skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Cellular Trafficking of Phospholamban and Formation of Functional Sarcoplasmic Reticulum During Myocyte DIfferentiation

Journal Article · · American Journal of Physiology. Cell Physiology, 292(6):C2084-2094

The sarco/endoplasmic reticulum Ca-ATPase (SERCA) family members are transmembrane proteins that play an essential role in regulating intracellular calcium levels. Phospholamban (PLB), a 52 amino acid phosphoprotein, regulates SERCA activity in adult heart and skeletal muscle. Using the C2C12 myocyte cell line, we find endogenous PLB constitutively expressed in both myoblasts and myotubes, whereas SERCA expression coincides with activation of the differentiation program. PLB has a punctuate distribution in myoblasts changing to a reticular distribution in myotubes where it colocalizes with SERCAs. To examine the distribution and dynamics of PLB and SERCA, we expressed fluorescent fusion proteins (GFP, CFP, and YFP) of PLB and SERCA in myoblasts. Coexpressed PLB and SERCA localize to distinct cellular compartments in myoblasts but begin to colocalize as cells differentiate. Fluorescence Recovery After Photobleaching (FRAP) studies show different recovery patterns for each protein in myoblasts confirming their localization to distinct compartments. To extend these studies, we created stable cell lines expressing O6-alkylguanine-DNA alkyltransferase (AGT) fusions with PLB or SERCA to track their localization as myocytes differentiate. These experiments demonstrate that PLB localizes to punctate vesicles in myoblasts and adopts a reticular distribution that coincides with SERCA distribution after differentiation. Colocalization experiments indicate that a subset of PLB in myoblasts colocalizes with endosomes, Golgi, and the plasma membrane however PLB also localizes to other, as yet unidentified vesicles. Our results indicate that differentiation plays a critical role in regulating PLB distribution to ensure its colocalization within the same cellular compartment as SERCA in differentiated cells. The presence and altered distribution of PLB in undifferentiated myoblasts raises the possibility that this protein has additional functions distinct from SERCA regulation.

Research Organization:
Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE
DOE Contract Number:
AC05-76RL01830
OSTI ID:
909471
Report Number(s):
PNNL-SA-51295; TRN: US200722%%1269
Journal Information:
American Journal of Physiology. Cell Physiology, 292(6):C2084-2094, Vol. 292, Issue 6
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

Similar Records

Skeletal myocyte hypertrophy requires mTOR kinase activity and S6K1
Journal Article · Sat Sep 10 00:00:00 EDT 2005 · Experimental Cell Research · OSTI ID:909471

Phospholamban mutants compete with wild type for SERCA binding in living cells
Journal Article · Fri Apr 06 00:00:00 EDT 2012 · Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications · OSTI ID:909471

Three-dimensional contractile muscle tissue consisting of human skeletal myocyte cell line
Journal Article · Sat Sep 15 00:00:00 EDT 2018 · Experimental Cell Research · OSTI ID:909471