Distinct effects of N-ethylmaleimide on formyl peptide- and cyclopiazonic acid-induced Ca2+ signals through thiol modification in neutrophils

In this study, we demonstrate that N-ethylmaleimide (NEM), a cell permeable thiol-alkylating agent, enhanced the [Ca2+]i rise caused by stimulation with cyclopiazonic acid (CPA), a sarcoplasmic-endoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-ATPase inhibitor, in rat neutrophils. In addition, NEM attenuated the formyl-Met-Leu-Phe (fMLP)-induced [Ca2+]i rise whether NEM was added to cells prior to or after fMLP stimulation. Moreover, application of NEM after fMLP activation in the absence of external Ca2+ inhibited the Ca2+ signal upon addition of Ca2+ to the medium. Similar patterns were also obtained by using 5,5′-dithiobis-(2-nitrobenzoic acid) (DTNB), a cell impermeable dithiol-oxidizing agent, which replaced NEM in the CPA- and fMLP-induced [Ca2+]i rise experiments. Treatment with dithiothreitol (DTT), a cell permeable dithiol-reducing agent, N-acetyl-l-cysteine (NAC), a cell permeable monothiol-reducing agent, and tris-(2-carboxyethyl)phosphine (TCEP), a cell impermeable reductant without a thiol group, all rescued the fMLP-induced Ca2+ signal from NEM. Rat neutrophils express the mRNA encoding for transient receptor potential (TRP) C6, inositol trisphosphate receptor (IP3R) 2 and IP3R3. NEM had no effect on the mitochondrial membrane potential. NEM could restore the polarization and F-actin accumulation of fMLP-treated cells to those of the control. In the absence of external Ca2+, NEM rendered the CPA-induced [Ca2+]i elevation persistently but inhibited the fMLP-induced Ca2+ spike, which was reversed by tris-(2-cyanoethyl)phosphine (TCP), a cell permeable reductant without a thiol group. DTNB did not affect the Ca2+ spike caused by fMLP. These results indicate that through protein thiol oxidation, NEM affects the receptor-activated and the store depletion-derived Ca2+ signals in an opposing manner.