Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 14, 2026

07:45
Imaging Calcium in Drosophila at Egg Activation
Published on: August 6, 2016
Cyclic ADP-ribose-gated Ca2+ release in sea urchin eggs requires an elevated
1Department of Physiology, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia 30322, USA.
The Journal of Biological Chemistry
|July 4, 1997
Summary
Cyclic ADP-ribose (cADPr) triggers slow intracellular calcium release in sea urchin eggs, requiring a rise in calcium levels for full activity. This calcium feedback mechanism is essential for cADPr-mediated calcium release.
Area of Science:
- Cellular Biology
- Biochemistry
Background:
- Cyclic ADP-ribose (cADPr) is known to mobilize intracellular calcium (Ca2+) stores.
- The precise mechanism by which cADPr initiates Ca2+ release remains unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the kinetics of Ca2+ release mediated by cADPr in sea urchin eggs.
- To elucidate the role of calcium concentration in cADPr-gated Ca2+ release.
Main Methods:
- Utilized caged cADPr to study Ca2+ transient kinetics in intact sea urchin eggs.
- Compared cADPr-induced Ca2+ release with that induced by caged inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate.
- Manipulated intracellular Ca2+ levels using step-elevations and Ca2+ buffers.
Main Results:
- Photolytic release of cADPr induced a slow Ca2+ release with a delay of several hundred milliseconds.
- In contrast, caged inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate caused immediate and faster Ca2+ release.
- The delay in cADPr-induced Ca2+ release was abolished by pre-elevated Ca2+ levels and prolonged by Ca2+ buffers.
Conclusions:
- The slow onset of cADPr-induced Ca2+ release is not due to slow channel gating.
- A rise in intracellular Ca2+ from resting levels is necessary for significant cADPr activity.
- Positive calcium feedback is required for full Ca2+ release mediated by cADPr in sea urchin eggs.
Related Concept Videos
Intracellular Signaling Cascades
Once a ligand binds to a receptor, the signal is transmitted through the membrane and into the cytoplasm. The continuation of a signal in this manner is called signal transduction. Signal transduction only occurs with cell-surface receptors, which cannot interact with most components of the cell, such as DNA. Only internal receptors can interact directly with DNA in the nucleus to initiate protein synthesis. When a ligand binds to its receptor, conformational changes occur that affect the...
Fertilization
During fertilization, an egg and sperm cell fuse to create a new diploid structure. In humans, the process occurs once the egg has been released from the ovary, and travels into the fallopian tubes. The process requires several key steps: 1) sperm present in the genital tract must locate the egg; 2) once there, sperm need to release enzymes to help them burrow through the protective zona pellucida of the egg; and 3) the membranes of a single sperm cell and egg must fuse, with the sperm...
Amplifying Signals via Second Messengers
Many receptor binding ligands are hydrophilic; they do not cross the cell membrane but bind to cell-surface receptors. Thus, their message must be relayed by second messengers present in the cell cytoplasm. There are several second messenger pathways, each with its own way of relaying information. For example, the G protein-coupled receptors can activate both phosphoinositol and cyclic AMP (cAMP) second messenger pathways. The phosphoinositol pathway is active when the receptor induces...
IP3/DAG Signaling Pathway
Membrane lipids such as phosphatidylinositol (PI) are precursors for several membrane-bound and soluble second messengers. Specific kinases phosphorylate PI and produce phosphorylated inositol phospholipids. One such inositol phospholipids are the phosphatidylinositol-4,5 bisphosphate [PI(4,5)P2], present in the inner half of the lipid bilayer. Upon ligand binding, GPCR stimulates Gq proteins to turn on phospholipase Cꞵ. Activated phospholipase Cꞵ cleaves PI(4,5)P2 and produces two-second...
Feedback Regulation of Calcium Concentration
Calcium is an essential signaling molecule required for various cellular functions. Calcium pumps and ion channels on cell and organellar membranes, such as those on the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), regulate calcium concentrations inside the cell. They remain closed, keeping the cytosolic calcium levels low at a resting state.
Various transmembrane receptors, such as G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), elicit a response to extracellular signals by increasing cytosolic calcium. Activated GPCRs...
Various transmembrane receptors, such as G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), elicit a response to extracellular signals by increasing cytosolic calcium. Activated GPCRs...
Calmodulin-dependent Signaling
Calmodulin (CaM) is a calcium-binding protein in eukaryotes that controls various calcium-regulated cellular processes. It has four calcium-binding sites that bind calcium to form the calcium-calmodulin ( Ca2+-CaM) complex. GPCR stimulation increases the calcium levels in the cells that bind to CaM and induces a conformational change.
The Ca2+-CaM complex does not have enzymatic activity by itself. Instead, the complex binds downstream target proteins, including membrane proteins or enzymes,...
The Ca2+-CaM complex does not have enzymatic activity by itself. Instead, the complex binds downstream target proteins, including membrane proteins or enzymes,...

