Signal Transduction Pathways Coupled to a P2U Receptor in Neuroblastoma × Glioma (NG108‐15) Cells

: Extracellular ATP has neurotransmitter‐like properties in the CNS and PNS that are mediated by a cell‐surface P2 purinergic receptor. In the present study, we have extensively characterized the signal transduction pathways that are associated with activation of a P2U receptor in a cultured neuroblastoma × glioma hybrid cell line (NG108‐15 cells). The addition of ≥1 μM ATP to NG108‐15 cells caused a transient increase in [Ca2+]i that was inhibited by 40% when extracellular calcium was chelated by EGTA. ATP concentrations ≥500 μM also elicited a sustained increase in [Ca2+]i that was inhibited when extracellular calcium was chelated by EGTA. The increase in [Ca2+]i elicited by ATP occurred concomitantly with the hydrolysis off [32P]‐phosphatidylinositol 4,5‐bisphosphates and an increase in the level of inositol 1,4,5‐trisphosphate. ATP also caused a time‐ and dose‐dependent increase in levels of [3H]inositol monophosphates in lithium‐treated cells. Separation of the inositol monophosphate isomers by ion chromatography revealed a specific increase in the level of inositol 4‐monophosphate. The magnitude of the increase in [Ca2+]i elicited by ATP correlated with the concentration of the fully ionized form of ATP (ATP4‐) in the medium and not with the concentration of magnesium‐ATP (MgATP2‐). Similar to ATP, UTP also induced polyphosphoinositide breakdown, inositol phosphate formation, and an increase in [Ca2+]i. ADP, ITP, TTP, GTP, ATP‐γS, 2‐methylthio ATP, β,γ‐imidoATP or 3′‐O‐(4‐benzoyl)benzoylATP, but not CTP, AMP, β,γ‐methylene ATP, or adenosine, also caused an increase in [Ca2+]i. In cells labeled with [32P]Pi or [14C]‐arachidonic acid, ATP caused a transient increase in levels of labeled phosphatidic acids, but had no effect on levels of arachidonic acid. The increase in phosphatidic acid levels elicited by ATP apparently was not due to activation of a phospholipase D because ATP did not induce the formation of phosphatidylethanol in [14C]myristic acid‐labeled cells incubated in the presence of ethanol. These findings support the hypothesis that a P2 nucleotide receptor in NG108‐15 cells is coupled to a signal transduction pathway involving the activation of a phospholipase C and a plasma membrane calcium channel, but not the activation of phospholipases A2 and D.