Blum AE, Joseph SM, Przybylski RJ, Dubyak GR. Rho-family GTPases modulate Ca 2ϩ -dependent ATP release from astrocytes. Am J Physiol Cell Physiol 295: C231-C241, 2008. First published May 21, 2008 doi:10.1152/ajpcell.00175.2008.-Previously, we reported that activation of G protein-coupled receptors (GPCR) in 1321N1 human astrocytoma cells elicits a rapid release of ATP that is partially dependent on a G q/phophospholipase C (PLC)/Ca 2ϩ mobilization signaling cascade. In this study we assessed the role of Rho-family GTPase signaling as an additional pathway for the regulation of ATP release in response to activation of protease-activated receptor-1 (PAR1), lysophosphatidic acid receptor (LPAR), and M3-muscarinic (M3R) GPCRs. Thrombin (or other PAR1 peptide agonists), LPA, and carbachol triggered quantitatively similar Ca 2ϩ mobilization responses, but only thrombin and LPA caused rapid accumulation of active GTP-bound Rho. The ability to elicit Rho activation correlated with the markedly higher efficacy of thrombin and LPA, relative to carbachol, as ATP secretagogues. Clostridium difficile toxin B and Clostridium botulinum C3 exoenzyme, which inhibit Rho-GTPases, attenuated the thrombin-and LPA-stimulated ATP release but did not decrease carbachol-stimulated release. Thus the ability of certain G q-coupled receptors to additionally stimulate Rho-GTPases acts to strongly potentiate a Ca 2ϩ -activated ATP release pathway. However, pharmacological inhibition of Rho kinase I/II or myosin light chain kinase did not attenuate ATP release. PAR1-induced ATP release was also reduced twofold by brefeldin treatment suggesting the possible mobilization of Golgi-derived, ATP-containing secretory vesicles. ATP release was also markedly repressed by the gap junction channel inhibitor carbenoxolone in the absence of any obvious thrombin-induced change in membrane permeability indicative of hemichannel gating. Rho GTPase; astrocyte; hemichannel EXTRACELLULAR NUCLEOTIDES act as autocrine/paracrine signaling molecules by targeting multiple P2 purinergic receptor subtypes that are differentially expressed in most tissues (7). Cells are able to tightly regulate the concentration of ATP and other nucleotides in the extracelluar space through a balance of release and extracellular metabolism of these nucleotides. The four sources of extracellular nucleotides are cell lysis, exocytosis, transport-mediated ATP release, and extracellular nucleotide kinases. In nonexcitable cells, such as astrocytes, unequivocal determination of ATP release mechanisms has remained elusive.In the brain, ATP can be released by astrocytes, or by other glial cell types, in response to diverse metabolic, mechanical, or inflammatory stimuli (8, 9). Extracellular ATP can target glia and neurons, as well as the smooth muscle cells and endothelial cells that populate cerebrovascular interfaces (1,21,32). Although purinergic signaling is an important element of the communication network between astrocytes and surrounding cells, the signaling events upstream of ATP ...