Angiotensin-(1-7) mediated calcium signalling by MAS.

The G protein-coupled receptor, MAS, is the receptor of the endogenous ligand, Angiotensin (Ang)-(1-7). It is a promising drug target since the Ang-(1-7)/MAS axis is protective in the cardiovascular system. Therefore, a characterization of MAS signalling is important for developing novel therapeutics for cardiovascular diseases. In this paper, we show that Ang-(1-7) increases intracellular calcium in transiently MAS-transfected HEK293 cells. The calcium influx induced by the activation of MAS is dependent on plasma membrane Ca channels, phospholipase C, and protein kinase C. Specifically, we could demonstrate that MAS employs non-selective, transient receptor potential channels (TRPs) for calcium entry.