Reduced Loading of Intracellular Ca2+ Stores and Downregulation of Capacitative Ca2+Influx in Bcl-2–Overexpressing Cells

The mechanism of action of the oncogene bcl-2, a key regulator of the apoptotic process, is still debated. We have employed organelle-targeted chimeras of the Ca(2+)-sensitive photoprotein, aequorin, to investigate in detail the effect of Bcl-2 overexpression on intracellular Ca(2+) homeostasis. In the ER and the Golgi apparatus, Bcl-2 overexpression increases the Ca(2+) leak (while leaving Ca(2+) accumulation unaffected), hence reducing the steady-state [Ca(2+)] levels. As a direct consequence, the [Ca(2+)] increases caused by inositol 1,4,5 trisphosphate (IP3)-generating agonists were reduced in amplitude in both the cytosol and the mitochondria. Bcl-2 overexpression also reduced the rate of Ca(2+) influx activated by Ca(2+) store depletion, possibly by an adaptive downregulation of this pathway. By interfering with Ca(2+)-dependent events at multiple intracellular sites, these effects of Bcl-2 on intracellular Ca(2+) homeostasis may contribute to the protective role of this oncogene against programmed cell death.