Regulation of calcium to tissue plasminogen activator secretion in mouse epidermal keratinocytes

Abstract

The amounts of tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) of culture supernatants, cell surfaces as well as intracellular spaces of the mouse keratinocytes cultured in calcium-free medium or in the presence of low or high calcium concentration medium were tested using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The results indicated that cultured keratinocytes could secrete tPA into extracellular space and respond to the addition of high calcium concentration with a time-dependent increase of tPA secretion, and the peak value of tPA secretion appeared after 24 h of keratinocytes culture. Furthermore, comparing the amount of tPA in culture supernatants with that in cell surfaces, it was found that after culture for 24 h, the secreted tPA could bind to the surfaces of the keratinocytes through the lysine sites within its molecule, and this process was enhanced by high calcium concentration. On the basis of these data we assumed that in mouse keratinocytes, tPA firstly secretes into extracellular space and then binds to the keratinocytes surface, and calcium regulates tPA secretion and its following binding to the surface of keratinocytes, which may correlate with the differentiation of keratinocytes.