The third intracellular domain of the platelet-activating factor receptor is a critical determinant in receptor coupling to phosphoinositide phospholipase C-activating G proteins. Studies using intracellular domain minigenes and receptor chimeras

Platelet activating factor (PAF) is a potent phospholipid mediator which elicits a diverse array of biological actions by interacting with G protein- coupled PAF receptors (PAFR). Binding of PAF to PAFRs leads to activation of G protein(s) that stimulate phosphoinositide phospholipase C and subsequent intracellular signaling responses. To identify the potential role of intracellular domains of the rat PAFR (rPAFR) in signaling, we examined effects of transfecting minigenes encompassing rPAFR intracellular domains 1 (1i), 2 (2i), and 3 (3i) on inositol phosphate (IP) production mediated by the cotransfected rPAFR cDNA. Although transfection of the rPAFR1i and rPAFR2i minigenes had no effects on PAF-stimulated signaling, transfection of the rPAFR3i minigene inhibited PAF-stimulated IP production by approximately 50% compared to controls. The rPAFR3i domain did not inhibit IP production mediated by the multifunctional rat pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide receptor (rPACAPR), demonstrating the specificity of the competition by the rPAFR3i domain. In further experiments, the rPAFR3i domain was engineered onto the homologous domain of a monofunctional transmembrane variant of the rPACAPR (rPACAPR₂) that activates only adenylyl cyclase. The rPACAPR₂/rPAFR3i chimera responded to PACAP with increases in IP production which were attenuated nearly completely in cells cotransfected with the rPAFR3i domain. In contrast, PACAP had no effects on P production in a receptor chimera expressing a mutated form of the rPAFR3i domain (rPACAPR₂/rPAFR3i(mut)). These results demonstrate the ability of the rPAFR3i domain to confer a phospholipase C-signaling phenotype to a receptor deficient in this activity and show that this activity is specific for the engineered rPAFR3i domain. These results suggest that the third intracellular loop of the rPAFR is a primary determinant in its coupling to phosphoinositide phospholipase C-activating G proteins, providing the first insight into the molecular basis of interaction of PAFRs with signal- transducing G proteins.