1. Ca2+ Homeostasis by Plasma Membrane Ca2+ ATPase (PMCA) 1 Is Essential for the Development of DP Thymocytes
- Author
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David Beckmann, Kristina Langnaese, Anna Gottfried, Johannes Hradsky, Kerry Tedford, Nikhil Tiwari, Ulrich Thomas, Klaus-Dieter Fischer, and Mark Korthals
- Subjects
PMCA1 ,PMCA4 ,Ca2+ homeostasis ,T cell development ,thymocytes ,DN to DP transition ,Biology (General) ,QH301-705.5 ,Chemistry ,QD1-999 - Abstract
The strength of Ca2+ signaling is a hallmark of T cell activation, yet the role of Ca2+ homeostasis in developing T cells before expressing a mature T cell receptor is poorly understood. We aimed to unveil specific functions of the two plasma membrane Ca2+ ATPases expressed in T cells, PMCA1 and PMCA4. On a transcriptional and protein level we found that PMCA4 was expressed at low levels in CD4−CD8− double negative (DN) thymocytes and was even downregulated in subsequent stages while PMCA1 was present throughout development and upregulated in CD4+CD8+ double positive (DP) thymocytes. Mice with a targeted deletion of Pmca1 in DN3 thymocytes had an almost complete block of DP thymocyte development with an accumulation of DN4 thymocytes but severely reduced numbers of CD8+ immature single positive (ISP) thymocytes. The DN4 thymocytes of these mice showed strongly elevated basal cytosolic Ca2+ levels and a pre-mature CD5 expression, but in contrast to the DP thymocytes they were only mildly prone to apoptosis. Surprisingly, mice with a germline deletion of Pmca4 did not show any signs of altered progression through the developmental thymocyte stages, nor altered Ca2+ homeostasis throughout this process. PMCA1 is, therefore, non-redundant in keeping cellular Ca2+ levels low in the early thymocyte development required for the DN to DP transition.
- Published
- 2023
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