during ionophore-induced lysosomal enzyme release.
p53 Increases Intra-Cellular Calcium Release by Transcriptional Regulation of Calcium Channel TRPC6 in GaQ3-Treated Cancer Cells
