Phospholipase D1: A key factor for the exocytotic machinery in neuroendocrine cells

Phospholipase D (PLD) has been proposed to mediate cytoskeletal remodeling and vesicular trafficking along the secretory pathway. We recently described the activation of an ADP ribosylation factor-regulated PLD at the plasma membrane of chromaffin cells undergoing secretagogue-stimulated exocytosis. We show here that the isoform involved is PLD1b, and, using a real-time assay for individual cells, that PLD activation and exocytosis are closely correlated. Moreover, overexpressed PLD1, but not PLD2, increases stimulated exocytosis in a phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate-dependent manner, whereas catalytically inactive PLD1 inhibits it. These results provide the first direct evidence that PLD1 is an important component of the exocytotic machinery in neuroendocrine cells.