cAMP-dependent Protein Kinase Activation Lowers Hepatocyte cAMP

Rat hepatocyte protein kinase was activated by incubating the cells with various cAMP analogs. Boiled extracts were then prepared and Sephadex G-25 chromatography was carried out. The G-25 procedure separated the analogs from cAMP since the resin had the unexpected property of binding cyclic nucleotides with differing affinities. Separation was necessary because the analogs would otherwise interfere with the sensitive protein kinase activation method developed for assay of cAMP. The cAMP analogs, but not 5\u27-AMP, lowered basal cAMP by 50-70%. The effect was rapid, analog concentration-dependent, and occurred parallel with phosphorylase activation, suggesting that the cAMP analogs act through cAMP-dependent protein kinase activation. A cAMP analog completely blocked the cAMP elevation produced by relatively low concentrations of glucagon, but did not block the phosphorylase response, indicating that the cAMP analog substitutes for cAMP as the intracellular activator of protein kinase. One implication of the results is that elevation of cAMP and protein kinase activity by hormones has a negative feedback effect on the cellular cAMP level

Two Classes of cAMP Analogs Which Are Selective for the Two Different cAMP-Binding Sites of Type II Protein Kinase Demonstrate Synergism When Added Together to Intact Adipocytes

Twenty-five cyclic nucleotide analogs were tested individually to act as lipolytic agents and to activate adipocyte protein kinase. The lipolytic potency of individual analogs correlated better with their K(a) for protein kinase and their lipophilicity rather than with either parameters alone. Some of the most potent lipolytic analogs had high I50 values for the particulate low K(m) cAMP phosphodiesterase suggesting that their effect was not due to raising endogenous cAMP levels through inhibition of phosphodiesterase. The most potent lipolytic analogs contained a thio moiety at the C-8 or C-6 position. These analogs exhibited concave upward dose-response curves. At high concentrations some analogs were as effective as optimal concentrations of epinephrine in stimulating glycerol release. The regulatory subunit of protein kinase has two different intrachain cAMP-binding sites and cAMP analogs modified at the C-8 position (C-8 analogs) are generally selective for Site 1 and analogs modified at the C-6 position (C-6 analogs) are generally selective for Site 2 (Rannels, S.R., and Corbin, J.D. (1980) J. Biol. Chem. 255, 7085-7088). Thus, C-8 and C-6 analogs were tested in combination to stimulate lipolysis in intact adipocytes and to activate protein kinase in vitro. Each process was stimulated synergistically by a combination of a C-6 and C-8 analog. Two C-8 analogs or two C-6 analogs added together did not cause synergism of either process. For both lipolysis and protein kinase activation, C-8 thio analogs acted more synergistically than C-8 amino analogs when incubated in combination with C-6 analogs, a characteristic of type II protein kinase. It is concluded that the observed synergism of lipolysis is due to binding of cAMP analogs to both intrachain sites and that it is the type II protein kinase isozyme which is responsible for the lipolytic response

Discriminative Insulin Antagonism of Stimulatory Effects of Various cAMP Analogs on Adipocyte Lipolysis and Hepatocyte Glycogenolysis

Although insulin effectively blocked hormone-stimulated glycerol output in adipocytes or phosphorylase activation in hepatocytes, the inhibitory effect of insulin on cAMP analog-stimulated cells depended on the cAMP analog used. Of the 20 analogs tested in adipocytes and 13 tested in hepatocytes, the effects of about half of them were effectively blocked by insulin, whereas the effects of many of them were not inhibited at all. In order to approach the explanation for this discriminative insulin action, the inhibitory effects of insulin on the responses to the analogs in the intact cells were correlated with the in vitro cAMP analog specificity for the hepatocyte cAMP-dependent protein kinase isozymes and the low K(m), hormone-sensitive phosphodiesterases from both cell types. No correlation was found between insulin resistance of analog-stimulated hepatocyte phosphorylase and the concentration of analog required in vitro for half-maximal activation of either type I or type II cAMP-dependent protein kinase from hepatocytes. However, a good correlation was found between insulin resistance of cAMP analog-stimulated responses and the analog I50 values for the phosphodiesterase from both cell types. Using a new method capable of measuring hydrolysis at low analog concentrations, several of those analogs which had relatively low, but not high, phosphodiesterase I50 values were shown to be directly hydrolyzed by the low K(m) adipocyte phosphodiesterase. The insulin inhibition of cell responses when stimulated by hydrolyzable analogs, but not by poorly hydrolyzable analogs, is best explained by insulin stimulation of the low K(m) phosphodiesterases from both cell types

Microheterogeneity of Type II cAMP-Dependent Protein Kinase in Various Mammalian Species and Tissues

Excluding autophosphorylated species, at least six forms of the regulatory subunit of type II cAMP-dependent protein kinase (R(II)) from various mammalian tissues were identified by sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) gel electrophoresis of purified samples and of crude preparations photoaffinity labeled with 8-azido[32P] cAMP and by gel filtration. After autophosphorylation some heart R(II) forms termed type IIA (bovine, porcine, equine, and dog) shifted to a more slowly migrating band on SDS gels while others termed type IIB (rat, guinea pig, rabbit, and monkey) did not detectably shift. Both subclasses of R(II) exhibited variation in apparent M(r) on SDS gels. Bovine and porcine heart nonautophosphorylated R(II) had M(r) 56,000 and the autophosphorylated R(II) had M(r) 58,000, while dog and equine heart R(II) had M(r) 54,000 and 56,000 for these bands, respectively. Rat heart R(II) had M(r) 56,000 while rabbit and guinea pig heart R(II) had M(r) 52,000. More than one R(II) was found in different tissues of the same species. Rabbit skeletal muscle contained a M(r) 56,000 IIB form. Bovine lung contained almost equal amounts of a IIA form apparently identical to that of bovine heart and a M(r) 52,000 IIB form similar to that which predominated in bovine brain. Rat adipose tissue, brain, and monkey heart contained predominantly a M(r) 51,000 IIB form. The rat liver M(r) 56,000 IIB form chromatographed differently from all other R(II) tested by gel filtration. Several lines of evidence indicated that the various forms of R(II) were not derived from one another through proteolysis or other processes. Each of the type II forms rapidly incorporated 0.3-1.0 mol of 32P per mol of subunit when incubated with [γ-32P]ATP and C subunit. Four of the forms tested were similar in the cAMP concentration dependence for activation of their corresponding holoenzymes and inhibited C subunit about equally. Each exhibited two components of [3H]cAMP dissociation, indicating two intrachain cAMP-binding sites, and the dissociation rates for the respective sites, and the dissociation rates for the respective sites were similar

Short-Term Feedback Regulation of cAMP by Accelerated Degradation in Rat Tissues

A recent study showed that cAMP analogs lowered cAMP levels in rat hepatocytes. The present work demonstrates that cAMP analogs also lowered cAMP in a rapid, concentration-dependent manner in heart and fat cells. In order to determine if the cAMP-dependent protein kinase mediated this effect, techniques were developed to assay the protein kinase activity ratio in hepatocytes treated with cAMP analogs. The activation of protein kinase and phosphorylase in hepatocytes by 8-pClΦS-cAMP (where 8-pClΦS- indicates 8-parachlorothiophenyl-) was concentration-dependent and occurred in parallel to proportionate decreases in cAMP. More than 20% of the cAMP binding sites on the protein kinase were unoccupied at concentrations of 8-pClΦS-cAMP that produced maximal cAMP lowering. Thus, the possibility that 8-pClΦS-cAMP lowered cAMP by displacing it from protein kinase binding sites, making it available for hydrolysis, seemed unlikely. In adipocytes, the lowering of cAMP by 8-pClΦS-cAMP occurred in parallel with increases in lipolysis and activation of low K(m) phosphodiesterase, suggesting that the phosphodiesterase was responsible for the cAMP lowering. Further evidence for this assertion was the finding that in hepatocytes preloaded with low concentrations of 8-pClΦS-cAMP, glucagon lowered 8-pClΦS-cAMP by about 50%, an amount similar to the cAMP lowering observed with 8-pClΦS-cAMP treatment. The results were consistent with a cAMP-dependent protein kinase-catalyzed activation of a phosphodiesterase and suggested that 8-pClΦS-cAMP-mediated hydrolysis of cAMP mimicked a physiologically significant response. The observation of this phenomenon in several tissues further suggested that it may a general mechanism for dampening and terminating the hormonal signal through accelerated degradation of cAMP

Crystal Structures of Phosphodiesterases 4 and 5 in Complex with Inhibitor 3-Isobutyl-1-methylxanthine Suggest a Conformation Determinant of Inhibitor Selectivity

Cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterases (PDEs) are a superfamily of enzymes controlling cellular concentrations of the second messengers cAMP and cGMP. Crystal structures of the catalytic domains of cGMP-specific PDE5A1 and cAMP-specific PDE4D2 in complex with the nonselective inhibitor 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine have been determined at medium resolution. The catalytic domain of PDE5A1 has the same topological folding as that of PDE4D2, but three regions show different tertiary structures, including residues 79-113, 208-224 (H-loop), and 341-364 (M-loop) in PDE4D2 or 535-566, 661-676, and 787-812 in PDE5A1, respectively. Because H- and M-loops are involved in binding of the selective inhibitors, the different conformations of the loops, thus the distinct shapes of the active sites, will be a determinant of inhibitor selectivity in PDEs. IBMX binds to a subpocket that comprises key residues Ile-336, Phe-340, Gln-369, and Phe-372 of PDE4D2 or Val-782, Phe-786, Gln-817, and Phe-820 of PDE5A1. This subpocket may be a common site for binding nonselective inhibitors of PDEs

cGMP-dependent protein kinase Iα associates with the antidepressant-sensitive serotonin transporter and dictates rapid modulation of serotonin uptake

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The Na⁺/Cl^--dependent serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) transporter (SERT) is a critical element in neuronal 5-HT signaling, being responsible for the efficient elimination of 5-HT after release. SERTs are not only targets for exogenous addictive and therapeutic agents but also can be modulated by endogenous, receptor-linked signaling pathways. We have shown that neuronal A3 adenosine receptor activation leads to enhanced presynaptic 5-HT transport <it>in vitro </it>and an increased rate of SERT-mediated 5-HT clearance <it>in vivo</it>. SERT stimulation by A3 adenosine receptors derives from an elevation of cGMP and subsequent activation of both cGMP-dependent protein kinase (PKG) and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase. PKG activators such as 8-Br-cGMP are known to lead to transporter phosphorylation, though how this modification supports SERT regulation is unclear.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In this report, we explore the kinase isoform specificity underlying the rapid stimulation of SERT activity by PKG activators. Using immortalized, rat serotonergic raphe neurons (RN46A) previously shown to support 8-Br-cGMP stimulation of SERT surface trafficking, we document expression of PKGI, and to a lower extent, PKGII. Quantitative analysis of staining profiles using permeabilized or nonpermeabilized conditions reveals that SERT colocalizes with PKGI in both intracellular and cell surface domains of RN46A cell bodies, and exhibits a more restricted, intracellular pattern of colocalization in neuritic processes. In the same cells, SERT demonstrates a lack of colocalization with PKGII in either intracellular or surface membranes. In keeping with the ability of the membrane permeant kinase inhibitor DT-2 to block 8-Br-cGMP stimulation of SERT, we found that DT-2 treatment eliminated cGMP-dependent kinase activity in PKGI-immunoreactive extracts resolved by liquid chromatography. Similarly, treatment of SERT-transfected HeLa cells with small interfering RNAs targeting endogenous PKGI eliminated 8-Br-cGMP-induced regulation of SERT activity. Co-immunoprecipitation studies show that, in transporter/kinase co-transfected cells, PKGIα specifically associates with hSERT.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our findings provide evidence of a physical and compartmentalized association between SERT and PKGIα that supports rapid, 8-Br-cGMP-induced regulation of SERT. We discuss a model wherein SERT-associated PKGIα supports sequentially the mobilization of intracellular transporter-containing vesicles, leading to enhanced surface expression, and the production of catalytic-modulatory SERT phosphorylation, leading to a maximal enhancement of 5-HT clearance capacity.</p

Multiple Conformations of Phosphodiesterase-5: IMPLICATIONS FOR ENZYME FUNCTION AND DRUG DEVELOPMENT

Phosphodiesterase-5 (PDE5) is the target for sildenafil, vardenafil, and tadalafil, which are drugs for treatment of erectile dysfunction and pulmonary hypertension. We report here the crystal structures of a fully active catalytic domain of unliganded PDE5A1 and its complexes with sildenafil or icarisid II. These structures together with the PDE5A1-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine complex show that the H-loop ( residues 660-683) at the active site of PDE5A1 has four different conformations and migrates 7-35 angstrom upon inhibitor binding. In addition, the conformation of sildenafil reported herein differs significantly from those in the previous structures of chimerically hybridized or almost inactive PDE5. Mutagenesis and kinetic analyses confirm that the H-loop is particularly important for substrate recognition and that invariant Gly(659), which immediately precedes the H-loop, is critical for optimal substrate affinity and catalytic activity