Increase of cGMP, cADP-ribose and inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate preceding Ca2+ transients in fertilization of sea urchin eggs

Transient increases, or oscillations, of cytoplasmic free Ca2+ concentration, [Ca2+]i, occur during fertilization of animal egg cells. In sea urchin eggs, the increased Ca2+ is derived from intracellular stores, but the principal signaling and release system involved has not yet been agreed upon. Possible candidates are the inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor/channel (IP3R) and the ryanodine receptor/channel (RyR) which is activated by cGMP or cyclic ADP-ribose (cADPR). Thus, it seemed that direct measurements of the likely second messenger candidates during sea urchin fertilization would be essential to an understanding of the Ca2+ signaling pathway. We therefore measured the cGMP, cADPR and inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP3) contents of sea urchin eggs during the early stages of fertilization and compared these with the [Ca2+]i rise in the presence or absence of an inhibitor against soluble guanylate cyclase. We obtained three major experimental results: (1) cytosolic cGMP levels began to rise first, followed by cADPR and IP3 levels, all almost doubling before the explosive increase of [Ca2+]i; (2) most of the rise in IP3 occurred after the Ca2+ peak; IP3 production could also be induced by the artificial elevation of [Ca2+]i, suggesting the large increase in IP3 is a consequence, rather than a cause, of the Ca2+ transient; (3) the measured increase in cGMP was produced by the soluble guanylate cyclase of eggs, and inhibition of soluble guanylate cyclase of eggs diminished the production of both cADPR and IP3 and the [Ca2+]i increase without the delay of Ca2+ transients. Taken together, these results suggest that the RyR pathway involving cGMP and cADPR is not solely responsible for the initiating event, but contributes to the Ca2+ transients by stimulating IP3 production during fertilization of sea urchin eggs.