Roles of Calcium Signaling and Protein Kinase C Activation in Mediating Receptor Control of Corneal Epithelial Renewal

Abstract

Epidermal growth factor, EGF, is one of the essential growth factors that stimulates injury-induced corneal epithelial healing rates. Cell signaling contributors mediating this response include capacitative calcium entry (CCE) activation and protein kinase C (PKC) isoform stimulation. This study shows in human corneal epithelial cells, HCEC, that CCE is preferentially activated by the PKC isoforms  and . Moreover such activation requires increases in plasma membrane Ca2+ influx through store-operated channels. Therefore, EGF-induced stimulation of cell proliferation and migration may depend on unique effects mediated by six different PKC isoforms identified in HCEC. TRPV1 is a vanilloid subtype of the transient receptor potential protein superfamily. This isoform is a subunit of a non-selective cation channel mediating downstream responses to heat, low pH, or noxious stimuli. TRPV1 expression has been recently described in some epithelial tissues and induces proinflammatory cytokine release through mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) superfamily stimulation. This study describes in HCEC the signaling pathways mediating TRPV1-induced increases in proinflammatory cytokine release. It suggests that epithelial TRPV1 receptor activation by noxious stimuli contributes in-vivo to mounting proinflammatory reactions.