Phospholipase C enzymes are a class of enzymes that catalyse the cleavage of the membrane phospholipid, phosphatidylinositol bisphosphate (PtdIns(4,5)P₂) into the second messengers, inositol trisphosphate (Ins(4,5)P₃) and diacylglycerol (DAG). Six classes of PLC enzymes have been identified based on their structure and mechanism of activation. PLCηs are the most recently identified family and consist of two isozymes, PLCη1 and PLCη2. The aim of this thesis is to further understand the mechanisms of PLCη activation, the role of PLCη2 in relation to neuritogenesis and their roles in certain disease states. Both isoforms were found to be activated by physiological concentrations of intracellular Ca²⁺. Activation of PLCη2 by Gß₁γ₂ was confirmed using a bacterial 2A co-expression system to allow expression of PLCη2, Gß₁ and Gγ₂ with a single plasmid. Localisation studies show a nuclear distribution for PLCη2, but a cytoplasmic distribution for PLCη1 in a neuroblastoma cells line (Neuro2A). PLCη2 has been implicated in brain development and neurite formation. Building on this, a neuronal differentiation model using RA-treated Neuro2A cells stably expressing mutant forms of PLCη2 was utilised, revealing that PLCη2 activity is essential for neuritogenesis but that this process is independent of the enzymes high sensitivity towards Ca²⁺. Furthermore, the direct interaction of PLCη2 and LIMK-1, a previously identified PLCη2 associated protein, is confirmed in the aforementioned neuronal model. Due to the high sensitivity of PLCη enzymes to Ca²⁺ and because of their presence within neurons, they may be involved in Ca²⁺ dysregulation that occurs in certain diseases such as Alzheimer's disease (AD). The role of PLCη2 was assessed in amyloid-ß (Aß) treated differentiated Neuro2A cells, a cellular model for AD pathogenesis. Also a developmental role for PLCη1 was investigated due to a recently identified PLCη1 polymorphism in patients with holoprosencephaly, an embryonic midline defect.

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