Annexin V belongs to a family of proteins that interact with phospholipids in a Ca 2؉ -dependent manner. This protein has been demonstrated to have anti-phospholipase A 2 activity. However, this effect has never yet been reported with the 85-kDa cytosolic PLA 2 (cPLA 2 ). We studied, in a model of differentiated and streptolysin O-permeabilized HL-60 cells, the effect of annexin V on cPLA 2 activity after stimulation by calcium, GTP␥S (guanosine 5-O-(3-thiotriphosphate)), formyl-Met-LeuPhe, or phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate. Both recombinant and human placental purified annexin V inhibit cPLA 2 activity whatever the stimulus used. The decrease of arachidonic acid release is of 40 and 50%, respectively, at [Ca 2؉ ] of 3 and 10 M. The mechanism of inhibition was also analyzed. cPLA 2 requires calcium and protein kinase C (PKC) or mitogen-activated protein kinase phosphorylation for its activation. As annexin V was shown to be an endogenous inhibitor of PKC, PKC-stimulated cPLA 2 activity was analyzed. Using GF109203x, a specific PKC inhibitor, we demonstrated that this pathway is of minor importance in our model. cPLA 2 inhibition by annexin V is not linked to PKC inhibition. To test the hypothesis of phospholipid depletion, mutants of annexin V were constructed using mutagenesis directed to Ca 2؉ site. We demonstrate that the Ca 2؉ site located in domain I is necessary for the inhibitory effect of annexin V on cPLA 2 activity. The site in domain IV is also involved but with less efficiency. In contrast, mutations in site II and III do not modify this effect. Moreover, annexin V mutated on all sites does not inhibit cPLA 2 . Thus, we propose a predominant role of module (I/IV) in the biological action of annexin V, which, in physiological conditions, may control cPLA 2 activity by depletion of the phospholipid substrate.