Phosphatidylethanol stimulates the plasma-membrane calcium pump from human erythrocytes.

Phosphatidylethanol is formed by "transphosphatidylation' of phospholipids with ethanol catalysed by phospholipase D and can be accumulated in the plasma membrane of mammalian cells after treatment of animals with ethanol. In the present work we show that phosphatidylalcohols, such as phosphatidylethanol and phosphatidylbutanol, produced a twofold stimulation of the Ca(2+)-ATPase activity of human erythrocytes. This stimulation occurs with the purified, solubilized enzyme as well as with ghost preparations, where the enzyme is in its natural lipidic environment and is different to that obtained with other acidic phospholipids such as phosphatidylserine.