title: Unifying concepts in stimulus-secretion coupling in endocrine cells and some implications for therapeutics.
abstract: Stimulus-secretion coupling (SSC) in endocrine cells remains underappreciated as a subject for the study/teaching of general physiology. In the present article, we review key new electrophysiological, electrochemical, and fluorescence optical techniques for the study of exocytosis in single cells that have made this a fertile area for recent research. Based on findings using these techniques, we developed a model of SSC for adrenal chromaffin cells that blends features of Ca(2+) entry-dependent SSC (characteristic of neurons) with G protein receptor-coupled, Ca(2+) release-dependent, and second messenger-dependent SSC (characteristic of epithelial exocrine cells and nucleated blood cells). This model requires two distinct pools of secretory graunules with differing Ca(2+) sensitivities. We extended this model to account for SSC in a wide variety of peripheral and hypothalamic/pituitary-based endocrine cells. These include osmosensitive magnocellular neurosecretory cells releasing antidiuretic hormone, stretch-sensitive atrial myocytes secreting atrial natriuretic peptide, K(+)-sensitive adrenal glomerulosa cells secreting aldosterone, Ca(2+)-sensitive parathyroid chief cells secreting parathyroid hormone, and glucose-sensitive beta- and alpha-cells of pancreatic islets secreting insulin and glucagon, respectively. We conclude this article with implications of this approach for pathophysiology and therapeutics, including defects in chief cell Ca(2+) sensitivity, resulting in the hyperparathyroidism of renal disease, and defects in biphasic insulin secretion, resulting in diabetes mellitus.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine and Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri 63110, USA. smisler@dom.wustl.edu
authors.forename: Stanley
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Misler
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002395:Catecholamines / Q000378:metabolism; D055098:Endocrine Cells / Q000378:metabolism*; D005089:Exocytosis; D005453:Fluorescence; D006801:Humans
chemical_list: D002395:Catecholamines