Hormonal stimulation of adenylyl cyclase through Gi-protein beta gamma subunits.

Agonist-bound receptors activate heterotrimeric (alpha beta gamma) G proteins by catalysing replacement by GTP of GDP bound to the alpha subunit, resulting in dissociation of alpha-GTP from the beta gamma subunits. In most cases, alpha-GTP carries the signal to effectors, as in hormonal stimulation and inhibition of adenylyl cyclase by alpha s and alpha i respectively. By contrast, genetic evidence in yeast and studies in mammalian cells suggest that beta gamma subunits of G proteins may also regulate effector pathways. Indeed, of the four recombinant mammalian adenylyl cyclases available for study, two, adenylyl cyclases II and IV, are stimulated by beta gamma. This effect of beta gamma requires costimulation by alpha s-GTP. This conditional pattern of effector responsiveness led to the prediction that receptors coupled to many G proteins will mediate elevation of cellular cyclic AMP, provided that Gs is also active. We now confirm this prediction. Coexpression of mutationally active alpha s with adenylyl cyclase II converted agonists that act through 'inhibitory' receptors (coupled to Gi) into stimulators of cAMP synthesis. Experiments using pertussis toxin and a putative scavenger of beta gamma, the alpha subunit of transducin, suggest that beta gamma subunits of the Gi proteins mediated this stimulation. These findings assign a new signalling function to beta gamma subunits of Gi proteins, the conditional stimulation of cAMP synthesis by adenylyl cyclase II.     

Mutant alpha subunits of Gi2 inhibit cyclic AMP accumulation

One or more of three Gi proteins, Gi1-3, mediates hormonal inhibition of adenylyl cyclase. Whether this inhibition is mediated by the alpha or by the beta gamma subunits of Gi proteins is unclear. Mutations inhibiting the intrinsic GTPase activity of another G protein, the stimulatory regulator of adenylyl cyclase (Gs), constitutively activate it by replacing either of two conserved amino acids in its alpha subunit (alpha s). These mutations create the gsp oncogene which is found in human pituitary and thyroid tumours. In a second group of human endocrine tumours, somatic mutations in the alpha subunit of Gi2 replace a residue cognate to one of those affected by gsp mutations. This implies that the mutations convert the alpha i2 gene into a dominantly acting oncogene, called gip2, and that the mutant alpha i2 subunits are constitutively active. We have therefore assessed cyclic AMP accumulation in cultured cells which stably or transiently express exogenous wild-type alpha i2 complementary DNA or either of two mutant alpha i2 cDNAs. The results show that putatively oncogenic mutations in alpha i2 constitutively activate the protein's ability to inhibit cAMP accumulation.     

Altered Gs and adenylate cyclase activity in human GH-secreting pituitary adenomas

Gs and Gi are guanine nucleotide-binding, heterotrimer proteins that regulate the activity of adenylate cyclase, and are responsible for transferring stimulatory and inhibitory hormonal signals, respectively, from cell surface receptors to the enzyme catalytic unit. These proteins can be directly activated by agents such as GTP and analogues, fluoride and magnesium. Decreased amounts of Gs and Gi, and even the absence of Gs, have been described, whereas an altered Gs has been reported in a cultured cell line (UNC variant of S49 lymphoma cells), but has never been observed in human disease states. We have found a profoundly altered Gs protein in a group of human growth hormone-secreting pituitary adenomas, characterized by high secretory activity and intracellular cyclic AMP levels. In the membranes from these tumours no stimulation of adenylate cyclase activity by growth hormone-releasing hormone, by GTP or by fluoride was observed. Indeed, the last two agents caused an inhibition, probably mediated by Gi. In contrast, adenylate cyclase stimulation by Mg2+ was enormously increased. This altered pattern of adenylate cyclase regulation was reproduced when a cholate extract of the tumour membranes (which contains G proteins) was reconstituted with Gs-free, cyc- S49 cell membranes. Inasmuch as secretion from somatotrophic cells is known to be a cAMP-dependent function, the alteration of Gs could be the direct cause of the high secretory activity of the tumours in which it occurs.     

Endogenous ADP-ribosylation of Gs subunit and autonomous regulation of adenylate cyclase

Although cholera toxin induces a marked stimulation of adenylate cyclase activity in rat adipocyte plasma membranes, the holotoxin induces only a slight increase of cyclic AMP accumulation in intact cells. A similar apparent anomaly is seen with pertussis toxin, which has been shown to inhibit the Gi subunit of adenylate cyclase, and has a greater effect on cAMP accumulation and lipolysis than the activation by cholera toxin of the Gs subunit. To understand better the way in which these bacterial toxins are modifying the adipocyte cells, we prepared adipocyte plasma membranes and submitted them to ADP-ribosylation by cholera and pertussis toxins. During the incubation of control cells, we found endogenous ADP-ribosylation of Gs as a result of sustained stimulation of Gi by adenosine. Our results point to a possible homoeostatic system in which the autonomous adjustment of the basal activity of Gs as a function of that of Gi, under the control of feedback inhibitory ligands, ensures a steady production of cAMP within the cell.     

Serotonin stimulates DNA synthesis in fibroblasts acting through 5-HT1B receptors coupled to a Gi-protein

Growth factors can be divided into two classes which act through distinct signal transduction pathways. One class including epidermal growth factor, platelet derived growth factor and fibroblast growth factor activates receptor tyrosine kinases, and the second class, including thrombin, bombesin, bradykinin and vasopressin activates a phosphoinositide-specific phospholipase C through GTP-binding proteins which can be inactivated by pertussis toxin. In Chinese hamster lung fibroblasts, thrombin-induced mitogenicity seems to correlate well with phospholipase C activation and both events are sensitive to pertussis toxin. Thrombin, like the other mitogens in this class, simultaneously inhibits adenylate cyclase. This involves an inhibitory G protein (Gi), a well established pertussis toxin substrate. The relative contributions of the two signalling pathways to mitogenicity has not been evaluated so far. We report here that the neurotransmitter serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine), a contracting agent and mitogen for smooth muscle cells, activates phospholipase C, inhibits adenylate cyclase and stimulates DNA synthesis in fibroblasts. These events are sensitive to pertussis toxin. We show that the mitogenicity of 5-hydroxytryptamine can be uncoupled from phospholipase C activation that is mediated by 5-HT2 receptors, but correlates perfectly with inhibition of adenylate cyclase through 5-HT1B receptor. We propose that inhibition of adenylate cyclase or activation of an undefined effector system by Gi is important in 5-hydroxytryptamine induced DNA synthesis and contributes to the strong mitogenicity of the other members of this family of growth factors.     

Chronic ethanol causes heterologous desensitization of receptors by reducing alpha s messenger RNA

One of the biochemical results of ethanol exposure is a change in the amount of the intracellular second messenger cyclic AMP (cAMP) produced in response to receptor stimulation. In general, acute ethanol exposure increases the amount of cAMP produced on stimulation of receptors coupled to the enzyme adenylyl cyclase via the GTP-binding protein Gs, whereas chronic ethanol exposure has the opposite effect (results for receptors coupled via Gi have been more variable). We previously reported that adaptation to continuous ethanol exposure reduces receptor-stimulated cAMP production by 25-35% in a neuroblastoma cell line (NG108-15), and an even greater reduction of 75% was observed in lymphocytes taken from actively-drinking alcoholics. This reduction in receptor-stimulated cAMP levels was recently confirmed in platelets from alcoholics. None of these studies, however, determined whether more than one receptor coupled to adenylyl cyclase activity was affected in the same cell. Here we report that chronic ethanol exposure causes desensitization of heterologous receptors coupled to Gs as cAMP production mediated by prostaglandin E1 as well as by adenosine is reduced by approximately 30% in NG108-15 cells. We show that, after chronic ethanol exposure, the activity of the alpha subunit of Gs is decreased by 29%, the amount of alpha s protein is decreased by 38.5%, and alpha s messenger RNA is decreased by 30%. Thus, cellular adaptation to ethanol involves a reduction in alpha s mRNA and, as a consequence, reduced cAMP production by heterologous receptors coupled to Gs. Such changes in cAMP production may account for the tolerance and physical dependence on ethanol in alcoholism.     

G alpha(i) and G alpha(o) are target proteins of reactive oxygen species

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) have been identified as central mediators in certain signalling events. In the heart, ROS have important functions in ischaemia/reperfusion-induced cardiac injury and in cytokine-stimulated hypertrophy. Extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) is one of the ROS-responsive serine/threonine kinases. Previous studies showed that tyrosine kinases and small G proteins are involved in the activation of ERK by ROS; however, the initial target protein of ROS that leads to ERK activation remains unknown. Here we show that inhibition of the betagamma-subunit of G protein (G betagamma) attenuates hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)-induced ERK activation in rat neonatal cardiomyocytes. The G betagamma-responsive ERK activation induced by H2O2 is independent of ligands binding to Gi-coupled receptors, but requires phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase and Src activation. In in vitro studies, however, treatment with H2O2 increases [35S]GTP-gammaS binding to cardiac membranes and directly activates purified heterotrimeric Gi and Go but not Gs. Analysis using heterotrimeric Go and its individual subunits indicates that H2O2 modifies G alpha(o) but not G betagamma, which leads to subunit dissociation. We conclude that G alpha(i) and G alpha(o) are critical targets of oxidative stress for activation of ERK.     

前体脂肪细胞3T3-L1诱导分化条件的优化

利用L18(37)正交试验,考察了联合诱导时3-异丁基-1-甲基黄嘌呤(IBMX)、地塞米松和胰岛素用量以及联合诱导时间,胰岛素单独诱导时间以及胰岛素用量对3T3-L1前体脂肪细胞分化为成熟脂肪细胞的影响.极差分析的结果表明,各条件对3T3-L1前体脂肪细胞分化的影响程度由大到小排序为:IBMX、联合诱导时间、胰岛素单独作用量、联合诱导时胰岛素作用量、地塞米松、胰岛素单独作用时间;方差分析的结果表明,IBMX的诱导效应极显著,联合诱导时间和胰岛素单独作用量呈显著水平,而其他条件(联合诱导时胰岛素作用量、地塞米松和胰岛素以及单独作用时间)对结果的影响并不显著.3T3-L1前体脂肪细胞分化的最适诱导条件为:500~750μmol/L IBMX、0.25~1μmol/L地塞米松与1μg/mL胰岛素,在联合诱导72 h后,再用5~10μg/mL胰岛素诱导48 h.油红染色镜检结果显示,在该条件下前体脂肪细胞诱导分化率均高于联合诱导时胰岛素作用量、地塞米松和胰岛素以及单独作用时间.     

Normal p21N-ras couples bombesin and other growth factor receptors to inositol phosphate production

Many receptors, in response to ligand activation, trigger inositol phospholipid breakdown, which leads to rapid intracellular responses. The sustained activation of this pathway is believed to be at least one of the factors involved in the stimulation of cell growth and there has been much speculation that certain oncogenes use this pathway to effect uncontrolled cellular proliferation. It has been suggested, by analogy with the receptor-mediated control of adenylate cyclase, that the receptor stimulation of inositol phospholipid metabolism is mediated through a guanine nucleotide regulatory protein (G-protein) called Gp (or Np). Although such a species has not been identified, there is now strong experimental evidence that this process is mediated by a G-protein distinct from the stimulatory and inhibitory G-proteins (Gs and Gi, respectively). The ras genes code for a plasma membrane protein, p21, whose only known biochemical property is a high-affinity GTPase activity. We show here that the expression of normal p21N-ras in NIH 3T3 fibroblasts leads to the coupling of certain growth factor receptors to stimulated inositol phosphate production. We propose that the N-ras proto-oncogene encodes a protein which couples the receptors for certain growth factors to the stimulation of phospholipase C. Thus, N-ras p21 may be the putative Gp or a functionally related protein.     

胰岛素抵抗3T3-L1脂肪细胞中脂联素mRNA表达的研究

目的:通过本实验研究脂联素mRNA在胰岛素抵抗3T3-L1脂肪细胞中的表达.方法:培养3T3-L1前脂肪细胞,诱导分化为脂肪细胞,采用地塞米松诱导建立3T3-LI脂肪细胞胰岛素抵抗模型,运用RT-PCR技术检测脂联素mRNA的表达.结果:随着胰岛素抵抗的发生,脂联素mRNA的表达量明显降低,经过罗格列酮干预胰岛素抵抗后,干预组脂联素mRNA表达量较空白组升高了约103.5%.结论:脂联素mRNA表达量与胰岛素抵抗的发生关系密切,其有望作为治疗胰岛素抵抗的靶基因.     

Elongation factor-1 alpha gene determines susceptibility to transformation.

Elongation factor-1 alpha (EF-1 alpha), an essential component of the eukaryotic translational apparatus, is a GTP-binding protein that catalyses the binding of aminoacyl-transfer RNAs to the ribosome. Expression of the EF-1 alpha gene decreases towards the end of the lifespans of mouse and human fibroblasts, but forced expression of EF-1 alpha prolongs the lifespan of Drosophila melanogaster. Eukaryotic initiation factor-4E, another component of the translational machinery, is mitogenic or oncogenic when constitutively expressed in some mammalian cells. Thus, components of the protein synthesis apparatus seem to be involved in the control of cell proliferation. Using expression cloning, we have isolated a complementary DNA clone from a BALB/c 3T3 mouse fibroblast variant, A31-I-13 (ref. 10), which specifies a factor determining the susceptibility of BALB/c3T3 to chemically and physically induced transformation. Here we report that the factor is EF-1 alpha and that its constitutive expression causes BALB/c 3T3 A31-I-1 (ref. 10), C3H10T1/2 (ref. 11) and Syrian hamster SHOK fibroblasts to become highly susceptible to transformation induced by 3-methylcholanthrene and ultraviolet light. EF-1 alpha messenger RNA is also constitutively expressed in a quiescent culture of the highly susceptible variant A31-I-13. We conclude that the removal of regulation of the expression of these components of the translational machinery may predispose cells to become more susceptible to malignant transformation.     

Pituitary hyperplasia and gigantism in mice caused by a cholera toxin transgene.

Cyclic AMP is thought to act as an intracellular second messenger, mediating the physiological response of many cell types to extracellular signals. In the pituitary, growth hormone (GH)-producing cells (somatotrophs) proliferate and produce GH in response to hypothalamic GH-releasing factor, which binds a receptor that stimulates Gs protein activation of adenylyl cyclase. We have now determined whether somatotroph proliferation and GH production are stimulated by cAMP alone, or require concurrent, non-Gs-mediated induction of other regulatory molecules by designing a transgene to induce chronic supraphysiological concentrations of cAMP in somatotrophs. The rat GH promoter was used to express an intracellular form of cholera toxin, a non-cytotoxic and irreversible activator of Gs. Introduction of this transgene into mice caused gigantism, elevated serum GH levels, somatotroph proliferation and pituitary hyperplasia. These results support the direct triggering of these events by cAMP, and illustrate the utility of cholera toxin transgenes as a tool for physiological engineering.     

Lactose binding to heat-labile enterotoxin revealed by X-ray crystallography.

Recognition of the oligosaccharide portion of ganglioside GM1 in membranes of target cells by the heat-labile enterotoxin from Escherichia coli is the crucial first step in its pathogenesis, as it is for the closely related cholera toxin. These toxins have five B subunits, which are essential for GM1 binding, and a single A subunit, which needs to be nicked by proteolysis and reduced, yielding an A1-'enzyme' and an A2-'linker' peptide. A1 is translocated across the membrane of intestinal epithelial cells, possibly after endocytosis, upon which it ADP-ribosylates the G protein Gs alpha. The mechanism of binding and translocation of these toxins has been extensively investigated, but how the protein is orientated on binding is still not clear. Knowing the precise arrangement of the ganglioside binding sites of the toxins will be useful for designing drugs against the diarrhoeal diseases caused by organisms secreting these toxins and in the development of oral vaccines against them. We present here the three-dimensional structure of the E. coli heat-labile enterotoxin complexed with lactose. This reveals the location of the binding site of the terminal galactose of GM1, which is consistent with toxin binding to the target cell with its A1 fragment pointing away from the membrane. A small helix is identified at the carboxy terminus of A2 which emerges through the central pore of the B subunits and probably comes into contact with the membrane upon binding, whereas the A1 subunit is flexible with respect to the B pentamer.     

Stimulation of specific GTP binding and hydrolysis activities in lymphocyte membrane by interleukin-2

Interleukin-2 (IL-2) is a polypeptide growth factor which stimulates the proliferation and differentiation of T lymphocytes. The receptor for IL-2 is expressed on activated T lymphocytes, cloned IL-2 dependent cells and several other cell types. Analysis of the primary structure and of immune-precipitated receptor suggests that this molecule has no intrinsic signal transduction function, unlike other growth factors. IL-2 interaction with a high affinity receptor has been shown, however, to activate the calcium/phospholipid-dependent protein kinase C (PK-C) presumably via phosphoinositide hydrolysis. Members of a family of closely related guanine nucleotide binding proteins (G proteins) regulate a diverse group of metabolic events. Two of them, Gs and Gi, stimulate and inhibit adenylate cyclase activity respectively, and other G proteins are involved in diverse signal transduction system. Another member, Go, has no known function and activation of phospholipase C has been attributed to the action of an unidentified G protein, Gp. Since it has been observed that IL-2 inhibits the catalytic activity of adenylate cyclase and that agents such as PGE2 which stimulate adenylate cyclase activity inhibit the lymphoproliferative response to IL-2, association of GTP binding proteins with IL-2 signal transduction was investigated. In this report we describe for the first time the participation of a GTP binding protein in the action of a polypeptide growth factor, interleukin-2.     

Lithium inhibits adrenergic and cholinergic increases in GTP binding in rat cortex

Lithium is a unique drug with therapeutic as well as prophylactic value for both manic and depressive phases of manic-depressive illness. The precise mechanisms of its clinical efficacy remain unknown, but there are two main theories of its biochemical action. One proposes that lithium inhibits adrenergically activated adenylate cyclase function whereas the other suggests that it inhibits phosphatidyl inositol turnover, which is known to be activated by cholinergic agonists. Neither mechanism alone, however, can explain both the antimanic and antidepressant effects of lithium. Because of the pivotal role of G proteins in post-receptor information transduction, we have investigated the interaction of lithium with G protein function. Lithium at therapeutically efficacious concentrations completely blocked both adrenergic and cholinergic agonist-induced increases in [3H]GTP binding to membranes from rat cerebral cortex, in both in vitro and ex vivo experiments. The same lithium treatments also abolished guanine nucleotide modulation of agonist binding. Our findings suggest G proteins (Gs and Gi or Go) as the molecular site of action for both the antimanic and antidepressant effects of lithium.     

利用反义RNA探索外源基因丢失的分子机理

利用反义ＲＮＡ技术研究了调控ＰＡＲＰ酶基因的表达对外源基因整合稳定性的影响。将ＰＡＲＰ基因ｃＤＮＡ的部分序列反向插入到真核表达载体ｐＳＭＧ中,将重组质粒分别导入携带有外源基因的细胞中,地塞米松诱导反义ＰＡＲＰ基因的表达后,进行Ｓｏｕｔｈｅｒｎ杂交检测。结果表明,外源基因仍保留在基因组中,这意味着外源基因的丢失并不是由于单一ＰＡＲＰ酶活性降低所致。     

Lipid modification at the N terminus of photoreceptor G-protein alpha-subunit.

Myristate is a fatty acid (fourteen-carbon chain with no double bonds, C14:0) linked to the amino-terminal glycine of several proteins, including alpha-subunits of heterotrimeric (alpha/beta gamma) G proteins. We report here a novel modification at the N terminus of the alpha-subunit of the photoreceptor G protein transducin, T alpha, with heterogeneous fatty acids composed of laurate (C12:0), unsaturated C14:2 and C14:1 fatty acids, and a small amount (approximately 5%) of myristate. Both the GTPase activity of T alpha/T beta gamma and the T beta gamma-dependent ADP-ribosylation of T alpha catalysed by pertussis toxin were inhibited by the lauroylated and myristoylated N-terminal peptide of T alpha. The myristoylated peptide gave 50% inhibition at a 3.5 to approximately 4.5-fold lower concentration than the lauroylated peptide in each assay, indicating that the strength of the interaction between T alpha and T beta gamma is altered by heterogeneous fatty acids linked to T alpha. This suggests that a looser subunit interaction in transducin which is due to an abundance of N-linked fatty acids other than myristate would favour the rapid turnover and catalysis essential for the visual excitation in photoreceptor cells.     

Assignment of G-protein subtypes to specific receptors inducing inhibition of calcium currents.

The inhibition of voltage-dependent Ca2+ channels in secretory cells by plasma membrane receptors is mediated by pertussis toxin-sensitive G proteins. Multiple forms of G proteins have been described, differing principally in their alpha subunits, but it has not been possible to establish which G-protein subtype mediates inhibition by a specific receptor. By intranuclear injection of antisense oligonucleotides into rat pituitary GH3 cells, the essential role of the Go-type G proteins in Ca(2+)-channel inhibition is established: the subtypes Go1 and Go2 mediate inhibition through the muscarinic and somatostatin receptors, respectively.