Phospholipase Cβlb associates with a Shank3 complex at the cardiac sarcolemma

Activation of the heterotrimeric G protein Gq causes cardiomyocyte hypertrophy in vivo and in cell models. Our previous studies have shown that responses to activated Gq in cardiomyocytes are mediated exclusively by phospholipase Cβ1b (PLCβ1b), because only this PLCβ subtype localizes at the cardiac sarcolemma. In the current study, we investigated the proteins involved in targeting PLCβ 1b to the sarcolemma in neonatal rat cardiomyocytes. PLCβ 1b, but not PLCβ1a, coimmunoprecipitated with the high‐MW scaffolding protein SH3 and ankyrin repeat protein 3 (Shank3), as well as the known Shank3‐interacting protein α‐fodrin. The 32‐aa splice‐variant‐specific C‐terminal tail of PLCβ 1b also associated with Shank3 and α‐fodrin, indicating that PLCβ 1b binds via the C‐terminal sequence. Shank3 colocalized with PLCβ 1b at the sarcolemma, and both proteins were enriched in the light membrane fractions. Knockdown of Shank3 using siRNA reduced PLC activation and downstream hypertrophic responses, demonstrating the importance of sarcolemmal localization for PLC signaling. These data indicate that PLCβ 1b associates with a Shank3 complex at the cardiac sarcolemma via its splice‐variant‐specific C‐terminal tail. Sarcolemmmal localization is central to PLC activation and subsequent downstream signaling following Gq‐coupled receptor activation.—Grubb, D. R., Iliades, P., Cooley, N., Yu, Y. L., Luo, J., Filtz, T. M., Woodcock, E. A. Phospholipase Cβ1b associates with a Shank3 complex at the cardiac sarcolemma. FASEB J. 25, 1040–1047 (2011). www.fasebj.org