Local Control of Nuclear Calcium Signaling in Cardiac Myocytes by Perinuclear Microdomains of Sarcolemmal Insulin-Like Growth Factor 1 Receptors

Rationale: The ability of a cell to independently regulate nuclear and cytosolic Ca2+ signaling is currently attributed to the differential distribution of inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor channel isoforms in the nucleoplasmic versus the endoplasmic reticulum. In cardiac myocytes, T-tubules confer the necessary compartmentation of Ca2+ signals, which allows sarcomere contraction in response to plasma membrane depolarization, but whether there is a similar structure tunneling extracellular stimulation to control nuclear Ca2+ signals locally has not been explored. Objective: To study the role of perinuclear sarcolemma in selective nuclear Ca2+ signaling. Methods and Results: We report here that insulin-like growth factor 1 triggers a fast and independent nuclear Ca2+ signal in neonatal rat cardiac myocytes, human embryonic cardiac myocytes, and adult rat cardiac myocytes. This fast and localized response is achieved by activation of insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor signaling complexes present in perinuclear invaginations of the plasma membrane. The perinuclear insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor pool connects extracellular stimulation to local activation of nuclear Ca2+ signaling and transcriptional upregulation through the perinuclear hydrolysis of phosphatidylinositol 4,5-biphosphate inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate production, nuclear Ca2+ release, and activation of the transcription factor myocyte-enhancing factor 2C. Genetically engineered Ca2+ buffers-parvalbumin-with cytosolic or nuclear localization demonstrated that the nuclear Ca2+ handling system is physically and functionally segregated from the cytosolic Ca2+ signaling machinery. Conclusions: These data reveal the existence of an inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate-dependent nuclear Ca2+ toolkit located in direct apposition to the cell surface, which allows the local control of rapid and independent activation of nuclear Ca2+ signaling in response to an extracellular ligand. (Circ Res. 2013;112:236-245.)