Molecular diversity and double regulatory mechanism of activation of phospholipase C in rat brain

Whereas evidence for a G protein-dependent stimulation of phospholipase C (PLC) is abundant, reports on the inhibition of PLC through a G protein-mediated pathway have only recently begun to appear. In the present study, cerebral cortex membranes were chosen since they have a readily measurable Gpp[NH]p and Ca2+-stimulated PLC activity. Nanomolar concentrations of Gpp[NH]p, a hydrolysis-resistant GTP analogue, inhibited basal inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (IP3) production, with a maximum inhibition of 25% at 10 nM. Increasing the concentrations of Gpp[NH]p to over 10 nM resulted in a reversal of the inhibitory effect and onset of stimulation of IP3 production. GDPbetaS as a G protein inhibitor and U-73122 as a putative PLC-beta inhibitor had little effect on basal IP3 production at 100 microM and 1 microM, respectively. However, GDPbetaS and U-73122 completely antagonized both the inhibition and the stimulation of IP3 production produced by lower and higher concentrations, respectively, of Gpp[NH]p. Rat cortical membranes expressed a greater amount of PLC-beta1. These data suggest that PLC-beta1 isozymes may be regulated by both inhibitory and stimulatory G protein-mediated mechanisms.