<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><?xml-stylesheet type="text/xsl" href="static/style.xsl"?><OAI-PMH xmlns="http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xsi:schemaLocation="http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/ http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/OAI-PMH.xsd"><responseDate>2026-09-23T10:12:05Z</responseDate><request verb="GetRecord" identifier="oai:www.repository.cam.ac.uk:1810/374317" metadataPrefix="uketd_dc">https://api.repository.cam.ac.uk/server/oai/request</request><GetRecord><record><header><identifier>oai:www.repository.cam.ac.uk:1810/374317</identifier><datestamp>2024-10-03T00:45:48Z</datestamp><setSpec>com_1810_221813</setSpec><setSpec>com_1810_256062</setSpec><setSpec>col_1810_221814</setSpec></header><metadata><uketd_dc:uketddc xmlns:uketd_dc="http://naca.central.cranfield.ac.uk/ethos-oai/2.0/" xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:dcterms="http://purl.org/dc/terms/" xmlns:uketdterms="http://naca.central.cranfield.ac.uk/ethos-oai/terms/" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xmlns:doc="http://www.lyncode.com/xoai" xsi:schemaLocation="http://naca.central.cranfield.ac.uk/ethos-oai/2.0/ http://naca.central.cranfield.ac.uk/ethos-oai/2.0/uketd_dc.xsd">
   <dc:title>Dual regulation of inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptors by inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate and phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate</dc:title>
   <dc:identifier xsi:type="dcterms:DOI">https://doi.org/10.17863/CAM.112415</dc:identifier>
   <dc:creator>Ivanova, Adelina Adelin</dc:creator>
   <uketdterms:advisor>Ladds, Graham</uketdterms:advisor>
   <dcterms:abstract>Ca&lt;sup>2+&lt;/sup> is a universal and effective intracellular messenger, which holds a central role in the regulation of a vast array of cellular processes. Inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptors (IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>Rs) are key signal integrators, which transform extracellular stimuli into intracellular Ca&lt;sup>2+&lt;/sup> signals. Only immobilised IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>Rs, licensed by association with KRas-induced actin-interacting protein (KRAP), can respond through IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>-mediated Ca&lt;sup>2+&lt;/sup> release. These licensed IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>Rs are tethered on actin near membrane contact sites (MCS) between the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and plasma membrane (PM), where store-operated Ca&lt;sup>2+&lt;/sup> entry (SOCE) takes place. Uncovering the mechanisms that govern IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>R regulation is an essential element in understanding the spatial and temporal patterns of Ca&lt;sup>2+&lt;/sup> signalling.

Phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub>) is a minor, but functionally diverse lipid at the PM. In the canonical Ca&lt;sup>2+&lt;/sup> signalling cascade, activation of PM-resident receptors such as G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) causes phospholipase C (PLC) to hydrolyse PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub>, producing inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>) which diffuses through the cytoplasm to IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>Rs, enabling Ca&lt;sup>2+&lt;/sup> release from the ER. The stimulus intensity governs the amount of IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub> produced and in consequence, the extent of IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>R activation, starting from brief, localised Ca&lt;sup>2+&lt;/sup> puffs, and progressing to cell-wide global Ca&lt;sup>2+&lt;/sup> waves. Tight control of the transition from local to global Ca&lt;sup>2+&lt;/sup> signals is central to the downstream consequences of receptor activation. PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub>, with its essential roles in F-actin nucleation and formation of the SOCE complex at ER-PM MCS, is thus a potential regulator of IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>R activity in addition to its role in providing IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>.

Towards exploring possible additional roles of PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub> in regulating Ca&lt;sup>2+&lt;/sup> signalling via IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>Rs, I have assessed three strategies for selective depletion of PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub> at the PM: pharmacological inhibition of the synthesis of phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate (PI(4)P), the precursor of PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub>, gene silencing of the 5-kinases that convert PI(4)P to PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub>, and expression of a rapamycin-inducible heterodimerization system that allows translocation of a PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub>-specific 5-phosphatase (herein referred to as the ‘’5-PTASE system’’) to the PM. Pharmacological or siRNA-mediated inhibition of the relevant kinases in the PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub> metabolic cycle did not successfully attenuate Ca&lt;sup>2+&lt;/sup> signals in response to histamine in HeLa cells, suggesting that PLC-sensitive PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub> pools remain available after treatment. On the contrary, I have shown that the 5-PTASE system caused global depletion of PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub> at the PM using a genetically encoded, PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub>-selective fluorescent sensor, and showed that Ca&lt;sup>2+&lt;/sup> signals in response to histamine in HeLa cells were attenuated. The method thereby allows acute and near-complete depletion of PM-associated PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub>.

Using the validated 5-PTASE system for PM PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub> depletion, and uniform delivery of i-IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub> to the cytosol via uncaging of the exogenously supplied photolabile caged ci-IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>, revealed that PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub> depletion significantly reduced the frequency of Ca&lt;sup>2+&lt;/sup> puffs in HeLa and HEK293 cells without affecting puff amplitude or kinetics. PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub> regulation was confirmed to extend to all three IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>R subtypes. As PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub> depletion may lead to reduction of basal IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub> levels, I employed two complementary approaches to assess whether a loss of basal IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub> is responsible for the reduced Ca&lt;sup>2+&lt;/sup> puff frequency. Reducing basal IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub> levels by inhibiting PLC activity with U73122 or by overexpressing cytosolic IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub> kinase C (IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>KC) did not reduce the frequency of Ca&lt;sup>2+&lt;/sup> puffs evoked by photolysis of ci-IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>. I conclude that PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub> regulates IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>R activity in parallel to providing IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>. 

As PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub> levels at the PM are dynamically controlled during signalling when PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub> is consumed to produce IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>, I developed methods to uncouple stimulation of GPCRs that evoke IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub> formation from delivery of IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub> to IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>Rs while retaining opportunities to stimulate IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>Rs directly. I expressed IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>KC to intercept endogenous IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub> and photolyzed ci-IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub> to enable independent activation of GPCRs and delivery of i-IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub> to IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>Rs. Activation of H1 receptors in HeLa cells or M3 muscarinic receptors in HEK293 cells in the presence of IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>KC reduced the frequency of Ca&lt;sup>2+&lt;/sup> puffs evoked exogenously by photolysis of ci-IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub> without affecting puff amplitude or kinetics. This inhibition was entirely mediated by PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub> depletion. PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub> depletion significantly reduced the likelihood of Ca&lt;sup>2+&lt;/sup> puffs progressing to a global Ca&lt;sup>2+&lt;/sup> signal, but once the transition threshold was reached, the amplitude of the global signal was indistinguishable in the presence and absence of PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub>. PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub> depletion did not affect the subcellular distribution of IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>Rs. I suggest that PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub> primes IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>Rs to respond to IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub> by partially occupying the receptor’s IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>-binding site. Increasing PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub> levels in the PM did not further activate IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>Rs, suggesting that basal PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub> achieves the maximal effect. It is unclear whether this occurs with all IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>-binding sites occupied by PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub> or whether physical barriers constrain the number of sites that can be occupied. 

My results establish that PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub> primes IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>Rs to respond, and that as GPCRs stimulate IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub> formation they also deplete PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub>, relieving this priming stimulus and resetting IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>R sensitivity. Dual regulation of IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub>Rs by PI(4,5)P&lt;sub>2&lt;/sub> and IP&lt;sub>3&lt;/sub> through GPCRs thus controls the transition from local to global Ca&lt;sup>2+&lt;/sup> signals.</dcterms:abstract>
   <uketdterms:institution>University of Cambridge</uketdterms:institution>
   <dcterms:issued>2024-06-08</dcterms:issued>
   <dc:type>Thesis</dc:type>
   <uketdterms:qualificationlevel>Doctoral</uketdterms:qualificationlevel>
   <uketdterms:qualificationname>Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)</uketdterms:qualificationname>
   <dc:language>eng</dc:language>
   <dcterms:isReferencedBy xsi:type="dcterms:URI">https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/374317</dcterms:isReferencedBy>
   <dc:identifier xsi:type="dcterms:URI">https://apollo8-f-pro.lib.cam.ac.uk/bitstreams/37edb92f-4a98-4b67-8e41-fb1da0cb17e5/download</dc:identifier>
   <uketdterms:checksum xsi:type="uketdterms:MD5">b81a61e3d1494904f49e0114f1d5b495</uketdterms:checksum>
   <dcterms:license>https://apollo8-f-pro.lib.cam.ac.uk/bitstreams/85d0f03d-ef0e-4e8e-b460-802ab1fc510c/download</dcterms:license>
   <uketdterms:checksum xsi:type="uketdterms:MD5">87eda9de84448d1f82354d60eee3eb5f</uketdterms:checksum>
   <dc:rights>https://www.rioxx.net/licenses/all-rights-reserved/</dc:rights>
   <dc:subject>Ca2+</dc:subject>
   <dc:subject>endoplasmic reticulum</dc:subject>
   <dc:subject>IP3R</dc:subject>
   <dc:subject>PI(4,5)P2</dc:subject>
   <dc:subject>rapamycin</dc:subject>
   <dc:subject>signalling</dc:subject>
</uketd_dc:uketddc>
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